Displaying episodes 1 - 30 of 68 in total
Amazon lockers, appraisal boards, and zoning reform
In this episode, we talk about:The sales tax implications of Amazon lockers and whether remote taxpayers should be subjected to detailed audits to verify that their ta...
The episode about nothing
Fresh off of Spring Break and without a lot of hard hitting topics to discuss, Pat and Chad bounce between friendly and city topics. 00:12 - Intro00:42 - Spring Break ...
The Great Reversals
In this episode, Pat and Chad talk about a couple of big reversals. First, March sales tax allocations in Texas appear to have unwound all of the audit adjustments fro...
The (audit) adjustment bureau
A major sales tax audit adjustment hit cities across the state of Texas in February. Chad and Patrick talk about the adjustment and some issues it highlighted. We foll...
The mo is slow
In this episode:(01:20) Sales tax momentum has been slowing for some time now. We dig in to the numbers and issue a red flag warning as cities head into mid-year budge...
The Gourmet Underwear
Pat and Chad are back for the first episode of 2024. After some throat-clearing chit chat, we discuss:What do you do when a local news report or social media post gain...
Retail sales and leases
In this episode, Patrick and Chad talk about softening retail sales figures and changes to the retail real estate landscape. We finish with a March Madness style Chris...
The Holiday Episode
On today's episode, Pat and Chad talk about the holidays, from retail sales forecasts to planning holiday events to the appropriate time to start decorating. And becau...
The Drive-Through
Newest TeamZac member Maria Skrut joins the show as we talk about a recent NY Times article on the future of drive-throughs. Where does the drive-through rank on the h...
The shrinking savings
Household savings skyrocketed during the pandemic. Now that they're falling back to Earth, will retail sales come down with them? What other headwinds might stand in t...
The Segue
Come for the best natural segue Patrick has ever managed... stick around for a discussion about the Texas Legislature's current struggles with property tax reform and ...
The formerly home-ruled 15-minute city
A bill in the Texas Legislature could have a chilling effect on the home-rule status of Texas cities; SB2's property tax reforms could have significant implications fo...
The Urban Vitality of Costco
Patrick and Chad discuss a proposed Costco/apartment complex in South LA, how multi-family can be better integrated into suburban areas, and give an update on the 2023...
The neighborly, the cloudy, the nice, and the naughty
Pat and Chad talk about the missing second-ring relationship, whether computers are taking over too much, and which city functions deserve to get a lump of coal in the...
The Bicycle
Pat and Chad are joined by Milford John-Williams for a wide ranging discussion about bicycle infrastructure (or in some cases, the lack thereof) and the many, many ele...
The "Why" (with bonus content!)
Chad and Patrick talk about California's recent spree of housing legislation and how (or if) it fits into the topic of local control; a recent Strong Towns podcast abo...
The staff meeting
Join us for a virtual TeamZac staff meeting as Chad and Patrick debate options for allocating sales tax revenue in our recently released neighborhood profitability cal...
The profitable city
Pat and Chad talk about what it means for cities to be profitable, and why it matters.
I'm your density... I mean, your destiny
It's Patrick's episode today. He has 100% control over the content and deserves 100% of the blame for any concerns you may have.
Meddlers of the world, unite (then cut it out, please)
Pat and Chad return from summer holiday with an action packed discussion of meddling: from sales tax rule changes to property tax rule changes to employee tracking.
Isn't budgeting so much fun these days?
Kyle Lester, finance director for Colleyville, Texas, joins us again. Two years ago, he was on the pod to talk about building a budget under the looming cloud of Covid...
Open Mic Morning
It's another free-wheeling roundtable discussion, covering the economy, pro-family policymaking, housing, building new cities, internal audits, and much more.
Local impacts of Ukraine and the 2020 Census changes
Pat and Chad talk about local impacts of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the anonymity changes to the 2020 Census
Software subscriptions and a stock market for cities
We welcome Doug Martella of GoVirtual CFO to chat about GASB 96, a new statement covering software subscription accounting, and to pontificate on the half-baked idea o...
A stemwinder on sales tax, staffing, supply chains, speed bumps, and scooters
Chad and Pat are back with a wide ranging discussion, including upcoming sales tax numbers, inflation's impact on pay, Austin's minimum PD staffing proposition, zoning...
What to expect when expecting to be a city manager
We turn away from current events and offer some advice for first time city manager job seekers. From understanding your own comfort level and skill set, to doing your ...
Don't buy AirPods at the airport
In this episode, we assess the state of post-Covid sales tax recovery in Texas, talk about proposals to replace property taxes with a valuea added tax, and wrap up wit...
The sky probably isn't falling, and why a national infrastructure bank isn't helpful
After a brief hiatus, we're back talking about a proposal for a National Infrastructure Bank, and we revisit the recommendations GFOA made to help cities weather the f...
Sales Taxes and Covid Vaxxes
We debate the merits of Covid vaccine incentives; the Comptroller releases top-line sales tax numbers for March sales; an update on HB 4072; and some half-baked ideas ...
HB 4072 (and all-time great baseball movies)
We talk about HB 4072, a bill being considered in the Texas Legislature that would fundamentally alter the way sales taxes are allocated to local governments. Along th...