For many Texans, the Legislature’s 2025 property tax package offered welcome relief but fell short of the meaningful break they had hoped for, as relentless appraisal growth and local tax hikes have continued to drag bills higher.
Now, with Gov. Greg Abbott proposing a broad restructuring of the property tax system, frustrated homeowners are cautiously optimistic that real reform may finally be within reach.
During the regular session, lawmakers passed a trio of measures that Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law in June, delivering what state leaders billed as historic relief while stopping short of fundamental reform.
The largest change came through Senate Bill 4, which raised the general homestead exemption from $100,000 to $140,000—nearly a tenfold increase since Abbott first took office.
Senate Bill 23 went further for seniors and disabled Texans, boosting their exemption to $200,000 and effectively eliminating school property taxes for a majority of elderly homeowners.
Supporters hailed the measures as meaningful help for homeowners squeezed by rapidly rising appraisals. Critics on the right were less impressed.
Andrew McVeigh of Texans for Fiscal Responsibility called the session a “missed opportunity,” noting that lawmakers had a $23.76 billion surplus available in the upcoming biennium but chose to expand state spending rather than permanently rein in the drivers of local tax growth.
That critique has only sharpened since the session ended.
In launching his 2026 reelection campaign, Abbott acknowledged that the Legislature’s approach—largely centered on buying down school taxes and expanding exemptions—has not solved the underlying problem. Local governments, he argued, continue to increase spending and appraisals, offsetting state relief and pushing tax bills higher year after year.
Abbott’s newly unveiled property tax plan marks a sharp pivot toward structural reform. It would cap local government spending growth at the lesser of 3.5 percent or population growth plus inflation, require two-thirds voter approval for any local tax increase, allow rollback elections triggered by citizen petitions, and dramatically curb appraisal growth by moving to five-year reappraisals with a 3 percent annual cap applied to all property—including businesses and rentals.
Most notably, Abbott has proposed allowing voters to decide whether to eliminate school district property taxes for homeowners altogether, shifting funding responsibility fully to the state.
While the proposal is sweeping and aggressive, it has already hit resistance in at least one chamber of the state capitol.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has responded with a narrower, more traditional plan focused on expanding exemptions rather than rewriting the system. Patrick’s proposal would increase the homestead exemption by an additional $40,000, extend senior-style tax freezes to homeowners beginning at age 55, and cap city and county budget growth at 3.5 percent.
Patrick argues his plan is affordable—projected at under $4 billion per biennium—and politically achievable, pointing to voters’ repeated approval of exemption increases.
He has also been openly skeptical of Abbott’s call to eliminate school property taxes, warning that replacing that revenue could require an unpalatable increase in the state sales tax.
As the Legislature heads into 2027, the issue of property tax relief is creating contrast among Texas’ top Republican leaders. Abbott is campaigning on a promise to fundamentally restructure how Texans are taxed. Patrick is signaling caution, incrementalism, and budget discipline.
For taxpayers, the stakes are clear. The question is whether lawmakers will continue applying temporary relief to a system many acknowledge is broken, or finally work to dismantle it.
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