Go Vote 2023: A Review of Texas’ 14 Constitutional Amendments
tl;dr — Texans are voting on 14 constitutional amendments. Here is a quick summary. You can vote in Texas on these dates:
- You can early vote today through Friday (Nov. 3) at 7pm.
- Election day is Tuesday, Nov. 7 from 7am — 7pm.
- Click here to find your nearest polling place.
Elections matter.
So they say.
In Texas, I’ve heard some buzz about an election going on right now. Specifically, my wife asked me what these 14 Texas constitutional amendments are all about. I told her I would ‘do a little research.’
The Secretary of State, who tends to run statewide elections, has some information.
A quick glance through reveals there are also some isolated special elections, and locally you may have some important races to review. My home county — Hidalgo Co. — has a special page for this election and calls this the “Special Constitutional Amendment Election and Local Entities Election” (for the record).
Turns out my home city — Edinburg — is electing two city council members. And my local school district — Edinburg CISD — is raising property taxes.
(My daughter loves her ECISD school)
However, the main focus of this election for Texans statewide are 14 constitutional amendments.
The Secretary of State provides summaries (in English and Spanish) of the ballot language and descriptive statements for each amendment.
However, it is key to check to see if there is a “subtext” — a debate, dialogue, or political agenda operating out of sight of the official language. Hmmm.
To avoid reinventing the wheel — and since it is 3am (first draft) and I have a family and an impact startup to run in the morning — let me review a guide from the Texas Tribune (whom I trust) to see if it nails the issues:
While the Texas Tribune summary has some good insights, it was missing a compilation of who was for/against each measure, so I feared I might have to do a lot more research on my own, when I came across a great Ballotpedia compilation, that had the data I was looking for, and even includes financial backers of any political action committees (PACs) created to promote an amendment, and summaries of notable newspaper editorial boards and whether they “support” or “oppose” each measure:
Jackpot!
Up to this point, I have laid out breadcrumbs so you can ‘do a little research’ of your own, and come to your own conclusions.
Below, are my summaries of the 14 amendments, including editorial comments, and my take on each as of this moment. Again, above this line is objective voter information; below is my personal opinion!
Proposition 1: “The constitutional amendment protecting the right to engage in farming, ranching, timber production, horticulture, and wildlife management.”
This seems to be about ranchers fighting with cities over regulation. I feel neutral here since I do not know enough to be persuaded either way. I will skip this one on the ballot.
(Note: I think reserving the right to decline to vote on an initiative — to “skip” — is an important option.)
Proposition 2: “The constitutional amendment authorizing a local option exemption from ad valorem taxation by a county or municipality of all or part of the appraised value of real property used to operate a child-care facility.”
This allows cities and counties to exempt 50% or more of the property tax for childcare facilities, to ensure there is sufficient childcare in Texas. Supporters point to research showing $9B (billion) in economic loss due to insufficient childcare in Texas. I will vote Yes.
Proposition 3: “The constitutional amendment prohibiting the imposition of an individual wealth or net worth tax, including a tax on the difference between the assets and liabilities of an individual or family.”
This one makes me laugh. Prohibition against a “Wealth Tax.” Republicans in Texas want to make clear that wealth is constitutionally protected, even if there is no current proposed legislation that would threaten this wealth.
Apparently they think Billionaires are an endangered species. This feels like a proactive anti-AOC or anti-Bernie bill. I will vote No. I do not like using public resources like ballot elections to engage in political debates. Even if I someday have wealth sufficient to fall into the target class for this type of law, I do not believe I would need the Texas constitution to protect me. What else is the purpose of wealth, but to spend some of it in order to defend itself?
Proposition 4: “The constitutional amendment to authorize the legislature to establish a temporary limit on the maximum appraised value of real property other than a residence homestead for ad valorem tax purposes; to increase the amount of the exemption from ad valorem taxation by a school district applicable to residence homesteads from $40,000 to $100,000; to adjust the amount of the limitation on school district ad valorem taxes imposed on the residence homesteads of the elderly or disabled to reflect increases in certain exemption amounts; to except certain appropriations to pay for ad valorem tax relief from the constitutional limitation on the rate of growth of appropriations; and to authorize the legislature to provide for a four-year term of office for a member of the board of directors of certain appraisal districts.”
This is the amendment necessary to enable a set of property tax cuts for homeowners. It should pass overwhelmingly, and I will vote Yes.
However, I just noticed an interesting provision to “allow voters to elect three members to their local appraisal district’s board of directors, which are currently appointed” (TexasTribune) — creating more democratic control (in theory) over the means of taxation.
Proposition 5: “The constitutional amendment relating to the Texas University Fund, which provides funding to certain institutions of higher education to achieve national prominence as major research universities and drive the state economy.”
Texas public universities that are not the University of Texas or A&M are seeking to receive the interest earnings from Texas’ Rainy Day fund (a large reserve fund). Notably, per Ballotpedia, several affected universities (Texas Tech, University of Houston) spent a fair amount — collectively $1m+ — on this initiative. I will vote Yes. Funding for public universities seems important, and the source of funding is “found money.”
Proposition 6: “The constitutional amendment creating the Texas water fund to assist in financing water projects in this state.”
Water is important. Droughts are real. This would create a $1B fund to address Texas “crumbling” water infrastructure. I will vote Yes.
(There is also broad support)
Proposition 7: “The constitutional amendment providing for the creation of the Texas energy fund to support the construction, maintenance, modernization, and operation of electric generating facilities.”
(I am especially appalled at how the seemingly neutral language in the proposition above hides a very specific use of public funds for private interests — specifically the natural gas industry)
For a case in Texas logic: ERCOT, a state regulated non-profit that is supposed to keep Texas’ lights on, failed spectacularly in 2021. What to do?
Proposal: Create a $5B fund (those are billions) to offer corporate welfare in the form of discounted loans ONLY for the creation of new “natural gas-powered electric plants” (no green energy). This smells (foul) like a give away of taxpayer funds to a special set of private interests.
Facts: To write this blog post, I literally set aside notes for another post tentatively titled “Climate Apocalypse Now?” I will vote no, because I am not convinced of the theory of logic above, and do not feel like spending tax dollars subsidizing fossil fuels exclusively. If they had offered the tax incentives broadly to all energy sources, or even if split 50/50 between fossil fuels and green energy, this would have a higher chance of passing muster. Because then their commitment to creating new sources of energy would have been credible. Instead so-called conservatives are trying to tilt the hand of Texas’ free market toward a set of insiders. Sad.
Proposition 8: “The constitutional amendment creating the broadband infrastructure fund to expand high-speed broadband access and assist in the financing of connectivity projects.”
$1.5B to bring high-speed internet to (primarily) rural Texans. I will vote yes. Though I do wonder what will happen when they start “doing a little research.”
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Proposition 9: “The constitutional amendment authorizing the 88th Legislature to provide a cost-of-living adjustment to certain annuitants of the Teacher Retirement System of Texas.”
Retired teachers served our kids. Now they are living on a fixed income. However, as an important math lesson, if inflation goes up every year, and the dollar amount of your fixed income does not increase, you are actually given *less in real dollars over time. The fix is called a Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA). Some retired teachers have not seen a COLA in 20 years! Let’s get them some COLA. $3.3B will transfer from Texas general fund to the Teachers Retirement System (TRS). I will vote yes.
Proposition 10: “The constitutional amendment to authorize the legislature to exempt from ad valorem taxation equipment or inventory held by a manufacturer of medical or biomedical products to protect the Texas healthcare network and strengthen our medical supply chain.”
Is it just me or when you get into the double digits of constitutional amendments you start seeing weirder stuff?
This appears to be a corporate welfare play to give tax breaks for medical equipment and inventory that is presently included in the formula for property taxation. I do not see enough compelling evidence to vote in favor of this. I will be neutral and skip this.
Proposition 11: “The constitutional amendment authorizing the legislature to permit conservation and reclamation districts in El Paso County to issue bonds supported by ad valorem taxes to fund the development and maintenance of parks and recreational facilities.”
The ‘keep it weird’ trend continues. A statewide amendment just for El Paso County. Apparently 11 large counties were empowered in 2003 to issue bonds to manage public resources such as parks, or water. El Paso feels left out. I will vote for this. While we’re at it: Can we add a Texas constitutional amendment to invite Pluto back into the Solar System?
Proposition 12: “The constitutional amendment providing for the abolition of the office of county treasurer in Galveston County.”
Ok. Mr. Hank Dugie just stole the top entertainment prize from the endangered billionaires amendment.
Per the Texas Tribune: “Galveston County’s current treasurer, Hank Dugie, ran on eliminating the position and said in his campaign video the office is, “redundant and a waste of more than half a million dollars each year.”
This guy created a statewide amendment to fulfill his quixotic campaign promise. He legit took Roy off the grid.
Sadly, I worry that this constitutional amendment costs more in waste than the position Mr. Hank hopes to eliminate.
Interesting development though: I was going to vote no. But, I re-read the Ballotpedia article and scanned the list of newspaper endorsements, and they were all “For,” which surprised me.
To quote the San Antonio News-Express: “In 2022, Galveston voters elected Hank Dugie as county treasurer knowing his platform was to abolish that office. We assume this is what the voters there want.”
I have been persuaded. I will vote Yes.
QQ: What office will Hank run for next with hopes of demolishing?
Proposition 13: “The constitutional amendment to increase the mandatory age of retirement for state justices and judges.”
I think if a Texas judge or justice is elected to serve up to age 79, they should be allowed to do so without complication. This increases the mandatory retirement age from 75 to 79. I will vote Yes. However, I do think many Americans might be interested in a U.S. Constitutional amendment requiring presidential candidates to retire by age 75. 👀
(drumroll…)
Proposition 14: “The constitutional amendment providing for the creation of the centennial parks conservation fund to be used for the creation and improvement of state parks.”
This is a popular amendment. Also 14 is my lucky number. Here is what the Texas Tribune has to say: “Texas ranks 35th in the nation for state park acreage per capita, according to a report by Environment Texas. This pressured lawmakers to propose investing more than $1 billion for state parks, which advocates said would create “a new golden age” for the park system. The funding would go to buying more land for the state parks system, which celebrates its 100th anniversary this year.” I will vote Yes. And then make a plan to take a walk in my favorite local Texas state park. :)
Now go vote, and while you’re at it — go touch some grass!
(While you still can?)