Current Budget Deficit
The Texas economy has been hit hard by the double whammy of the coronavirus pandemic and low oil prices, driving down tax revenues. As a result, the amount of general revenue for the state's current two-year budget will be about $11.5 billion less than the $121.8 billion estimated last fall, according to Comptroller Glenn Hegar. This leaves the state looking at a $4.6 billion deficit when the current biennium ends in August 2021, instead of the $2.9 billion surplus Hegar estimated before the pandemic began. The following articles can help counties navigate this unprecedented situation.
GR-Dedicated Accounts & the State Budget
The Legislature's long-standing practice of balancing and certifying the state budget by diverting dedicated funds intended for certain purposes has impacted many county programs and local budgets.
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June 28, 2019 | Legislative News
The approved state budget for the 2020-2021 biennium, HB 1, totals $250.7 billion, a 6.3% increase over the two-year budget approved by the 85th Legislature. The increase in General Revenue or tax-supported spending, compared to the 2018-19 state budget, is 9.5%.
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From County Issues Newsletter
Related Articles
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Fort Worth Business Press, Oct. 10, 2019
Months after approving the state’s first quarter-trillion-dollar budget, lawmakers got word Thursday that the state’s income forecasts are even better than they expected. In his latest official revenue estimate, which figures in the costs of legislation passed by...
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Fox 34, June 16, 2019
Gov. Greg Abbott signed the state’s roughly $250 billion budget Saturday, bringing a session-long effort to address the Legislature’s top priorities — school funding and property taxes — to a close. A spokesman for Abbott confirmed that the governor signed...
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Corsicana Daily Sun, June 5, 2019
The 86th legislative session wrapped up Monday, May 27 after 140 days, culminating in a major breakthrough for school finance and property tax reform. The Texas Legislature advanced a $250.7 billion two-year budget Sunday, May 26 ending weeks of...
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The Texas Tribune, May 29, 2019
The Texas Legislature did a lot in the 86th regular session, especially if you judge by their spending...
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Your Basin, May 15, 2019
Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar on Tuesday dropped a half-billion dollar gift into the laps of budget negotiators. The news comes as a relief to legislative budget-writers, who are in the midst of closed-door meetings about how much state lawmakers should spend...
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The Austin Chronicle, May 3, 2019
The careful choreography of the session's marquee budget, property tax, and school finance measures advanced Tuesday, April 30, with the House's approval of Senate Bill 2, the revenue cap plan opposed vociferously by local mayors, county judges, and...
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Texas Tribune, May 2, 2019
After revisions made in the Texas House, more than a thousand smaller taxing units may not have to abide by a key provision in the Legislature's priority property tax reform bill that requires them to hold an election before raising 3.5% more property tax...
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Texas Tribune, May 2, 2019
Behind closed doors at the Texas Capitol, a panel of House and Senate budget writers is negotiating which public programs will receive state funding over the next two years. Both chambers approved separate spending plans in recent weeks...
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Houston Chronicle, May 1, 2019
One of the biggest sticking points in the debate over property tax reform in Texas has been resolved in the Legislature after nearly 6 years of haggling, offering the best hope in years that a bill limiting how much local governments can raise taxes is close to becoming law...
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KVUE ABC, May 1, 2019
Texas lawmakers have been clear about their priorities this session. In the Senate, it's property tax reform in the form of Senate Bill 2 (SB 2). In the House, it's school finance reform in House Bill 3 (HB 3). And this week both bills have made significant progress...
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WOAI, May 1, 2019
The Texas House, on a 107 to 40 vote, last night approved what many Texans feel is the main responsibility of the 2019 session, a bill to limit the steady increase of property taxes, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports. The bill significantly lowers what is called...
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