The civic record
Read. Follow. Verify.Texas bill requires half of state surplus revenue to fund property tax relief
Last action · July 21, 2025: FiledSponsor: Cecil Bell
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What This Bill Proposed
Texas would require the comptroller to deposit half of any unspent surplus state revenue at the end of each fiscal biennium into the property tax relief fund to lower school district property taxes starting September 1, 2027.
School districts could receive dedicated state funding directed exclusively toward lowering local maintenance and operations tax rates for property owners.
- The Texas Legislature frequently debates mechanisms to utilize state budget surpluses to reduce local school district property taxes. context
- The Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts produces a biennial revenue estimate to guide state budgeting. 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.
Texas Education Agency
The agency is authorized to receive appropriations from the property tax relief fund to reduce the state compression percentage.
School districts
Districts receive state funding aimed at reducing maintenance and operations ad valorem taxes.
Property owners
Property tax burdens are lowered through reductions in school district maintenance and operations taxes.
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.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where does the money for property tax relief come from under this bill?
Who receives the deposited money to administer the tax relief?
When do these rules start applying?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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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- Jul 21, 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.
Surplus Revenue Mandate for Tax Relief
The bill shifts unbudgeted end-of-biennium general revenue surpluses directly into mandatory property tax reduction channels.
Connected Entities
Sources
capitol.texas.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 75)
- Controversy35Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz40Current news / social attention level
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