El Paso Standard

A recent report shows that property taxes have increased in all 10 of Texas' most populated counties.

Property taxes are a point of contention in Texas and bipartisan support has been drawn for decreasing the property tax burden on Texas citizens. A report published by the Texas Public Policy Foundation in February shows property tax increases for Texas' most populous counties compared to the tax's preferred growth rate, which is a combination of inflation plus population growth. Property tax in all 10 counties, including El Paso, outstripped this preferred rate over the period 2016-2020.

According to The Texas Public Policy Foundation's Just the Facts: Property Taxes in Texas’ Most Populous Cities, Counties, and School Districts 2nd Edition by James Quintero and Anthony Jones published in February, property taxes are unique in a number of ways. First, the report notes that property taxes are “the largest tax assessed in Texas”, according to the Comptroller. In 2019, nearly 50 percent of all tax dollars collected in Texas came from property taxes. The report also noted that there were 4,256 separate property taxing units in Texas in the fiscal year of 2019, some of which overlap. 

The report also claims that "The laws and systems surrounding Texas’ property tax are notoriously complicated, oftentimes requiring a taxpayer to seek help through consultants, accountants, advocates, and attorneys." Not only are the tax laws complex, but they are also growing far faster than the preferred rate of growth, which is calculated as population growth plus inflation.

"It’s not a stretch to say that property taxes are out of control in the Lone Star State," Quintero, a policy director at Texas Public Policy Foundation wrote in a newsletter on March 3, discussing property taxes in Texas. "As a result, local governments are getting rich while families are forced to make hard decisions."

El Paso County's property tax grew 41.7% from $178.2 million to $252.5 million from 2016 to 2020, according to the report. The combined population and inflation for the city grew by 11.5% during that time, resulting in a difference of 30.2%.

All of Texas’ 10 most populous counties experienced some level of population growth from 2016-2020. 

The Balance ranked Texas among the 10 states with the highest property tax rates in the country, with a median payment of $4,065 per year.

In 2021, the Tax Foundation found that Texas had the sixth-highest property tax rate measured as property taxes paid as a percentage of owner occupied housing value in 2019.