Greetings Citizen Advocates!

Lots of stuff to report on this week, and so little time!  I'll try to be brief.

ELECTION YOU PROBABLY DON'T KNOW ABOUT:

Did you know that there is another election happening in the next few weeks that has a direct impact on YOUR property taxes?  Every odd numbered year, new Board of Director members are elected to the County Appraisal Districts.  But they are not elected by YOU the taxpayers!  The Board members are nominated and then voted on by the taxing governments to whom you pay property taxes.

The taxing entities – County Commissioners, City Councils, School Boards, etc. – nominate candidates for the ballot. They then elect the Board members based on weighted votes allotted to them according to how much revenue they receive from the citizens.  The largest number of votes go to the county wide governments because they are collecting revenue from the entire county (County Commissioners, County College District, etc)  The next largest will be the larger school districts and large cities.

Not always, but often, we find a lot of back room, sketchy dealing for these nominations so that the taxing entities can get the people on the board that benefits them.  We think taxpayers should be in charge of these decisions!  That's why we're calling your attention to it.  Most voters don't even know this is happening.

If you want to have a voice in selecting members of your County Appraisal District, first, find out who is nominated in your County by contacting the County Appraisal office.   Then, you must call or email your elected officials in all of the taxing entities that have taxing authority on your property.  (City, County, School Board, Municipal Districts, College Districts, Hospital Districts).  Better yet attend meetings of these governments, and speak up for the best candidates

The voting period is from November 1 through December 15. Most taxing entities will cast their votes in a November meeting so ACT NOW.

(It's just too much to post all contact information here.  So employ some of that personal responsibility we are proud of, and look it up.  All taxing entities have a website and their elected representatives are listed with contact information).

ELECTION YOU DO KNOW ABOUT:

Yes!  November 7th Election has already started with early voting.  The 14 Constitutional Amendments are on the ballot, along with some special elections, school board elections, a ton of bonds (EEEEK!), and possibly other things like city charter amendments, voter approval tax rate elections, and other scary, spooky things.  How appropriate that Halloween falls right in the middle of the voting schedule. 

For our TTP recommendations on everything, check out the November 2023 Elections page of our website.  You will find recommendations on everything we know about so far, and a printable list of amendments with recommendations.  Julie is constantly updating this page, so if you have not voted yet, be sure to re-check just before you go, for the most up to date information.

REMEMBER - Several amendments on the ballot are nothing but budget busters.  The legislature spent all the money they are allowed to spend because of constitutional budget limits, but they wanted to spend MORE.  They can break the spending limits with a simple majority vote - but that doesn't look good on a campaign mailer!  So they put several spending measures on constitutional amendments.  Another grassroots group referred to this as a "get out of jail free card" for legislators, and I would agree.  If they don't pass, then during campaign season lawmakers can say "we tried!",  but the voters said no.  Then it's YOUR fault.  Vote for them if you feel compelled to do so, but understand the motivation behind them, and don't delude yourself into thinking it's not going to cost a lot of money.  This goes for Prop 9, the TRS cost of living increase too!

CHAOS IN THE TEXAS HOUSE:

This week, the House was finally called into session to do some actual work.  They had a marathon day on Wednesday where they passed SB4 (human smuggling), SB7 (covid vaccines), HB4 (illegal entry to TX) and HB 6 (appropriations for border barriers).  They met well into the wee hours of the morning, with some heated debate including a profane laden tirade by a Democrat when 26 Republicans tried to limit amendments,  Speaker Dade Phelan had AG Ken Paxton physically removed from the House, and Rep Jeff Leach had to admit he lied about an amendment when challenged by Rep. Brian Harrison. Never a dull moment in the Texas House these days!

Check out these good articles that lay out everything:

Rep Armando Walle  says "I've been a good f*&))*+ soldier", Texas Scorecard

Phelan Removes AG Ken Paxton from the House, Texas Scorecard

Profanities, Priorities and Paxton, The Texan.news

Rep Steve Toth Tweets a video form the House floor on the removal of AG Paxton

ACTION ITEMS FOR THIS WEEK:

1)  Find out who is nominated to YOUR County Appraisal District Board, figure who the good ones are, and then advocate for them at your taxing governments' meetings in November.

2)  VOTE on November 7th, or during early voting from now until Nov 3.

3)  Participate in the 2024 Primary!  More and more challengers are stepping up to replace the "Dirty Dozen" and other bad incumbents in the Texas House.  Keep up with them, and support them in as many ways as possible. You don't have to live in the district to support them.  You can help promote on social media, block walk, text or phone call, and donate money.  We are featuring a new one every week on our Election 2024 page on the website.  Check it frequently to see where you can help a challenger replace a BAD incumbent.

Stay Engaged!

Fran Rhodes, President

PS:  Just want to share a personal story about the Appraisal Board Election subject.  In 2010, I volunteered to be a TTP Liaison to my school board.  I attended every meeting for about 4 years.  The Board members got to know me, would talk to me after meetings, thank me for being there, etc.  Sometimes I had something to say, but mostly I just sat and listened. right to the very end. 

Then some time later I was asked by a couple of taxpayer champions to help them win votes for the Appraisal District Board in our county.  So I went to the School Board meeting and asked them to vote for my candidates, and told them why.  Every single board member voted for my candidates, and thanked me for bringing the recommendation.  They recognized me and recognized my commitment to the cause, and respected my opinion.

Moral of this story?  Relationships count!  All of our TTP Citizen Advocacy and Liaison efforts are about building relationships. It's the best way to have influence when you need their support.  So start building those relationships today!