The House Ways & Means Committee will hear school property tax reduction bills tomorrow. This message includes details and some talking points. We're also sharing a new presentation on recapture.
Temporary property tax relief bill to be heard in House committee
As you know, SB 1 will provide additional temporary property tax rate compression of about 6 cents during tax year 2022. The exact amount of property tax relief would be based on the lesser of $4 billion or $2 billion plus surplus funds identified by the Comptroller. Additionally, the bill would prohibit school districts from exceeding the voter-approval tax rate in tax year 2022, so no VATR elections would be allowed in school year 2022-23.
HB 90 is a bill not yet heard during the multiple special sessions. This bill would designate a state surplus left over after the state has made adjustments based on actual spending through the supplemental appropriations process. Any remaining surplus would then be spent to further buy down the M&O tax rate in school districts and provide tax relief. It represents a fine line between the desire to provide tax relief (and reduce recapture) and to never allow the state to build up any amount of surplus funds that could one day be used for things like increasing the Basic Allotment or otherwise providing additional dollars for the growing cost of public education.
Side note: we previously recommended taking the time to listen to the Senate hearing on SB 1 to gain a clear understanding of the sentiments expressed about school districts and tax rates. Now we've made that even easier for you to do. We have created an abbreviated version of that hearing (15 minutes of highlights), and we strongly encourage you to take a listen. This is something school leaders should hear and be aware of.
Contact your legislators
Your elected officials in the Texas House need to hear from districts about this legislation and its impact on school districts. Please be in touch with your elected representative(s) to share your district's perspective. To help with that, we've provided some sample talking points on SB 1.
The presentation was originally designed for a joint meeting of the Plano City Council and Plano ISD Board of Trustees and has since been modified so that it could be used in any district statewide. You are welcome to use this presentation in whole or in part in your district and community. Please let us know if you ever need information or presentations customized for your community. We're happy to help!
