“Texans can never own their homes and are being taxed out of them. Property taxes are unethical and should be eliminated.” Can you ask for a better quote from an elected lawmaker on property tax reform?

This quote is how State Rep. Brian Harrison (R-Midlothian) opened a lengthy tweet thread introducing two pieces of legislation he filed to address local property tax reforms.

Texans can never own their homes and are being taxed out of them. Property taxes are unethical and should be eliminated. Until then, property tax hikes should require an election. Proud to file #HB2220 & #HB2221 to put taxpayers back in charge. #txlege (1/x) pic.twitter.com/bDGGEL1Jhg

— Brian Harrison (@brianeharrison) February 13, 2023

Harrison has been a breath of fresh air for many conservatives, as he has boldly spoken about several of his legislative priorities this session. His two recent contributions are House Bill 2220 and House Bill 2221. Harrison went on to explain both bills in the thread:

Under current law, taxing entities are able to raise taxes by a certain percentage without voter approval. Entities across the state consistently raise taxes to just below that voter approval limit, sometimes by as little as 0.0000x… skirting state law. #txlege (6/x)

— Brian Harrison (@brianeharrison) February 13, 2023

.#HB2220 provides much needed transparency to the property tax system, ensuring that taxpayers are given a voice anytime local elected officials attempt to take more of their money. #txlege (8/x)

— Brian Harrison (@brianeharrison) February 13, 2023

Harrison has picked up one of Texans for Fiscal Responsibility’s (TFR) legislative priorities for local government reform, something we just distributed to lawmakers last Monday, February 6. Essentially, he has proposed lowering the voter approval rate to the no-new-revenue rate and forcing local governments to ask voters any time they want to raise taxes even by a cent.

In addition to HB 2220, he goes on to explain HB 2221 in the Twitter thread:

Additionally, current law requires only a simple majority to pass a tax raise. #HB2221, is modeled after a recently passed ballot measure in Arizona, which requires a 60% majority vote of the people on any ballot measure that would raise taxes. #txlege (9/x)

— Brian Harrison (@brianeharrison) February 13, 2023

HB 2221 would make it more difficult for entities to raise taxes by moving the threshold from a simple majority to 60%.

Harrison has keyed in on something that TFR has been talking about for quite some time: local governments are out of control and unaccountable to voters.

TFR will be tracking both of these bills, especially HB 2220 since we have placed this reform as a priority in the 88th Legislative Session.

We look forward to keeping our subscribers up to date with all of the bills working their way through the system, but we can say definitively these two are winners worth advocating for!

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