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Read. Follow. Verify.Texas Bill HB 301 Raises Tax Rate Election Approval Threshold to Two-Thirds
Last action · August 26, 2025: FiledSponsor: Valoree Swanson
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What This Bill Proposed
Texas House Bill 301 requires at least a two-thirds vote instead of a simple majority in elections approving s that exceed a taxing unit's , effective January 1, 2026.
Property owners face a higher threshold for passing local tax rate increases, shifting from a simple majority to a two-thirds supermajority vote requirement in taxpayer elections.
- The 86th Texas Legislature previously modified the manner in which the voter-approval tax rate is calculated to limit property tax growth. context
Who It Would Have Affected
Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Taxing units
Taxing units must update election approval thresholds and public hearing notice forms to reflect the two-thirds requirement.
Property owners
Property owners participate in tax rate elections subject to the new two-thirds supermajority threshold.
Key Facts
You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Died at adjournment · introduced in the House.
Procedural history
1 action- Aug 26, 2025HouseIntroducedFiled
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Supermajority Requirement for Property Tax Elections
HB 301 systematically replaces majority-vote requirements with two-thirds supermajority thresholds across multiple Texas codes governing hospital districts and local taxation.
Connected Entities
Sources
capitol.texas.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 75)
- Controversy60Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz40Current news / social attention level
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