Claim 1 – Deceptive
Rick Perry: A fifteen billion dollar tax cut and more money for our schools. We kept our promises to you. The average homeowner will receive a two thousand dollar tax cut.
Fact: The average Texas homeowner will receive only a $150 property tax cut this year.
Source: “[John] Sharp [Perry appointed Chairman of the Texas Tax Reform Commission] said the owner of an average home, which he described as appraised at about $118,000, would save about $150 in property taxes in the first year.” (Source: Austin American-Statesman, Friday, May 26, 2006 )
Claim 2 – Deceptive and Incomplete
Rick Perry: Every teacher will receive a well deserved pay raise.
Fact: Texas Teachers will still be paid $4,000 less than the national average.
Source: Average Salaries ($) of Public School Teachers, 2004-05 National Education Association
Rank State Average Salary
U.S. AVERAGE 47,808 33 TEXAS 41,009 (Source: National Education Assn. Statistical Ranking of the States http://www.nea.org/edstats/images/05rankings-update.pdf)
Claim 3 – Deceptive
Rick Perry: We closed corporate loopholes
Fact: Big banks, insurance companies and large landowners will receive more than $800 million in tax cuts.
Source: Texas Legislative Budget Board Tax/Fee Equity Note HB1 and HB3
Change in Liability Under HB 1 [in $ Millions] Change in Liability Under HB 3 [in $ Millions] Net Change in Liability Under HB1 and 3 [in $ Millions] Finance, Insurance & Real Estate -961.6 160.1 -801.5 (Source: Texas Legislative Budget Board Tax/Fee Equity Note HB1 and HB3)
Claim 4 – Deceptive and Incomplete
Rick Perry: and created new protections to keep taxes low.
Fact: Texas has the 8th highest sales tax rate – higher than New York, Michigan and Massachusetts.
Source: Federation of Tax Administrators, State Sales Tax Rates January 1, 2006
Rank State Tax Rates 40 NEW YORK 4 29 MASSACHUSETTS 5 14 MICHIGAN 6 8 TEXAS 6.25 ( Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Unemployment Rates for States Apr. 2006)
Claim 5 – Deceptive and Incomplete
Rick Perry: And we’re protecting our job climate. The best in the nation.
Fact: Texas unemployment ranks 38th – worse than Oklahoma, Alabama and West Virginia.
Source: Unemployment Rates for States Monthly Rankings Seasonally Adjusted April 2006 U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics
Rank State Rate 13 ALABAMA 3.6 17 OKLAHOMA 3.9 19 WEST VIRGINIA 4.1 38 TEXAS 5.1 (Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics http://www.bls.gov/web/laumstrk.htm)
Rick Perry: Lower property taxes, higher teacher salaries, and the largest tax cut in history. That’s good for Texas.
Summary: Claims made in Perry ad are consistently deceptive and incomplete.
Check the Lone Star Project Sources for Yourself
Claim 1
Austin American – Statesman
CAMPAIGN WATCH
Friday, May 26, 2006
Expect $1,350 in savings for average home, Sharp says
The owner of an average-value home will save about $1,350 in school property taxes over the next three years, former Comptroller John Sharp said.
Gov. Rick Perry tapped Sharp to head a commission that authored an overhaul of state taxes, which lawmakers passed in their recent special session. That overhaul reduced school property tax rates by one-third over the next two years while expanding the business tax and increasing cigarette taxes.
Sharp said the owner of an average home, which he described as appraised at about $118,000, would save about $150 in property taxes in the first year and about $600 per year over the next two years. His explanation splits the difference between Perry and Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn, who is running for governor.
Perry says in television commercials that the average homeowner will save $2,000 over the first three years. Strayhorn said this week that the average homeowner would save about $598 in that time.
The gubernatorial rivals came up with different figures by using different average home values and different assumptions about how far school district tax rates would inch back.
– Jason Embry
Claim 2
Average Salaries ($) of Public School Teachers, 2004-05
National Education Association
| Rank | State | 2004-05 Average Salary |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | CONNECTICUT | 58,688 |
2 | DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA | 58,456 |
| 3 | CALIFORNIA | 57,876 |
| 4 | MICHIGAN | 56,973 |
| 5 | NEW JERSEY | 56,682 |
| 6 | NEW YORK | 56,200 |
| 7 | ILLINOIS | 55,629 |
| 8 | MASSACHUSETTS | 54,325 |
| 9 | RHODE ISLAND | 53,473 |
| 10 | PENNSYLVANIA | 53,258 |
| 11 | ALASKA | 52,424 |
| 12 | MARYLAND | 52,331 |
| 13 | DELAWARE | 50,869 |
| 14 | OHIO | 48,692 |
| 15 | OREGON | 48,330 |
| U.S. AVERAGE | 47,808 | |
| 16 | MINNESOTA | 46,906 |
| 17 | INDIANIA | 46,591 |
| 18 | GEORGIA | 46,526 |
| 19 | HAWAII | 46,149 |
| 20 | WASHINGTON | 45,724 |
| 21 | VIRGINIA | 44,763 |
| 22 | VERMONT | 44,535 |
| 23 | WISCONSIN | 44,299 |
| 24 | COLORADO | 43,949 |
| 25 | NEW HAMPSHIRE | 43,941 |
| 26 | NEVADA | 43,394 |
| 27 | NORTH CAROLINA | 43,348 |
| 28 | ARIZONA | 42,905 |
| 29 | SOUTH CAROLINA | 42,207 |
| 30 | IDAHO | 42,122 |
| 31 | TENNESSEE | 42,072 |
| 32 | FLORIDA | 41,587 |
| 33 | TEXAS | 41,009 |
| 34 | KENTUCKY | 40,522 |
| 35 | ARKANSAS | 40,495 |
| 36 | WYOMING | 40,392 |
| 37 | UTAH | 39,965 |
| 38 | MAINE | 39,610 |
| 39 | NEBRASKA | 39,456 |
| 40 | NEW MEXICO | 39,391 |
| 41 | IOWA | 39,284 |
| 42 | KANSAS | 39,175 |
| 43 | MISSOURI | 38,971 |
| 44 | LOUISIANA | 38,880 |
| 45 | MONTANA | 38,485 |
| 46 | WEST VIRGINIA | 38,360 |
| 47 | ALABAMA | 38,186 |
| 48 | OKLAHOMA | 37,879 |
| 49 | MISSISSIPPI | 36,590 |
| 50 | NORTH CAROLINA | 36,449 |
| 51 | SOUTH DAKOTA | 34,040 |
Claim 3
Texas Legislative Budget Board
Tax/Fee Equity Note HB1 and HB3
| Change in Liability under HB1 | Change in Liability under HB 3 | Net Change in Liability under HB1 and HB3 | |
| (in $ Millions) | (in $ Millions) | in ($ Millions) | |
| Agriculture, Forestry, & Fishing | -86.8 | 98.3 | 11.5 |
| Mining | -256.7 | -22.1 | -278.8 |
| Utilities & Transportation | -387.5 | 265 | -122.5 |
| Construction | -30 | 191.3 | 161.3 |
| Manufacturing | -502.2 | 916.2 | 414 |
| Wholesale & Retail Trade | -280.1 | 136.3 | -143.8 |
| Information | -270.8 | 508 | 237.2 |
| Finance, Insurance & Real Estate | -961.6 | 160.1 | -801.5 |
| All Other Services | -262.4 | 1,133.6 | 871.2 |
| Total Taxes on Businesses | -3,038.1 | 3,386.7 | 348.6 |
(Source: Texas Legislative Budget Board Tax/Fee Equity Note HB1 and HB3)
Claim 4
Federation of Tax Administrators,
State Sales Tax Rates
January 1, 2006
| Rank | State | Tax Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 50 | ALASKA | none |
| 49 | DELAWARE | none |
| 48 | MONTANA | none |
| 47 | NEW HAMPSHIRE | none |
| 46 | OREGON | none |
| 45 | COLORADO | 2.9 |
| 44 | ALABAMA | 4 |
| 43 | GEORGIA | 4 |
| 42 | HAWAII | 4 |
| 41 | LOUISIANA | 4 |
| 40 | NEW YORK | 4 |
| 39 | SOUTH DAKOTA | 4 |
| 38 | WYOMING | 4 |
| 37 | MISSOURI | 4.225 |
| 36 | NORTH CAROLINA | 4.5 |
| 35 | OKLAHOMA | 4.5 |
| 34 | UTAH | 4.75 |
| 33 | IDAHO | 5 |
| 32 | IOWA | 5 |
| 31 | MAINE | 5 |
| 30 | MARYLAND | 5 |
| 29 | MASSACHUSETTS | 5 |
| 28 | NEW MEXICO | 5 |
| 27 | NORTH DAKOTA | 5 |
| 26 | SOUTH CAROLINA | 5 |
| 25 | WISCONSIN | 5 |
| 24 | VIRGINIA | 5 |
| 23 | KANSAS | 5.3 |
| 22 | NEBRASKA | 5.5 |
| 21 | OHIO | 5.5 |
| 20 | ARIZONA | 5.6 |
| 19 | ARKANSAS | 6 |
| 18 | CONNECTICUT | 6 |
| 17 | FLORIDA | 6 |
| 16 | INDIANA | 6 |
| 15 | KENTUCKY | 6 |
| 14 | MICHIGAN | 6 |
| 13 | NEW JERSEY | 6 |
| 12 | PENNSYLVANIA | 6 |
| 11 | VERMONT | 6 |
| 10 | WEST VIRGINIA | 6 |
| 9 | ILLINOIS | 6.25 |
| 8 | TEXAS | 6.25 |
| 7 | MINNESOTA | 6.5 |
| 6 | NEVADA | 6.5 |
| 5 | WASHINGTON | 6.5 |
| 4 | MISSISSIPPI | 7 |
| 3 | RHODE ISLAND | 7 |
| 2 | TENNESSEE | 7 |
| 1 | CALIFORNIA | 7.25 |
Claim 5
Unemployment Rates for States Monthly Rankings
Seasonally Adjusted April 2006
U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics
| Rank | State | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | HAWAII | 2.8 |
| 2 | FLORIDA | 3.0 |
| 3 | SOUTH DAKOTA | 3.0 |
| 4 | WYOMING | 3.2 |
| 5 | NORTH DAKOTA | 3.3 |
| 5 | VERMONT | 3.3 |
| 5 | VIRGINIA | 3.3 |
| 8 | IDAHO | 3.4 |
| 8 | NEBRASKA | 3.4 |
| 8 | NEW HAMPSHIRE | 3.4 |
| 11 | MARYLAND | 3.5 |
| 11 | UTAH | 3.5 |
| 13 | ALABAMA | 3.6 |
| 13 | IOWA | 3.6 |
| 13 | MONTANA | 3.6 |
| 16 | DELAWARE | 3.7 |
| 17 | CONNECTICUT | 3.9 |
| 17 | OKLAHOMA | 3.9 |
| 19 | MINNESOTA | 4.1 |
| 19 | NEVADA | 4.1 |
| 19 | WEST VIRGINIA | 4.1 |
| 22 | MAINE | 4.2 |
| 23 | ARIZONA | 4.3 |
| 23 | COLORADO | 4. 3 |
| 23 | NEW MEXICO | 4.3 |
| 23 | NORTH CAROLINA | 4.3 |
| 27 | GEORGIA | 4.6 |
| 27 | KANSAS | 4.6 |
| 27 | MISSOURI | 4.6 |
| 30 | PENNSYLVANIA | 4.7 |
| 30 | WASHINGTON | 4.7 |
| 32 | LOUISIANA | 4.8 |
| 32 | WISCONSIN | 4.8 |
| 34 | CALIFORNIA | 4.9 |
| 34 | INDIANA | 4.9 |
| 34 | MASSACHUSETTS | 4.9 |
| 34 | NEW YORK | 4.9 |
| 38 | ARKANSAS | 5.1 |
| 38 | ILLINOIS | 5.1 |
| 38 | NEW JERSEY | 5.1 |
| 38 | TEXAS | 5.1 |
| 42 | RHODE ISLAND | 5.4 |
| 42 | TENNESSEE | 5.4 |
| 44 | DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA | 5.5 |
| 44 | OHIO | 5.5 |
| 44 | OREGON | 5.5 |
| 47 | KENTUCKY | 6.1 |
| 48 | SOUTH CAROLINA | 6.6 |
| 49 | ALASKA | 7.0 |
| 50 | MICHIGAN | 7.2 |
| 51 | MISSISSIPPI | 7.7 |
NOTE: Rates shown are a percentage of the labor force. Data refer to place of residence. Estimates for the current year are subject to revision early in the following calendar year.
(Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics http://www.bls.gov/web/laumstrk.htm)
