Property tax relief among Republicans top priorities for election, legislative session

Audio By Carbonatix

(The Center Square) – Property tax relief is among the top priorities of Texas Republicans heading into the next legislative session, and Gov. Greg Abbott highlighted that and other priorities that voters should support in the November election. 

Speaking to thousands of Republican delegates attending the Republican Party of Texas Convention over the weekend, Abbott also touted bills he’s signed into law over the last 10 years that he argues made Texas a more conservative state. 

Abbott called on Republicans to support two key legislative priorities next year: his five-point property tax reform plan and additional measures to fight crime. 

When it comes to reducing property taxes, he said, “The past few sessions, we've addressed priority taxes by increasing homestead exemptions, but Texans simply are not feeling the relief. As I traveled the state of Texas, I've talked to tens of thousands of people. Not one of them has come up to me and said, ‘Hey, governor, I'm perfectly happy with my property tax appraisal.’ And there's a reason for it. It's because local governments spend more and tax more and your appraisals are going through the roof.

“We cannot go back to Austin, Texas, and do more of the same of what we've done in the past. We have to disrupt property taxes as we know it.” 

Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick have opposing proposals, with Patrick again advocating to increase the homestead exemption, The Center Square reported. Abbott also proposed reducing the appraisal cap from 10% to 3% a year and abolishing school district property taxes on homesteads, plans Patrick hasn’t supported.

Abbott also said the state must “restrict and limit local government spending,” highlighting his plan to require localities to get a 2/3 voter approval before increasing property taxes. 

The RPT has listed eliminating property taxes for all property owners as its second legislative priority. This includes requiring “zero based budgeting,” spending restraints on all levels of government and requiring a 2/3 voter approval for governments to increase the overall tax burden, adopt new debt or exceed spending limits. 

Abbott also called on Republicans to support his anti-crime efforts, including expanding a successful repeat offender task force initiative statewide, denying bail for illegal foreign nationals arrested for felonies, creating a statutory authority to impeach “rogue” district attorneys who don’t prosecute dangerous criminals and creating a new office of statewide prosecutor. “Texas is a law and order state and we are going to keep it that way,” he said.

Abbott is running for reelection in November. He would become the longest serving governor in state history if he wins. 

“The contrast between the laws passed by Republicans and how Democrats actually voted is shocking,” Abbott said. “Democrats support Sharia Law, sanctuary cities, boys in girls’ sports, defunding the police, and supported deadly, dangerous open border policies,” he said. At the upcoming Texas Democrats convention, keynote speakers include the self-described socialist U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-VT, and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, who hosted Texas House Democrats last year who fled the state halting legislative business.

“The people essential to ensuring that Bernie Sanders’ socialism never hijacks the state of Texas are the patriots I am looking at right now,” he said. 

Abbott highlighted Republican accomplishments, including prolife laws. One is the Heartbeat Act, which bans abortions in Texas, with exceptions, and has saved “more than 100,000 lives of children who are alive in Texas today,” he said. 

He also highlighted border security accomplishments. 

“Texas has done more than any state in the history of America to secure our border,” Abbott said. “The only state to ever to build our own border wall. The only state to ever put buoys [marine barriers] in the [Rio Grande] river denying illegal entry into the state of Texas. The only state to deploy thousands of National Guard and DPS troopers to secure the border and deny illegal entry.” 

At one point, 25 governors sent personnel and other support for Abbott's border security mission, Operation Lone Star, The Center Square reported. OLS is in its fifth year, with law enforcement prioritizing national security threats and those on the terrorist watch list, The Center Square reported. 

“Never forget this: all these Democrats running for office right now, they embraced [former president] Joe Biden's open border policies. Now they're facing their own political deathbed. They're suddenly converting, saying they want secure borders,” Abbott said.

He also described his response to “sanctimonious sanctuary cities” run by Democrats “who criticized Texas for the way we were handling” illegal border crossings and crime. "Unlike Texas, they welcomed illegal aliens. So, I began busing them to Chicago, New York, and Washington, D.C., even to the doorstep of Vice President Kamala Harris,” he said. 

By January 2024, Abbott had bused more than 100,000 to six sanctuary cities, roughly 5% of those who illegally entered Texas in fiscal 2023 alone, The Center Square reported. 

The Biden administration sued Abbott, attempting to stop OLS efforts and lost in each case, including at the U.S. Supreme Court and Fifth Circuit. The New York Supreme Court also threw out a lawsuit over Abbott’s busing scheme.