State Sen. Kevin Sparks says the property tax cut package just passed by the Texas House and Senate in Austin will increase school districts’ homestead exemption from $40,000 to $100,000 for 5.72 million citizens, effective on this year’s tax bills.
Referring to Senate Bills 2 and 3 and House Resolution 2, Sparks said, “I am delighted to deliver this message to my constituents.
“The House and Senate have negotiated on behalf of their constituencies and passed legislation that benefits all Texans and I believe these pieces of legislation offer landmark relief that Texans will feel directly in terms of savings.”
Sparks said SB 2 and 3 both passed the Senate unanimously by 31-0 and the House by 133-4 and 131-5 while HR 2 was approved by 31-0 in the Senate and in the House by 132-5. The Midland Republican represents Ector County in the 31st Senatorial District.
He said the legislation, which was part of Gov. Greg Abbott’s call for the Legislature’s second special session this summer and will be signed into law by him at a special ceremony, will also provide a 23.8-percent, $7-billion ISD maintenance and operation property tax cut and allow non-homesteaded real property valued at $5 million and under to receive a 20-percent circuit breaker on appraised value.
It requires three county citizens to be elected county-wide to each county appraisal district board of directors in non-partisan positions and it requires the CAD boards to select appraisal review board members in each county of 75,000 population or greater.
Sparks said the laws hold school districts harmless on these changes with $642 million in additional interest and sinking monies and they double the franchise tax exemption to $2.47 million and excuse 67,000 businesses or 40 percent of those that have been paying this tax from paying it any longer.
Eliminating the nuisance tax for 1.7 million taxpayers who have been filing the no-tax-due form for franchise taxes, he said, “In short these bills provide a $100,000 homestead exemption for 5.72 million homeowners and a 23-percent maintenance and operations property tax cut in your school rate.
“They double the franchise tax exemption, eliminate the burdensome franchise tax no-tax-due paperwork and eliminate fines for small businesses,” Sparks said. “The economic engine of the State of Texas, the ninth-largest economy in the world, will provide all Texans the opportunity to grow and prosper.
“We’ll continue to do this even as we push back against a federal government that is seemingly dead set on runaway spending and inflationary policies.”
