Hope Flagging for Gov. Greg Abbott's Top Priority of Special Session as House Adjourns to Go Home

AUSTIN -- It appeared late Tuesday that lawmakers would end Gov. Greg Abbott's special session a day early, without passing his top priority, a bill that would limit how much local property taxes can increase.Rep. Dennis Bonnen, the Angleton Republican who authored the bill in the House, said negotiations between the House and Senate hadn't gotten anywhere by late Tuesday evening, too late for a final bill to pass before the Wednesday deadline to end the session. The House adjourned sine die early Tuesday evening, officially ending the special session in that chamber, a day before the 30-day l leaving the Senate with only the option to agree with the House version of the property tax bill, or let the measure die. Sen. Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, said the property tax bill would be "a good issue for next session," indicating the Senate was unlikely to pass the bill.Lawmakers also failed during the regular legislative session earlier this year to pass a bill limiting property tax increases. The failure of that bill, along with a proposal that would restrict where transgender Texans can use the bathroom, prompted Abbott to order lawmakers back for a special session that began July 18. "No government should be able to tax people out of their homes. We must remember: Homeowners are not renting their land from the city," Abbott wrote in a recent Houston Chronicle op-ed.The bill progressed further during the special session despite vehement objections from local officials who said the measure would hamstring their ability to provide services for their residents.   Continue reading...

Copyright The Dallas Morning News
Contact Us