I'm Stephanie Wolf with a brief look at the latest news in Texas politics and
policy from the Texas Tribune. Voters will decide whether to approve a twelve point
seven billion dollar property tax cut package in early November. Governor Greg Abbott recently
signed the legislation. This marked the finale of a month long negotiation between House
and Senate GOP leaders. It took a regular legislative session and two special sessions
to get the deal passed. Legislators passed three bills to spend billions from a
historic state budget surplus on reducing Texans property tax burden, which averages among the
highest in the country, and if Texas voters sign off on the plan,
the cuts will be applied to twenty twenty three tax bills do in January.
Here's what you need to know about the five key parts to the tax cuts.
Roughly seven point one billion dollars will go to fund Texas public school districts.
This is so they can reduce the taxes that they levy on property owners
a school district's maintenance and operations. Property tax rates typically pay for things like
teacher salaries and campus upkeep. It's the largest share of many property owners tax
bills. About five point six billion would allow the state to more than double
the current property tax exemption available to Texans who own the home they primarily live
in. A homestead exemption is the amount a homeowner can deduct from the value
of their home before it's taxed. Under the new tax cut plan, homeowners
would be able to take off one hundred thousand dollars. The law would also
establish a temporary twenty percent a praisal cap for the next three years. This
would apply to commercial, mineral, and residential properties that don't have a homestead
exemption. They also have to be valued less than five million dollars. Another
piece of tax relief included in the package is a franchise tax exemption. This
raises the amount of money a business can make before paying Texas franchise taxes from
one point to four million dollars to two point four seven million, and the
new legislation adds positions to appraisal district's boards of directors that would be elected by
a majority vote. If voters pass the package, most of these measures would
go into effect without any action needed on the part of the property owner.
The exception is homeowners who haven't gotten a homestead exemption before, they would need
to apply through their counties Appraisal district office. You can find more details about
how these changes could affect your property tax bill at Texas Tribune dot org.
For years, the state's environmental agency has denied resident challenges against air polluters when
those residents live more than a mile away from the company seeking a pollution permit.
It's known as the one mile rule, and polluters have cited it as
precedent, claiming that those citizens have no legal right to challenge their permitting process.
Yet the one mile rule is not found anywhere in state law nor in
the agency's rules. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality confirms such a rule does
not exist, and a representative says they review a number of factors when they
make determinations, but it shows up consistently in the agency's rulings going back at
least thirteen years. Environmental advocates and some legal professionals say the one mile practice
is allegal and arbitrary. Federal law acquire states to give citizens the chance to
oppose pollution permits in federal court. It's laid out in the US Constitution and
there's nothing in there about distance limits. A number of Texas environmental groups have
petitioned the EPA saying the TCQ unlawfully uses the one mile rule to restrict citizen
rights and limit access to judicial review. Litigants in a lawsuit against a Texas
oil company are challenging the rule. They're awaiting a fall hearing and a federal
court. Two Democrats who have held their respective elected offices for decades are running
for Houston mayor. State Senator John Whitmeier previously served in the state House before
being elected to the Senate in nineteen eighty two, and US Representative Sheila Jackson
Lee has been in Congress since nineteen ninety five. She previously served on the
Houston City Council. The city's mayoral race is November seventh, but it's a
crowded field, meaning there could be a runoff, which might fall after the
mid December deadline for Jackson Lee and Whitmeyer to decide whether they'll run for reelection
and their current seats. Both are considered front runners for the Houston mayoral ship,
and if either give up their current offices, it's likely to set off
a series of political dominoes. That could open the door for a new generation
of democratic leadership across the city. A Democrat already running for Jackson Lee's congressional
seat said quote, It's an exciting time in Houston politics, to say the
least. We have a favor to ask. Would you go to Texas Tribune
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I'm Stephanie Wolf with the Texas Tribune. You've been briefed. Today's Brief
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