Commissioner Dianne Edmondson
Many of us are receiving an early holiday gift in the mail with our property tax notices, which are measurably lower than they were last year.
It is important to ensure our residents are not taxed out of their homes in the years to come. It is tough enough to make ends meet and pay the bills without worrying about how much higher your property tax bill is going to be. And for our older residents, many have built up major equity, if not completely paid for their homes, and often are on fixed incomes.
My husband and I were very appreciative of the nearly $2,000 cut in property taxes this year for our home here in Robson Ranch. Across the county, others also have mentioned a noticeable difference in what is owed for property taxes.
We all certainly owe our sincere thanks to our State Legislators, Sen. Tan Parker and Rep. Lynn Stucky, who were tax relief champions, and to Gov. Greg Abbott who steadfastly promoted property tax relief and quickly signed the measure enacting the three bills, which allocated $12.7 billion from the state surplus to rein in Texas property taxes. And a big thanks also goes to our Texas voters who gave an overwhelming approval for Constitutional Amendment No. 4 last Nov. 7.
This shows, once again, the importance of voting, even if the ballot consists only of Constitutional amendments. As you can tell upon receiving your property tax statement this year, every vote really does make a difference.
Much of the $12.7 billion, mainly from record sales tax collections by the state, was used for “school tax compression” by sending funds to Texas school districts so that they can lower their tax rates; increasing the homestead exemption from $40,000 to $100,000; and instituting a temporary 20 percent cap on taxable value increases through 2026.
As voters, your overwhelming support of these measures is generating an average of $1,200 in savings for homeowners with homestead exemptions to $1,400 in savings for homeowners who also have the 65 and older exemption, including many of us here at Robson Ranch.
Sometimes we voters think our vote doesn’t really matter, but it certainly did matter for lower property taxes!
Property tax relief has been a longtime issue of mine and one I acted upon soon after taking office as Commissioner Precinct 4. I introduced and championed a proposal to increase the county homestead exemption from $25,000 to $40,000 beginning in 2022 and capping the property taxes for seniors’ homesteads.
The joyous holiday season is upon us, and I hope all of you make wonderful memories during this time, sharing joy and love with friends, family, and loved ones. Please have a safe and happy new year!
Contact Commissioner Dianne Edmondson by email at [email protected] or phone her at 972-434-3960. You can also stop by her office in the Southwest Courthouse, 6200 Canyon Falls Drive, Suite 900, in Flower Mound.