Texas legislators have struck a long-awaited deal on delivering billions in property tax relief, aligning the House and Senate on a unified plan that offers significant savings to homeowners and small businesses.
In a rare show of coordination, the Senate Local Government Committee took up House Bill 9, the House’s proposal focused on business tax relief, while the House Ways & Means Committee simultaneously considered Senate Bill 32, the Senate’s homestead property tax measure.
“We’ve got home and business property tax relief on the way at the Texas Legislature, and that’s a happy day,” said Senator Paul Bettencourt (R), chair of the Senate committee.
Under the compromise, the state’s homestead exemption for all Texas homeowners would rise from $100,000 to $140,000, with an additional $60,000 exemption for senior citizens and disabled individuals. The move represents one of the largest boosts to the homestead exemption in state history.
Business tax relief proved more complex. Initially, the House proposed exempting up to $250,000 in business personal property, the value of equipment and furnishings taxed annually. The Senate, by contrast, favored a modest $25,000 exemption paired with a franchise tax credit worth up to 20% of business inventory value.
After negotiations, Texas lawmakers agreed to eliminate the tax credit in favor of a much higher personal property exemption of $125,000. According to Bettencourt, that amount could exempt nearly all small businesses in Texas from the annual levy.
“People get taxed on this over and over again and it gets to be a bit like Groundhog Day,” he said.
House Bill 9, authored by Representative Morgan Meyers (R), and Senate Bill 32, sponsored by Senator Bettencourt, are now aligned and expected to advance quickly through the legislative process. The final deal represents a unified effort to provide immediate relief to both homeowners and entrepreneurs, resolving an issue that stalled during the last session.
The Lawmakers say the agreement is a win for Texans feeling the squeeze of rising property values and operating costs, and they are confident the measures will offer meaningful financial relief across the state.
