It seems to be an issue every session lately -- rising property valuations are making it harder to own homes. And again, the legislature seems poised to act.
"This is going to be, this potentially has the opportunity to be, the best session and maybe legislative history," said Lt. Governor Dan Patrick, who leads the Senate.
Patrick isn't using hyperbole when he talks about the work inside the Capitol this 89th session, especially for the Republicans who control both houses. They passed school choice, they're working on school funding, Patrick is pushing a ban on THC, which he thinks will become law, but above all else, it's property taxes.
"Well, first and foremost," Patrick told ABC13, "is property tax relief. It's always been my driving force since when I first ran for office when I became lieutenant governor in 2015."
Last session, the legislature raised the homestead exemption from $40,000 to $100,000. This session, they've proposed raising it to $140,000 and $200,000 for seniors.
State Sen. Molly Cook would also like to see relief for renters whose costs keep going up. A majority of Harris County residents are renters, but the focus is on homeowners. If an increased homestead exemption passes both houses, voters will then get the chance to make it law.
"Texas homeowners have expressed over and over again that housing affordability is extremely costly," Cook said. "And reducing property taxes is something that's a very high priority for Texas property owners."
ABC13 political analysts and regular guests on Eyewitness News' political program, This Week in Texas, offered their thoughts on the debate.
"Property taxes is a big deal," GOP political strategist Court Koenning said. "We know that. The property tax relief we got from the surplus last session has pretty much evaporated with appraisal caps."
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13 Investigates why some homeowners are paying more in property taxes
"Property taxes is a thing that they tackle every two years," Democratic political strategist Odus Evbagharu said. "I'm not as concerned about that. They're going to pass the property tax stuff. They need to get it done. If they don't do it in a regular session, they're going to go in a special session. They're always going to get property taxes done because Republicans have to run on it."
Last session, it took a special session to get it done. It may not take that long this time. Even with less than three weeks to go, it's still an eternity in the Capitol. That gives them time to also address the other pressing issue this session in education funding.
If the 2025 legislative session had a theme, that theme might be education. First, there was the fight over school choice and education savings accounts -- legislation that Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law 10 days ago. Now, there is a negotiation between the state house and the senate over school funding.
"School funding is going to happen, and it's going to be a big bill. Maybe one of the biggest bills we've ever passed," Patrick said. "It's about an $8 billion bill. OK, $8 billion for 1,200 school districts, 9,000 campuses, 365,000 teachers. You don't take a bill like that. It's that cost. It's that level, and do it in a day."
Cook also lists paying teachers more atop her agenda.
"So I think that the disagreement is going to come from (the following): Do we simply raise the basic allotment and give ISDs just a new kind of raise overall to address their needs on the local level? Or do we have a more prescriptive approach for how we increase funding?" she said.
There are some differences to hammer out -- between the House and Senate -- when it comes to how best to fund public schools. And it is high stakes during these final days and weeks.
"I think you have a majority opinion that teachers need to be making more money," Koenning said. "The stipends and cost of living increases need to happen because they've been on the side of the punching bag through this process."
"You know, the big focus for me is school finance," Evbagharu said. "And I think that's going to be the big focus for a lot of folks who are interested in the last days of session. Listen, Gov. Abbott promised a Texas two-step. Part of that two-step was the voucher program that they've passed, and now is school finance."
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