State Writes $25.4M Check To Ensure Houston Super Bowl Success
The state's event trust fund has paid out $25.4M to Houston to help with the build-up to the big game. The amount is based on what the state expects to collect in taxes from out-of-state visitors. When Dallas hosted the Super Bowl in 2011, the state awarded $32.1M, according to the Houston Chronicle. Since 2011, the event trust fund has come under intense scrutiny for having little oversight. In 2015, control of the fund moved from the comptroller to the governor's office. While Houston's tidy sum will certainly go a long way (as of last week, the committee was still working towards its private fundraising goals), it isn't even the fund's largest expense this year. The Circuit Of The Americas in Austin was awarded $26M earlier this year. [Chron]
