The Texas School Coalition released the following statement after Gov. Greg Abbott signed SB 2 and SB 3 — legislation providing billions of dollars in property-tax relief — into law.
The property-tax legislation signed into law will help achieve a very important objective: It will reduce the amount of recapture paid by Texas taxpayers by 41 percent. After recapture reached record highs, the state is providing needed relief by putting more state funding into education while reducing the amount that comes from local property taxes. We are grateful that legislators have taken action to keep more local dollars in local schools.
While property-tax relief reduces recapture, it does not increase the number of dollars going into the classroom. Despite a record state surplus, legislators have still not provided the dollars that schools need to manage inflation, hire and retain teachers, and meet the needs of all students. School districts are planning to start the new school year in a matter of weeks without the increases in funding that many Texans rightfully expected legislators to deliver this year. There needs to be a balance between tax relief and more dollars for the classroom. Unfortunately, legislators have only completed half the job.
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