[speaker001:] well my family moved to Texas about eight years ago my husband was raised here but I I have never lived here so um when when we came back to Texas I I was really kind of excited there wasn't a state income tax and there wasn't a tax on food that we purchased at the grocery store and things and all of that was new to me so
[speaker002:] um-hum
[speaker001:] I'm sort of feeling like we're getting a better deal here than what I was accustomed to
[speaker002:] yeah well did you move from the the Northeast
[speaker001:] well I lived in Missouri and then in Utah and then um and both places had pretty good state income tax
[speaker002:] um-hum
[speaker001:] and um we've always paid tax um you know on everything we purchased you know even food at the grocery store so I thought it was really you know kind of a pretty good deal not to have to pay tax on your groceries groceries and but I think I mean I I don't enjoy paying taxes and it's hard but um I think that's what we have to have to you know have our streets and and have our government and excuse me and have and have the services that we need and we have to pay for them and pay for the employment of the people that run them and and things like that and I think I guess what I feel is that most people um they don't like to pay taxes because they feel like well there's some people who aren't paying their fair share
[speaker002:] yeah I think yeah it's the people that can really influence the government and have all the money to
[speaker001:] and um that makes you feel bad right and you know when um when last year the the elections were going on the governors election and state and you know I I didn't have anything against um Clayton Williams personally or anything but um it was kind of hard for me to think here's someone who as wealthy as he is didn't have to pay any income tax that he said that year he claimed he had didn't have to pay income tax and he thought well you know there's some people are living pretty pretty good life styles but they're not paying income tax and that's not fair to me and there's you know some people who uh are abusing
[speaker002:] no
[speaker001:] the systems that we pay taxes to support and all of that makes us feel bad but I think you know all in all how I feel is that um I'm willing to pay the taxes because I think I like our country compared to the other countries I've studied and visited and um I'm willing to pay extra to live here and to enjoy the services I enjoy how do you feel
[speaker002:] well yeah I agree that you have to pay taxes for the services you get and I think that you know I don't think there's probably any really
[speaker001:] um-hum
[speaker002:] put that system that everybody would think is fair as far as being taxed you know I guess in Texas with uh we live here also
[speaker001:] um-hum um-hum
[speaker002:] and that it's mostly sales tax so it's really the people that have the money to buy things that are paying the more because they're paying the sales tax on the larger items that they buy and stuff I've lived in Texas most of my life we um lived in Kansas City for a couple of years and
[speaker001:] um-hum
[speaker002:] we were kind of in for a rude awakening they had personal property taxes on like cars and the first year we're there it was like eight hundred dollars and we're like
[speaker001:] uh-huh oh no
[speaker002:] you know what happened is my husband said I used to complain to pay sixty dollars to get licensed in Texas and now you know so I mean that was kind of different and then to file a
[speaker001:] uh-huh
[speaker002:] a state income tax was also kind of tough too um I guess since we've been married we've moved a lot and so it always seems like you know we're always paying in taxes for something and so the it was kind of nice this year to finally be able to get a little bit of money back but
[speaker001:] um-hum
[speaker002:] I um have accounting background so then I also have done tax returns in the past and for other people when I worked for accounting firm
[speaker001:] uh-huh
[speaker002:] and uh you know it is kind of sad to see all these people that you know have the resources to hire somebody and have the money to spend to put their money in places they don't have to pay taxes or to buy something that loses money so that they can
[speaker001:] right
[speaker002:] you know offset the income that they get or whatever so but you know I think if
[speaker001:] yes
[speaker002:] I can understand maybe why the rich people don't want to pay you know a large large percent because it you know that's not really fair either if they've earned their money
[speaker001:] um-hum
[speaker002:] by themselves well you know people just kind of given the money it's kind of depressing sometimes I think
[speaker001:] yes well it is and um and sometimes I think um well for myself that the income that we have we're paid a certain salary but I think the employer keeps in mind this' ll be deducted you know some so many taxes will be deducted from it and so I think we're you know our salaries are a little bit higher because we have to pay taxes on it and so I think you know in that way we're compensated
[speaker002:] yeah
[speaker001:] um just by our society yet you know they don't pay you um what just what it would take and then if if you pay taxes on it you wouldn't have any money left over and and um but some of the people that make a great deal of money and everything um I wish that they would I guess because I'm not one of them I wish that they would um you know realize that they
[speaker002:] well yeah that's true
[speaker001:] they couldn't make this kind of money they couldn't live that kind of life style anywhere else
[speaker002:] yeah
[speaker001:] in that even if they made that kind of money there's some countries that have like fifty percent income tax you know that have socialized medicines and things and that they um they wouldn't be able to enjoy the
[speaker002:] yeah
[speaker001:] uproots that and that so that you know they need to be willing to pay a little bit more for it yes they've earned it and yes they've that's great they've you know had such great fortune here but they need to pay for it too because they couldn't do that somewhere else
[speaker002:] yeah
[speaker001:] um um I like Texas um not having the state income tax and I hope that because um you know that we've had enough industry here that I guess it is that why we don't the industry here is able to to um fund the state because we have oil here and things I mean that's what I've always heard is that um
[speaker002:] but they must have enough other stuff because the way the oil has been the last few years that that really hasn't been the industry that is bringing in the money for the taxes I wouldn't think
[speaker001:] big boom yeah there's something about um the industry in the state that um there's enough I know we moved here from Houston and um the city had it's enough money it was really nice that they had uh
[speaker002:] yeah
[speaker001:] but they began to cut back because of the oil problems but um you know they would have have um so many community outdoor theaters and and like uh community
[speaker002:] um-hum
[speaker001:] country club type things that the it was such nice services to offer the residents in the city and I really liked that
[speaker002:] don't you have to why people just kind of debate expect certain services then then they don't really think they should pay for them or something maybe I don't know
[speaker001:] um-hum yeah it's true and I'm you know like the the property tax that we pay and everything is so much higher than my parents pay in Missouri but um I'm I'm comfortable at least this year with we pay we have some good schools you know the school thing might be changing but
[speaker002:] yeah
[speaker001:] I'm I'm willing to pay for that for my children and I'm willing to sacrifice I guess I mean I'm not going to be the kind of person that's going to grumble about the taxes even though we're paying pretty high percentage um I feel like you get what you pay for and I want to be here and I I enjoy I enjoy living here in this country and having seen other countries I'd much rather live here and pay taxes than live somewhere else and
[speaker002:] um-hum
[speaker001:] and not anyway well I guess I better let you go
[speaker002:] well it was nice talking to you I haven't ever I need to I've never initiated one of these phone calls do you call in do you get to pick the subject or do they kind of
[speaker001:] yeah it was nice talking no no they just define it to you and so so you get what get uh luck of the draw but yeah anyway well good luck to you bye-bye
[speaker002:] oh I see yeah okay you too bye