Gov. Abbott signs $18 billion tax cut bill

Governor Greg Abbott has signed an $18 billion tax cut for Texas property owners, sending the proposals to voters for their approval later this year.

The package puts $12.6 billion of the state’s historic budget surplus toward making cuts to school taxes for all property owners, dropping property taxes an average of more than 40% for some 5.7 million Texas homeowners and offering brand-new tax savings for smaller businesses and other commercial and non-homesteaded properties.

Abbott recently added his signature to Senate Bill 2, the property tax cuts bill, and Senate Bill 3, a franchise tax relief bill, which were passed by Texas lawmakers three weeks ago after months of negotiations between the state’s top Republicans.

A third measure, House Joint Resolution 2, will go before voters in a constitutional election in November.

Voters would need to approve the package for the cuts to take effect this year.