Gov. Rick Perry today urged legislators to be bold and try to attract more businesses and jobs through financial incentives and tax relief.
Perry, in his State of the State address to Texas House and Senate members, also suggested easing the tuition expenses of college students.
Perry proposed freezing tuition for college students for four years of schooling -- keeping the rate the same as it was for the student's freshman year.
He also proposed expanding funding for the Texas Grants Program, which is a state scholarship plan.
The governor wants to create a disaster contingency fund for catastrophes like Hurricane Ike, which swamped parts of Southeast Texas on Sept. 13. Perry says he wants to ensure that the needs of Texans can be met in a timely manner -- without long waits on reimbursements from the federal government.
Here's more:
-- Perry wants to pump more than $500 million combined into a job creation fund, an emerging technology fund and a moving-making incentives account. He said all have a track record of success.
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-- Perry supports raising the small business tax exemption to $1 million, up from the current $300,000 in gross receipts. The tax was put in place in 2006 to change the Texas system for public funding schools.
