I had a pleasure to Interview State Representative Mr. Tony Dale and getting to know him. State Representative Tony Dale was elected to the Texas House of Representatives in 2012. He serves on the House Committee on Energy Resources, the House Committee on Homeland Security and Public Safety and the Local and Consent and Calendars Committee.
I know you’re for lowering taxes for businesses. Why do you think that’s important?
I always had a limited government approach to things. I first got interested in politics when Regan was president. Limited government and lower taxes is something I always felt was the right course for the country. Try to keep the government out of your business as much as possible. As a business owner you feel it directly. And all taxes get passed down to consumers at the end.
How do you balance competing interests professionally and personally?
Its challenging because I get very busy. My first obligation is my family.
Have you ever failed in anything?
With my first business, I was selling small memorabilia things. To keep it legal I had to be able to do all the taxes. I was working at a different company at the time but I started a small business. I never expected it to be a primary source of income. It was great for me to set this up to see what a small business person goes through. When it came time to make a new business my primary source of income, I had a hard time closing out my first business. I had to hire an accountant to help me close out everything with the state. I thought it shouldn’t be so hard to close out a business that was small and always intended to be small.
Do you think our government is structured in a way to help business owners?
In the last seven years, the federal government propagated thousands upon thousands of pages of regulations that have never been approved by elected officials. It’s quite a burden on business owners. From hiring practices to the number of hours they allow their employees to work. You hear about Obamacare and how it affects business owners. There’s 29ers who are not allowed to work more than 30 hours. And then there’s 49ers who won’t hire 50 employees. You want job creators to create as many jobs as possible. However, these businesses won’t expand because they don’t want to be subject to government regulation. The state is trying to lift off the burden of these regulations.
Austin is becoming the new Silicon Valley with so many start-up companies. Is the government doing anything with that?
Well the Texas legislator only meets once every two years for 140 days. That’s the only time we can act and pass bills. I’m part of a couple organizations that look specifically at businesses to see how we can keep the regulatory burden as low as possible and keep things safe for consumers.
What would you say to the younger generations who are trying to build this country?
There is no substitute to hard work. People are not going to hand you stuff. The sooner you learn that lesson, the better off you’re going to be. The business world is a challenging arena. You have to be prepared to exceed your customers expectations. People aren’t going to do business with you because you’re nice. They do business with you because you are going to take care of them and are providing something of value to them. And there are people out there who want to do it better than you.
Did you ever support a bill that wasn’t good for a certain amount of people but overall was good in the long-term?
We live in a republic. The people of Texas elect representatives and senators. While a citizen may have an opinion and knowledge on issues, they don’t necessarily go to the capital to have hearing and briefings on the consequences of the legislation or even unintended consequences of the legislation. It’s the legislators job to go deep and learn all the effects. I try to make the most informed decision.
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