Property taxes

State officials say local governments shouldn't use taxpayer funds for things some taxpayers don't support. That describes just about everything government does.

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Texas voters approved nine amendments to the state constitution, including a proposal making it harder to enact a personal income tax. One amendment was rejected.

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Lawmakers want voters to replace the current constitutional hurdle to a personal income tax in Texas with a marginally higher one. Think of it as insurance against something that isn't likely to happen anyway.

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A new state law limits the ability of local governments to raise property taxes without voter approval — but not yet. And some are rushing to get one last big increase.

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Texans like the Legislature better now. They're worried about elections. And they have mixed feelings about the country's most prominent politician. Some notes on the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll.

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Texas lawmakers are boasting about ambitious education and property tax legislation they passed this year, but voters don't appear to be completely sold, according to the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll.

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Lawmakers are finished with the regular session and now enter the political season, figuring out how to discuss their work in a narrative voters will find appealing in next year's elections.

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An attempt to raise the sales tax to pay for state leaders' ambitious goals failed, raising questions about long-term effects of the property tax limitations in the school finance bill.

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Dennis Bonnen gaveled out on Monday with much of the same widespread support in the Texas House that accompanied his unanimous election to the speaker’s gavel in January.

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The Texas Legislature did a lot in the 86th regular session, especially if you judge by their spending.

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In the past, personalities got in the way of policy at the Texas Capitol. This year, state leaders refused to let that happen.

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The bill aims to slow rising property tax revenues and make it easier for Texans to understand how their tax bills are determined. The House and Senate both approved it Saturday, and it is expected to soon be sent to Abbott for his signature.

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The $11.6 billion school finance and property tax reform bill is now poised to head to Gov. Greg Abbott.

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Lawmakers delivered on their promises of school finance and property tax reforms, agreeing to spend $11.6 billion on a combination of education changes and tax cuts. It's big, but is it really "transformative"?

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The final version of the bill is expected to require cities, counties and emergency service districts to hold an election before raising 3.5% more property tax revenue than the previous year. Community colleges and hospital districts would need to do so at 8%.

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The $11.6 billion legislation is on a path to the governor's desk and includes property tax cuts, a hike in per-student funding and money to ease the state's reliance on the "Robin Hood" program.

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Even in a legislative session that began with estimates of a generous increase in state revenue, lawmakers spent a lot of time talking about big, big tax bills — all the way to the end.

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When weighing in on issues like property taxes, the main interest group representing cities has encountered skepticism.

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For the past year, an influential conservative think tank has lobbied to make wind and solar projects ineligible for a popular local property tax abatement program. A measure to do that has stalled, but renewable advocates are watching for last-minute changes to other legislation.

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On this week’s TribCast, Aman talks to Ross, Matthew and Shannon about how Texas lawmakers' plan to raise the sales tax collapsed, why the 2019 session is like the 1997 one and what we'll be watching out for in the session’s final three weeks.

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