Austin, TX – In the 2nd called Special Session of the 88th Legislature, Senator Bettencourt (R-Houston) passed a Texas-sized record $18.1 billion property tax cut for all Texas homeowners and business owners. Senator Bettencourt as the author of SB 2 and as Senate sponsor of HJR 2 (authored by Rep. Will Metcalf, R-Conroe), which became Proposition 4 that the public overwhelmingly ratified by 83.44% on the November ballot. HJR 2 contained a provision that three citizens will be elected county-wide in the top 50 counties that are above 75,000 in population in May of 2024 to join each County Appraisal District's (CAD) board of directors in non-partisan positions.

"Proposition 4's and SB 2's record property tax relief has gotten positive accolades from taxpayers all across the state. But wait, there's more! Prop. 4 also contained a provision for the first election of CAD Board members. Since the Peveto bill, there's never been direct elected representation on the Appraisal District Board of Directors." said Senator Bettencourt.

The CAD board of directors is responsible for the governance of the CAD, including the hiring of the chief appraiser, and adopting the CAD’s annual budget. These 3 members will be intricately involved in the interviewing and selecting of these Appraisal Review Board (ARB) members in each county with a 75,000 population or greater. Two out of three of these members must approve ARB hirings. ARBs review property valuation appeals filed by taxpayers and decide whether to keep that valuation or change it.

"I am grateful the legislature passed this landmark appraisal district reform package last year for the first time since the creation of central appraisal districts in 1979. With the newly elected appraisal district board members and the 20% circuit breaker on non-homesteaded property, citizens have gained accountability and predictability in their appraisal system. I thank Senator Bettencourt for his partnership on this historic legislation." said Representative Will Metcalf.

"These measures were passed unanimously in the Senate with a bipartisan spirit because these are non-partisan positions like school board trustees. Each CAD has nine board members including the elected tax assessor, five taxing unit positions, and now three new citizen positions which is a balanced CAD board. However, they do not set appraisal district values, that is exclusively the role of the chief appraiser. If you are interested in interviewing ARB members, property valuation in general, or serving your county community, citizens taxpayers should consider filing for this newly elected position." Concluded Senator Bettencourt.

The filing period for these unpaid positions begins on January 17th, 2024, and will close on February 16th, 2024. The filing fee for a place on the ballot is $400 for a county with a population of 200,00 or more and $200 for a county with a population between 75,000 and 200,000. The Secretary of State has provided an Election Advisory with additional information that can be found here: https://www.sos.state.tx.us/elections/laws/advisory2023-24.shtml

See previous Press Releases below:

• Senator Paul Bettencourt named "2023 Legislator of the Year" at ALEC's National Policy Summit
• Supermajority of Texans have voted FOR Proposition 4, $18 billion of Property Tax Reduction!
• Senator Paul Bettencourt’s Huge property tax reduction bill is ceremonially signed into law!

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