Did houstons pro-growth policies make this disaster worse

Assignment Help Other Subject

Reference no: EM132330610

Public Policy - Flooding

Hurricane Harvey hit Texas on August 25, 2017. It caused $180 billion in damage, making it the most expensive natural disaster in U.S. history. To give you a sense of that number, the budget for the entire state government of Texas is about $109 billion per year.

The Houston Chronicle ran an extensive six-part story in December on public policy decisions by federal, state and local officials before and during the hurricane. While nobody is blaming government for the hurricane, the Chronicle story claims that unwise policy decisions and missed opportunities had a lot to do with why the damage was so extensive.

Houston has always been a pro-business, pro-growth place, as we studied back in the first chapter of our book. Did Houston's pro-growth policies make this disaster worse?

Write our standard 4 page essay (this will probably need more than 2 pages...) explaining some of the public policy decisions - good and bad - that impacted the flooding caused by Hurricane Harvey. What should we do going forward, and how should we pay for it?
Submit in Word.

Local Government

Harris County Commissioners Court meets every other Tuesday. Remember from your reading how counties are "general law" forms of government? They have much less rulemaking power than cities, and much less authority to spend money without specific approval from the governing body. When you look at a Commissioners Court agenda, it's always surprising - at least to me - to see what is essentially the board of directors of a billion-dollar corporation voting on whether or not to pay sixty-three dollars to let some employee go to a seminar. But... rules are rules.

Pull up the current agenda.

See what I mean?

Write a short paragraph giving one example of an item on the Commissioners Court agenda that you would NOT expect to find on a city council agenda, and explaining why it's different from something you would find on a city council agenda.
Now for the fun part...

Part 2 - Property Tax Bills of the Rich and Famous

As you have noted in your reading, local government is funded largely by ad valorem (property) taxes. Property owners pay this tax based on the value of their property, which is determined by the Harris County Appraisal District.

Did you know you can look up any piece of property in Harris County on the HCAD website and see how much the county thinks it's worth? Under "Record Search," you can search by owner name, or by street address. Look up all of the following prominent Houstonians. Make a simple list (no essay!). For each, tell me

1. Name and property address.

2. Square footage of the "improvement" ("total living area" - that's the house or condo - not the land that it's on).

3. The current appraised value of their combined land and improvement.

A. 1970's TV star Lee Majors, the "Six Million Dollar Man" - 5041 Tangle Lane

B. Former Astros first baseman Lance Berkman - 5 Farnham Park Dr

C. Houston Astros pitcher, broadcaster and manager Larry Dierker - 8318 N. Tahoe Drive

D. NBA Hall of Famer Clyde "The Glide" Drexler, 11635 Versailles Lakes Ln

E. Grammy Award-winning gospel singer Yolanda Adams - 11719 Bistro Ln

F. Former Astros pitcher Andy Pettitte, 14 Woods Edge Lane

G Former Astro pitcher Roger (W Roger) Clemens - 11535 Quail Hollow

H. Four-time Indianapolis 500 winner A. J. Foyt, 19840 Stokes Rd

I Former Channel 13 Anchorman Dave Ward- 5403 Broad Oaks Park

J. Houston Mayor Annise Parker - 428 Westmoreland Street

K. Restaurant owner (Landry's, etc) Tilman Fertitta - 3800 Willowick

L. Restaurant owner (Pappasitos, etc.) Chris Pappas - 7 Patrick Ct

M. Criminal Defense Lawyer Rusty Hardin - 2740 Barbara Ln

N. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, 3722 Cypress Grove Lane

O. Former Astros slugger (now Minnesota Twin) Marwin Gonzalez, 2314 Elmen Street

P. Grammy-winning sax player Grady Gaines, 7226 S. Hall Street

Reference no: EM132330610

Questions Cloud

The small blood vessels igenics review : In diabetes, the small blood vessels iGenics Review that are damaged can leak fluid of blood into the retina or into the eye itself.

Work together closely in business documents : Why is it important for visuals and text to work together closely in business documents? Identify four techniques you can use to integrate text and visuals

Developing a proposal to the hospital board of directors : Discuss the key factors (at least 7) that need to be considered before developing a proposal to the hospital Board of Directors.

Sleeping disorders melaluna review : Many people suffer from sleeping disorders Melaluna Review which not only bother them but the people sleeping besides them too.

Did houstons pro-growth policies make this disaster worse : Houston has always been a pro-business, pro-growth place, as we studied back in the first chapter of our book. Did Houston's pro-growth policies make this?

Discuss your implementation plan to achieve the goal : Write a reflection of 750-1,000 words in which you identify your strengths and weaknesses related to the four content areas below: Identify one personal goal.

Uncompromised life review innately : We all have a built in alarm system, we Uncompromised Life Review innately know when something or someone feels right or doesn't seem right to us.

Success as so many people think has secretes : Success as so many people think has secretes, but these secretes are actually no secretes. These are not esoteric or supper humanistic principles,

Relationship between joint stability and joint flexibility : Discuss the relationship between joint stability and joint flexibility. Explain why athletes' joints are often taped before the athletes participate in activity

User Account

All Pages