A $17.6 billion buy-down of school district “maintenance and operation” tax rates over the next cycle, which is what Abbott and the House are proposing, would be a great start, said the three-term GOP governor.
If it became law, the state would order school districts to reduce their rates. The state would then use its own revenues – mostly from sales, business and energy-production taxes – to compensate the districts for every dollar of property taxes they give up.“If you live in a $1 million house, you get a $100,000 exemption,” he said. “If you live in a $100,000 house, you get a $100,000 exemption. But their plan of all compression means that the higher-priced house you live in, the more you get.
While Abbott casts his approach as a first step toward totally eliminating school “maintenance and operation” taxes, Patrick said complete repeal is a “fantasy” that would lead to huge budget shortfalls during future recessions. “No one has really felt the benefit of that for one simple reason – because of inflation of values of homes,” he said. “That erodes the value … of a homestead exemption. What taxpayers would benefit from even more is a complete elimination of that property tax rate altogether.”
“In the special session, the House came to work, passed its bills with bipartisan support, and adjourned -- the Senate is keeping Texans waiting,” Wittman said in a written statement.
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