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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, Texas has long protected the family homestead, and |
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the homestead exemption, now a feature of law in many states and |
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recognized by the federal tax code, is a Texas creation; and |
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WHEREAS, In 1839, following the economic depression of the |
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late 1830s, during which many families lost their homes and farms to |
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foreclosures, the Texas Legislature enacted a general exemption |
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that prevented creditors from taking a person's homestead to |
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satisfy a debt; the exemption was deemed of such importance that it |
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was enshrined in the Texas Constitution in 1845 to prevent its |
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demise at the hands of future legislatures; and |
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WHEREAS, Similarly, in response to the state fiscal crisis |
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wrought by the Great Depression, the Texas Constitution was amended |
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in 1932 to exempt $3,000 of the value of a homestead from the state |
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property tax; although the tax structure changed over time and the |
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state property tax was eventually abolished, the $3,000 exemption |
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was retained and shifted to the property taxes imposed by local |
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authorities; and |
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WHEREAS, Seventy-five years later, the amount of homestead |
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exemption from local taxation remains $3,000; in 1978, amid a |
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number of measures to provide property tax relief, the Texas |
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Legislature created an additional $5,000 homestead exemption for |
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school tax purposes only; and |
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WHEREAS, Almost 20 years passed before the next increase in |
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the exemption, when, as part of the 1997 reforms of the state's tax |
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structure and school finance system, the homestead exemption for |
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school tax purposes only was increased to $15,000; and |
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WHEREAS, The amount of this homestead exemption remains |
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unchanged 10 years later, despite the fact that during the same |
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period property values have increased sharply; according to the |
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office of the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, the taxable |
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value of single-family residences increased by 12 percent in 2002, |
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another 11 percent in 2003, and again by seven percent in 2004; and |
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WHEREAS, This dramatic rise in taxable values along with |
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property tax rate increases and the escalating number of taxing |
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jurisdictions have combined to proportionally diminish the |
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effective value of the $15,000 homestead exemption; and |
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WHEREAS, Texas is not currently experiencing a devastating |
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economic depression similar to those that fostered the birth of the |
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original exemptions, but the current situation is no less dire for |
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homeowners who are finding it increasingly difficult to keep their |
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homes due to ever-rising property taxes; though the legislature |
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recently enacted property tax relief measures, an increase in the |
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amount of the homestead exemption was not included; now, therefore, |
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be it |
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RESOLVED, That the Senate of the 80th Texas Legislature |
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hereby express the need for the legislature to consider an |
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additional increase of $7,500 in the homestead exemption for |
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property taxation for public education purposes. |