Texas House bill by Rep. Meyer exempts $250,000 in tangible personal property from ad valorem tax

Passed bill authored by State Rep. Morgan Meyer aims to exempt $250,000 of tangible personal property used for income production from ad valorem taxation, seeking to adjust tax calculations contingent on a constitutional amendment, according to the Texas Legislature website.

In the House, 38 Democrats and 72 Republicans voted in favor of the bill, while 12 Democrats and three Republicans opposed it.

Meanwhile, in the Senate, 11 Democrats and 20 Republicans voted in favor, with no opposing votes.

Morgan Meyer introduced the bill in the Texas House on Monday, Feb. 24, during the 89th regular legislative session.

Meyer graduated from Southern Methodist University with a BA and again from Washington and Lee University School of Law with a JD.

Meyer, a Republican, was elected to the Texas State House in 2015 to represent the state’s 108th House district, replacing previous state representative Dan Branch.

According to the Texas Legislature, the bill’s official text was summarized as follows: ‘Relating to an exemption from ad valorem taxation of a portion of the appraised value of tangible personal property that is held or used for the production of income’.

The following is our breakdown, based on the actual bill text, and may include interpretation to clarify its provisions.

In essence, this bill aims to provide an exemption from ad valorem taxation for $250,000 of the appraised value of tangible personal property owned and used for the production of income. Owners are required to render their property for taxation only if its value exceeds the exempted amount in any taxing unit. These changes apply to tax years starting on or after Jan. 1, 2025. The bill also contains provisions for the calculation and adjustment of tax rates for the 2025 tax year to account for these exemptions, contingent on the approval of a related constitutional amendment. If enacted, the exemptions would alter how taxable values and tax rates are determined, reflecting hypothetical scenarios in provisional tax rolls until the potential constitutional amendment’s effect is confirmed by voter approval. The bill is set to expire on Dec. 31, 2026, if the amendment is not ratified.

The bill was co-authored by Rep. James Frank (Republican – District 69), Rep. Brooks Landgraf (Republican – District 81), and Rep. Jeff Leach (Republican – District 67), along with 72 other authors.

The bill received its final legislative approval on Monday, May 19, and was signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott on Thursday, June 12.

Bills in Texas go through a multi-step legislative process, including committee review, debates, and votes in both chambers before reaching a final decision. Each session, there are typically thousands of bills introduced, but only a portion successfully navigate the process to become law.

You can read more about the bills and other measures here.