Abbott calls for 'cutting property taxes' in Texas

Gov. Greg Abbott tweeted his support June 21 for using surplus funding to cut property taxes in Texas, something that may ease concerns from Texans who feel their property tax bills are too high.

Harris County is an area in particular suffering from increasing property tax rates, according to tax-rates.org, which noted residents have seen property taxes increase, with the median mark standing at $3,040.

“We must use a substantial portion of this money to cut property taxes in Texas,” Abbott said in the tweet.

Abbott made the statement after the Texas comptroller forecasted a $30 billion account balance by the start of the 2023 legislative session.

Property taxes in Harris County grew just over 38% to $2.4 billion, up from $1.8 billion, according to the Texas Public Policy Foundation. During that period, the foundation noted that the city’s population and inflation rate jumped by 10.2%, resulting in a difference of 28.4%.

Vance Ginn, chief economist for the Texas Public Policy Foundation, explained in a statement that during the last two decades, property taxes have increased 81% faster than the preferred growth rate, a measure of population plus inflation. Ginn and the foundation support eliminating local maintenance and operations property taxes by 2023.