The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - February 11, 2025

Starting point is 00:00:00 Howdy folks, today is Tuesday, February 11th, and you're listening to the Texans daily rundown. I'm the Texans assistant editor Rob Lausches, and here is the rundown of today's news in Texas politics. First up, Governor Greg Abbott joined the Texans senior reporter Brad Johnson to discuss his most recent state of the-the-state address, the future of school choice and education savings accounts in Texas, property tax reform, and securing the southern border. Listen to the interview at thete Senate's priority property tax relief bill. Senator Paul Betancourt laid out Senate Bill 4, which would increase the standard homestead exemption from $100,000 to $140,000 as it pertains to school district tax bills. The fiscal note for the bill goes from a $1.04 billion cost to the state in the 2026-2027 biennium to $272 million in 2028-2029, as projected rising

Starting point is 00:01:16 valuations creep up to or exceed the $40,000 increase outlined in Senate Bill 2, lessening the effect of the would-be cut from the state. Appraisal creep is why the legislature comes back to add more to either compression or an exemption increase nearly every biennium. The Homestead exemption was $5,000 before the turn of the century, and last session it reached $100,000. Both Senate Bill 4 and Senate Joint Resolution 2, the accompanying constitutional amendment, were reported favorably to the full Senate. Every senator, Republican and Democrat, co-authored the legislation. In other news, Carroll Independent School District in Northeast Texas has been approached by the Tarrant Appraisal District recommending-slash-requesting that the school board pass a resolution asking for a reappraisal of the properties within the district. Carroll is one of seven school districts that are at

Starting point is 00:02:10 greater risk of failing the state comptroller's property value study that is related to the Texas school finance system. The other districts include Aledo, Azle, Castleberry, Everyman, Fort Worth, and Grapevine-Colleyville ISDs. In order to address inequitable public education funding, the legislature requires, quote, an independent estimate of taxable property value in each school district, end quote. This is the Comptroller's property value study conducted every two years. The study values are compared to the local appraisal district values, and they must fall within a 5% margin of error to be considered valid. If the values fall outside of that range,

Starting point is 00:02:51 the district is eligible for a two-year grace period, during which local values should be brought into line with state values. Also, the Texas economy continues to grow amid the state's pro-business environment, and some lawmakers in the legislature want to expand its economic footprint with overseas partners. The announcement of the Texas Legislature UK Caucus, headed up by Senator Tan Parker and Representative Claudia Ordaz, is an opportunity, they say, to promote economic growth and opportunities across multiple sectors of industry. Parker explained, quote, By working with our British counterparts, we can forge a path forward that not only strengthens our economy and our cultural relations, but also enhances diplomacy and

Starting point is 00:03:35 innovation for all Texans. Ordaz spoke about how there is a need for Texas elected officials to foster relationships with the British government so that it can play a pivotal role moving forward. Last but not least, legislation passed during the 88th legislative session has led to nearly two dozen busts uncovering illicit activity in massage parlors across the state. Nineteen six-month emergency closure orders have been issued to massage establishments across the state due to suspected human trafficking, thanks to State Representative Ben Bumgarner's House Bill 3579, which gave the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation additional authority to close establishments if found to be violating certain standards. A representative from TDLR told the Texan that these emergency closure orders are

Starting point is 00:04:23 often preceded by a customer complaint. However, a large number of reports are usually made by Tdlr inspectors during their day-to-day job, who visit these massage establishments to ensure the therapists are licensed, that no employees are living on-site, and other standard protocols are being met. Tdlr closed one massage establishment in Austin on December 4th, three in San Antonio on February 3rd, one in Garland on February 4th, and one in Fort Worth on February 5th. Thanks for listening. To support The Texan, please be sure to visit thetexan.news and subscribe to get full access to all of our articles, newsletters, and podcasts.

The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - February 11, 2025

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