Capital Highlights
Abbott, Patrick react after shooting incident at church
AUSTIN — Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick released statements following a deadly shooting on Dec. 29 at West Freeway Church of Christ in White Settlement, a city of 16,000 people on the west side of Fort Worth. Two church members were killed in the shooting, which occurred during Sunday services. A possible motive for the shooting is under investigation. The shooter was shot and killed at the scene by a member of the congregation who is a member of the church’s volunteer security detail and is a firearms instructor. “Places of worship are meant to be sacred and I am grateful for the church members who acted quickly to take down the shooter and help prevent further loss of life,” Abbott said. Patrick said the Texas Department of Public Safety is leading the investigation in cooperation with the White Settlement Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office.
Revenue total is higher
Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar on Jan. 3 reported that state sales tax revenue totaled $3.01 billion in the month of December, 4.8% more than the amount reported for December 2018. “Growth in state sales tax revenue was led by receipts from the construction, information services and restaurant sectors,” Hegar said in a news release. “While revenue growth was slightly buoyed by collections from remote sellers and online marketplace providers, collections from retail trade were depressed due to significantly fewer Christmas shopping days in November this year compared to the previous year.” The majority of December sales tax revenue is based on sales made in November and remitted to the agency in December. Total sales tax revenue for the three months ending in December 2019 was up 6.0% compared to the same period a year ago. Sales tax is the largest source of state funding for the state budget, accounting for 57% of all tax collections, according to the comptroller’s office. In December 2019, Texas collected the following revenue from other major taxes: -Motor vehicle sales and rentals, $427.3 million, up 7.9% from December 2018; -Motor fuel, $310.7 million, down 1.1% from December 2018; -Natural gas production, $114.0 million, down 33.8% from December 2018; and -Oil production, $362.5 million, up 18.3% from December 2018.