“This is just a continuation of the city of Fort Worth’s leaders to really work aggressively to reduce as much property tax burden on our residents as possible,” Mayor Maddie Parker said.
The details
With the Texas Legislature still divided on how to formulate a property tax relief plan, many cities remain in limbo as to what they can do to lower the tax burden on their residents. According to a city news release, as the Legislature considers options, any local action to amend the over-65 and disability exemptions must be adopted by July 1 to become effective for the next fiscal year.
Parker said while there is still much debate going on in Austin about property tax relief, council waited as long as it could before taking action.
“We thought it was important to do something in this next tax bill for our residents,” Parker said.
The backstory
According to the news release, the city last raised the exemption for those over age 65 in 1984 to $40,000. In 1991, the city raised the exemption for disabled people from $20,000 to $40,000. An eligible disabled person who is age 65 or older may not receive both a disabled and an elderly residence homestead exemption but may choose either in addition to the 20% homestead exemption.
Quote of note
“I’m so excited we are doing this as a council,” Council Member Jared Williams said. “I think of folks like my dad, a retired teacher on a fixed income, and know what this will mean for folks like him. So thank you all; this is an important first step.”
