AUSTIN – The Texas Senate yesterday adopted an amendment to Senate Bill 1760 that would help limit the growth of property taxes. The amendment requires local government bodies, such as school boards, to get a 60 percent vote to adopt tax rates above a certain amount, rather than a simple majority of the board. The Texas Public Policy Foundation’s Center for Local Governance Director James Quintero and Senior Policy Analyst Jess Fields issued the following statements on the adoption of the amendment:
“Soaring local property taxes pose a major threat to Texas’ economic future and the livelihood of working families all across the state,” said Quintero. “However, actions taken today by Texas Senate provide some welcome relief for tax-weary Texans by setting a higher standard for property tax increases.”
“If property taxes are going up, Texans deserve as much accountability from their governing body as possible,” said Fields. “It makes sense that a supermajority should be required for tax increases above the effective tax rate. We should seek to have the greatest amount of efficiency in government as possible. It shouldn’t be easy to raise taxes."
James Quintero is director of the Center for Local Governance at the Texas Public Policy Foundation.
The Hon. Jess Fields is the Senior Policy Analyst in the Center for Local Governance at the Texas Public Policy Foundation and a former College Station City Councilman.
The Texas Public Policy Foundation is a non-profit, free-market research institute based in Austin, Texas.