Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts Glenn Hegar said Saturday at the Texas Tribune Festival that Texas is in the midst of a short-term economic downturn in the devastating aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, but he does not expect that to affect the state's overall revenue. Speaking at an afternoon session with moderator and Texas Tribune Executive Editor Ross Ramsey, Hegar spoke about the hundreds of thousands of vehicles that were destroyed in the Harvey wreckage—approximately $5 billion in value. The state is likely, however, to see an upswing in sales tax revenue when those car owners buy replacement vehicles, he said. "We don't see that [Harvey is] really going to impact the budget revenues at all," he said.
.@Glenn_Hegar: “I’d have never imagined I’d hear airboats in Katy, Texas."
— JJ Velasquez (@jjvelasquez) September 23, 2017
School district students and staff
Hegar said the state will grapple with school districts that suffered total losses of property in the hurricane, such as Aransas County ISD. The district has closed indefinitely, and the students have moved to new schools elsewhere in the state. He said without the students, the district will lack funding—its tax base having largely moved away. However, that could mean having to terminate all staff members at the district. "We don't want that to happen," he said.
