Democrats in Texas push for a new property tax relief for renters in the state.
Inside the statehouse of Texas (Photo: Houston Public Media)
Texan Democrats Push For Property Tax Relief In The State
The best strategy to grant property tax relief in the state has been the subject of months of negotiations amongst Republican legislators in Texas. However, those talks between Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and House Speaker Dade Phelan, talks that failed after two special legislative sessions, did not address tenant relief.
Recently, House Democrats have proposed legislation that would return renters’ money and give public school teachers a permanent pay raise. Rep. John Bryant, D-Dallas, the bill’s author, said on Thursday that his attempt includes public education when bringing up property taxes. A $20.9 billion would be allocated to cut taxes, as reflected in the proposal by the Democrats.
The legislation’s executive summary states that the money would be used to give homeowners a homestead exemption “of the higher of $100,000 or 25% of their home’s appraised value, which is limited to $200,000.” Renters who paid rent recently will receive a cash rebate of up to 10% under the proposed Democratic plan, which also intends to assist them. ” Renters deserve to receive their fair share of property tax relief, especially as rents have skyrocketed in the past few years,” said state representative Christina Morales, a Democrat from Houston.
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Property Tax Relief In Texas On Process
For months, Phelan and Patrick have been struggling to agree on how to reduce property taxes. The Senate enacted a bill last week that raises the homestead exemption to $100,000 while rerouting state funding to reduce the maintenance and operations taxes (also known as “compression”) paid by school districts. Over the course of the state’s upcoming two-year budget cycle, the proposal also provides instructors with a one-time additional payment of $2,000 to $6,000.
But it appears that the Texas House will once more adopt a bill that is identical to the one that the House passed during the previous special session. Compression is part of their proposal, but they do not increase the homestead exemption.
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