Houston Democrats’ Infighting Kills Proposed Property-Tax Hike

Harris County commissioners rejected a proposal Thursday from Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo for a “penny” property tax increase by neglecting to take a vote before a noon deadline to send the tax question to voters in November.

Seeking to fill a coming budget gap from expiring American Rescue Plan Act federal dollars the county used to fund child care programs, Hidalgo claimed the hike of $10 per $100,000 of valuation would add $24 per year to the average homeowner’s property tax bill, the Texas Scorecard reported.

The proposal was expected to generate about $60 million a year in property tax revenue for the county, proponents said. Projected revenues were not published in the Harris County Commissioners Court’s meeting agenda. Even though Hidalgo pitched her plan as a “penny” increase, no specific numbers were put forth.

Democrat commissioners Lesley Briones, Rodney Ellis and Adrian Garcia withheld support for Hidalgo’s proposal along with Republican Commissioner Tom Ramsey. As no one seconded Hidalgo’s proposal for a vote, it died.

Ellis proposed his own plan, which would’ve increased the county tax rate by 2.8 cents per $100 valuation, and Judge Hidalgo seconded the measure, but it failed in a 3-2 vote.

The failed motions came after a contentious morning where Hidalgo held signs with her staff and encouraged children in the audience, who were purportedly recipients of child care paid for from the ARPA funds, to take part in demonstrations for the property tax hike. The judge and fellow commissioners also accused one another of lying to the public.

Resident resentment to additional taxes is growing, the outlet said. After last year’s disastrous spring and summer storms, the May derecho and Hurricane Beryl in July, Commissioners passed a disaster-rate tax hike — allowed by the state of Texas to bypass the typical 3.5 percent threshold that would require voter-approval. That raised the county’s overall tax rate from $0.35007 to $0.38529 per $100 valuation.

— Eric Weilbacher