DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) – Democratic candidate for Governor Beto O’Rourke said Wednesday he would lower property taxes across Texas by shifting billions of dollars the state spends to protect the southern border.
That includes the National Guard Members Governor Greg Abbott has activated.
During a late afternoon news conference in Dallas, O’Rourke said, “The activation of the National Guard members, I’ll bring every single one of them home today if I were the Governor of the State of Texas. There’s no need for them to be there. That would save billions of dollars over the coming years as an example.”
O’Rourke’s comment came in response to a question about whether the state could afford his plan to increase spending on public schools and lowering the burden on lower property taxpayers, who’ve seen appraised values on their homes rise between 20 to 30% in North Texas from last year.
The former Congressman from El Paso said he would work with both Democrats and Republicans to lower property taxes and also still address the situation at the border, which has seen a rapid rise in the number of people entering the country illegally during the past year.
O’Rourke said his plan would “actually produce results and not stunts. I don’t know what the price tag is going to be on that. It is certainly not $5 billion dollars a year, which is what we are currently spending.”
He sharply criticized Governor Abbott for rising property taxes.
O’Rourke quoted statistics from the Texas Taxpayers and Research Association that he said shows property tax revenues collected by counties across the state during the past seven years have increased by a total of $20 billion.
The Democrat outlined a number of solutions he believes would lower property tax bills for schools.
They include legalizing marijuana, which he says could produce $1 billion for the state that would replace the amount of money collected from property owners.
He said $500,000 would come from new tax revenues from selling marijuana and $500,000 in savings from the cost of prosecuting people on criminal charges associated with possessing marijuana.
O’Rourke also said he backs an idea to make it so that the state will pay 50% of all funding for public schools.
Now, the state pays less than 50% of the costs for public schools and more comes from property taxpayers according to educators.
It would cost the state billions of dollars to increase funding for schools.
He also advocated for expanding Medicaid, the health program for the poor, something Governor Abbott and state Republican leaders have opposed citing rising health costs.
About 90% of the funding would come from the federal government, while the state would pick up the rest.
When asked if the state could afford to do both O’Rourke said, “The answer is yes. In the 9th largest economy on the planet, in the wealthiest country in the world it is not for the lack of resources. It is for the lack of political will and leadership right now. When current leadership is more invested in stunts like shutting down commercial trade at the border, spending $5 billion on political theater where our state meets Mexico and the rest of the world, there are resources that could have been invested in public education for example to meet that 50 percent goal, which is totally attainable.”
A bill that proposed guaranteeing the state pay for 50% of school funding failed in 2019.
The legislature though did pass bills that contribute billions of more state dollars to pay for schools to relieve property taxpayers.
O’Rourke said he also wanted to end a provision in state law that allows commercial property owners to file lawsuits against county appraisal districts, something residential customers cannot do.
He said that shifts the burden onto homeowners.
In a statement, Mark Miner, the Communications Director of Governor Abbott’s campaign said, “Serial flip-flopper Beto O’Rourke is once again misleading the public. Governor Abbott has reduced property taxes for Texans by over $18 billion since taking office, while Beto O’Rourke has an established track record of increasing property taxes while serving on the city council in El Paso.”
Miner said the $18 billion represents the total amount of property tax relief the legislature has passed since Abbott was sworn in as Governor in January, 2015.
The issue of rising property values and taxes is not only an issue in the 2022 Governor’s race but will also be a major issue in the state legislature when the new session begins in January.