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| Getting to Know the Bayou City |
Practically all year, the area’s residents can enjoy an outdoor lifestyle. Houston averages only 18 days per year with temperatures of 32oF or less and 98 days with high temperatures of 90oF or more. Houston’s growing season averages 300 days. The normal frost-free period extends from February 14 to December 11, and the city only has had measurable snowfall about a dozen times since 1939.
PROPERTY TAX
While there is no personal income tax in Texas, there are property taxes, also called ad valorem taxes, which are locally assessed. Your county appraisal district appraises property located in the county while local taxing units set tax rates and collect property taxes based on those values. Property taxes provide more tax dollars for local services in Texas than any other source; they help pay for public schools, city streets, county roads, police, fire protection and many other services.
In Houston, the Harris County Tax Assessor-Collector and Voter Registrar collect, record and disburse property taxes. The tax office maintains approximately 1.44 million tax accounts and collects property taxes for more than 60 taxing entities, including Harris County.
SALES-AND-USE TAX
State sales-and-use tax is imposed on all retail sales, leases and rentals of most goods as well as taxable services. Texas cities, counties, transit authorities and special-purpose districts have the option of imposing an additional local sales tax for a combined total of state and local taxes of 8.25 percent.
SEAT BELTS AND CHILD SAFETY
In Texas, the law requires drivers and front-seat passengers in all vehicles to be secured by a safety belt. Children under 17 years old must be secured with a safety belt or in a child safety seat, whether they are sitting in the front or back seat. A child less than 8 years old and less than 57 inches tall must ride in a child safety or booster seat. A safety-belt violation can result in fines ranging from $25 to $250, plus court costs.
— Safety Seat Guidelines
Safety belts are designed for adults, not children. Use a booster seat to lift your child up to prevent severe injuries in a crash. If necessary, view an informational video, called Secure Our Future at www.dshs.state.tx.us/saferiders/seats/, which is about the proper use of child safety seats or call Safe Riders at (800) 252-8255.
USE OF CELL PHONES
While in a school zone, unless stopped or on a hands-free device, cell phone usage is illegal. Otherwise, cell phone usage is allowed if you have a driver’s license with full privileges. Novice drivers in the beginning and intermediate phases of the graduated learning process cannot use cell phones while behind the wheel. Also, school bus drivers must avoid cell phone use while passengers are aboard.
LIQUOR LAWS
In Texas, 21 years old is the minimum age to buy or consume liquor. You can buy alcoholic beverages in a liquor store Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; liquor stores are closed on Sunday. There are no sales of liquor on Christmas Day, New Year’s Day or Thanksgiving Day. In the event that Christmas Day or New Year’s Day is on a Sunday, stores are closed the following Monday. Beer and wine can be sold in supermarkets and convenience stores from 7 a.m. to midnight on Monday through Friday, on Saturday from 7 a.m. to 1 a.m. and on Sunday from noon until midnight.
Texas also has a zero-tolerance law regarding the consumption of alcohol while driving, and driving while intoxicated (DWI) laws are strictly enforced by Texas police officers. The legal limit for intoxication in Texas is .08 blood alcohol concentration (BAC); however, drivers can be stopped and cited for impaired driving due to alcohol or other drugs regardless of BAC. A first offense carries up to a $2,000 fine, 72 hours to 180 days in jail and driver’s license suspension of 90 days to one year.
TRANSPORTATION
The Houston region offers one of the Southwest’s most extensive freeway and toll road systems. In the Houston region, 742 miles of freeways and expressways are available—61 percent of the planned 1,217-mile freeway/expressway system. For starters, Houston has more miles of high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes than any other city in the nation. HOV lanes are only one piece of the puzzle. In the past several years, billions of dollars have been spent to build or improve toll roads, arterial streets and transit ways and to rebuild and widen every major freeway in Houston. Six freeway corridors contain HOV lanes. The region’s HOV system covers 112.9 lane miles.
Houston is the crossroads for Interstates 10 and 45. Other major highways serving Houston are Loop 610, U.S. 59, U.S. 290, U.S. 90, Texas 288, Texas 225, Hardy Toll Road, Sam Houston Tollway and the Grand Parkway (Texas 99). Houston also lies along the route of the proposed I-69 NAFTA superhighway that will link Canada, the U.S. industrial Midwest, Texas and Mexico.
PROPERTY TAX
While there is no personal income tax in Texas, there are property taxes, also called ad valorem taxes, which are locally assessed. Your county appraisal district appraises property located in the county while local taxing units set tax rates and collect property taxes based on those values. Property taxes provide more tax dollars for local services in Texas than any other source; they help pay for public schools, city streets, county roads, police, fire protection and many other services.
In Houston, the Harris County Tax Assessor-Collector and Voter Registrar collect, record and disburse property taxes. The tax office maintains approximately 1.44 million tax accounts and collects property taxes for more than 60 taxing entities, including Harris County.
SALES-AND-USE TAX
State sales-and-use tax is imposed on all retail sales, leases and rentals of most goods as well as taxable services. Texas cities, counties, transit authorities and special-purpose districts have the option of imposing an additional local sales tax for a combined total of state and local taxes of 8.25 percent.
SEAT BELTS AND CHILD SAFETY
In Texas, the law requires drivers and front-seat passengers in all vehicles to be secured by a safety belt. Children under 17 years old must be secured with a safety belt or in a child safety seat, whether they are sitting in the front or back seat. A child less than 8 years old and less than 57 inches tall must ride in a child safety or booster seat. A safety-belt violation can result in fines ranging from $25 to $250, plus court costs.
— Safety Seat Guidelines
Safety belts are designed for adults, not children. Use a booster seat to lift your child up to prevent severe injuries in a crash. If necessary, view an informational video, called Secure Our Future at www.dshs.state.tx.us/saferiders/seats/, which is about the proper use of child safety seats or call Safe Riders at (800) 252-8255.
USE OF CELL PHONES
While in a school zone, unless stopped or on a hands-free device, cell phone usage is illegal. Otherwise, cell phone usage is allowed if you have a driver’s license with full privileges. Novice drivers in the beginning and intermediate phases of the graduated learning process cannot use cell phones while behind the wheel. Also, school bus drivers must avoid cell phone use while passengers are aboard.
LIQUOR LAWS
In Texas, 21 years old is the minimum age to buy or consume liquor. You can buy alcoholic beverages in a liquor store Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; liquor stores are closed on Sunday. There are no sales of liquor on Christmas Day, New Year’s Day or Thanksgiving Day. In the event that Christmas Day or New Year’s Day is on a Sunday, stores are closed the following Monday. Beer and wine can be sold in supermarkets and convenience stores from 7 a.m. to midnight on Monday through Friday, on Saturday from 7 a.m. to 1 a.m. and on Sunday from noon until midnight.
Texas also has a zero-tolerance law regarding the consumption of alcohol while driving, and driving while intoxicated (DWI) laws are strictly enforced by Texas police officers. The legal limit for intoxication in Texas is .08 blood alcohol concentration (BAC); however, drivers can be stopped and cited for impaired driving due to alcohol or other drugs regardless of BAC. A first offense carries up to a $2,000 fine, 72 hours to 180 days in jail and driver’s license suspension of 90 days to one year.
TRANSPORTATION
The Houston region offers one of the Southwest’s most extensive freeway and toll road systems. In the Houston region, 742 miles of freeways and expressways are available—61 percent of the planned 1,217-mile freeway/expressway system. For starters, Houston has more miles of high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes than any other city in the nation. HOV lanes are only one piece of the puzzle. In the past several years, billions of dollars have been spent to build or improve toll roads, arterial streets and transit ways and to rebuild and widen every major freeway in Houston. Six freeway corridors contain HOV lanes. The region’s HOV system covers 112.9 lane miles.
Houston is the crossroads for Interstates 10 and 45. Other major highways serving Houston are Loop 610, U.S. 59, U.S. 290, U.S. 90, Texas 288, Texas 225, Hardy Toll Road, Sam Houston Tollway and the Grand Parkway (Texas 99). Houston also lies along the route of the proposed I-69 NAFTA superhighway that will link Canada, the U.S. industrial Midwest, Texas and Mexico.
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