Back in 1977, in an effort to help Texarkana, Ark., keep up with the Texas side, the state Legislature passed the Border City Exemption.
Since Texas residents paid no state income tax, neither would those who lived within the city limits of Texarkana, Ark. An additional 1 percent sales tax would be imposed to make up revenue lost to the state.
From time to time, the exemption comes under attack. We recently saw some rumblings.
Back in the fall of 2017, the Legislature's Economic and Tax Policy Committee heard testimony about the exemption. There were those in favor of getting rid of the break-an economics professor at the University of Central Arkansas who argued in a July op-ed that the exemption should "top of the list" to be eliminated. But others, including our own state Sen. Jimmy Hickey, defended the Border City tax law, saying basically it could kill the city.
And he's right. While the exemption may not have been as much of a boon as many hoped, it is still vitally important to Texarkana, Ark. We hate to imagine what would happen if it were repealed.
Which is why it's so encouraging that Gov. Asa Hutchinson has made it known he supports the Border City Exemption.
Speaking at an Americans for Prosperity event last week at the state Capitol in Little Rock, the governor said he thinks the exemption is justified based on the state's economy and should remain.
That's good news.
Of course, nothing is set in stone. It is comforting though to have the governor on our side. But that doesn't mean we can rest easy. That's the nature of politics. We will always have to keep on the lookout for those who would put revenue ahead of the very lifeblood of the city.