Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick is rolling the dice—literally—in his latest push for increased property tax relief.
In a video posted on X, Patrick made his case for raising the homestead exemption on school property taxes by using a familiar childhood prop: the game of Monopoly.
“Everyone knows the game of Monopoly is about you buying property … but no matter what the property is, every time someone lands on your space, you’re paying rent as long as the game lasts,” Patrick said, sitting at his desk with the board game laid out in front of him. “Well, today, if we don’t do more about reducing your property taxes … it’s the same as Monopoly.”
𝐈𝐂𝐘𝐌𝐈: Watch my latest property tax video.
What’s the best way to cut your school property taxes? Compression or a homestead exemption? #txlege pic.twitter.com/AlXWtAc0al
— Dan Patrick (@DanPatrick) April 10, 2025
Patrick used the visual to draw a direct comparison between property taxes and rent, arguing that even homeowners who have paid off their mortgages are essentially paying “rent” to their local school districts for the rest of their lives.
“That’s what we’re going to stop this session, for seniors,” Patrick said.
Patrick touted the Senate’s passage of Senate Bill 4 earlier this year, which would raise the homestead exemption from $100,000 to $140,000 for most homeowners and $150,000 for seniors. But he said the real goal—agreed to in conversations with House Speaker Dustin Burrows—is to go further.
“In talking with the speaker, I think we’re on the same track … not to $150,000, but to $200,000,” Patrick said. “For the average senior homeowner in Texas, you will not be paying any more school taxes. We will achieve that goal for you this session.”
The Texas House, meanwhile, has continued to emphasize “compression”—a mechanism that reduces the school district tax rates by using state funds to buy them down. This lowers the overall tax burden for all property owners, including homeowners, businesses, and rental properties, but does not target homeowners as directly as a homestead exemption does.
Patrick dismissed compression as both less impactful and less permanent than increasing the homestead exemption.
“For every $1 billion that we spend of state money to cut property taxes through this system called compression … you get $30 in savings,” he said, holding up three blue $10 Monopoly bills. “But with homestead exemption? You get $130.”
He also warned that compression isn’t guaranteed long-term: “Compression is a roll of the dice, because it’s only in state law … any future legislation could take all of it back.”
In contrast, Patrick pointed to the overwhelming voter approval—83 percent—for the $100,000 homestead exemption passed in 2023 as proof of both its popularity and permanence.
“Homestead exemptions are in the Constitution. They can never be taken away from you,” he said.
Property tax relief is a priority of Gov. Greg Abbott. While the Senate passed its relief package in February, the House has yet to do so. The regular legislative session ends on June 2.
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