Texas Scorecard by Brandon Waltens June 8, 2020
Two lawmakers say they are exploring legislation to penalize taxing entities that take advantage of the coronavirus to raise taxes without voter approval.While Texas families are struggling with increased unemployment and lower pay due to the government-mandated economic shutdowns in response to the Chinese coronavirus, some local officials have suggested they may exploit the virus to hike property taxes.
Now, two lawmakers are teaming up to try and ensure it doesn’t happen.
In 2019, the Texas Legislature passed legislation making it harder for taxing entities—such as cities and counties—to increase their property tax revenue above 3.5 percent without voter approval. School districts were capped, in a separate bill, at 2.5 percent.
However, there is already talk amongst some local officials of using the coronavirus to exploit an exemption for disasters that lawmakers included in the bill. If allowed to use the loophole, cities and counties could increase property tax revenue up to 8 percent without voter approval, while taxpayers continue to suffer.
More:
https://texasscorecard.com/state/potential-penalties-coming-for-tax-hiking-cities-and-counties/
