Republican leaders in the Texas Legislature have already declared 2011 a no-new-taxes legislative session. With that in mind, one Democratic lawmaker wants to make sure his House colleagues are using the right definition of the word "tax."

State Rep. Richard Peña Raymond, D-Laredo, plans to file a constitutional proposition that would classify fees, surcharges and other revenue-generating measures as taxes. With the state facing an estimated $15 billion to $28 billion budget shortfall, Raymond expects that lawmakers will look to those money-making methods to help close the gap. "Before you go starting to double or triple or quadruple what ...

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