Senate Doubles Down On Property Tax Relief Push
A unanimous Texas Senate on Tuesday doubled down on their property tax relief plan by passing a new measure designed to restrict future school spending and ease taxes on small businesses. Brandon Waltens has the details.
Senate Stands Behind New Property Tax Relief Proposal, Calls on House to Return
Similar to their previous offering, the Senate plan would provide a $100,000 homestead exemption while reducing the school property tax rate by 10 cents. Most significantly, the new Senate push would limit the annual growth of school district revenue from 2.5 percent to 1.75 percent.
In a move to appeal to small business owners, the new Senate proposal also increases the exemption for the state’s business franchise tax from $1 million to $2.47 million, making an additional 67,000 businesses exempt from paying the onerous tax.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick called the proposal “the largest property tax cut in the history of the world.”
While the plan allocates $18 billion to property tax relief, only $12.7 billion is new relief. Groups like Texans for Fiscal Responsibility have noted that, with inflation, the property tax cut must be at least $21 billion to truly be the biggest in state history.
State Sen. Paul Bettencourt (R–Houston), who authored the Senate’s proposals, said the legislation was the product of many discussions over time. “When you have this level of agreement of your Senate colleagues, I think it speaks volumes as to what an $18 billion tax relief record plan could do.”
The current special session was called by Gov. Greg Abbott on May 31 and is set to expire in less than a week. The House passed a “rate compression” only measure and immediately adjourned with no intention of returning to work – denying the customary give-and-take process by which legislation is usually crafted and passed between the two chambers.
Bastrop County Beacon: News with Integrity, Because Facts Matter.
http://www.bastropcountybeacon.com
Keep informed on events and situations in Bastrop County by following the Bastrop County Beacon’s Facebook page! https://www.facebook.com/BastropCountyBeacon
