Come November, Texas voters will decide 17 proposed amendments to the state constitution.
Only lawmakers can place amendments on the ballot in Texas. Each proposal must clear both the House and Senate with a two-thirds vote before going to voters. Once on the ballot, a measure needs only a simple majority to pass.
If approved, the amendments become part of the Texas Constitution and can only be changed by another statewide vote.
Early voting runs from Monday, Oct. 20 through Friday, Oct. 31. Texas voters can check their registration status here.
Proposition 1 — SJR 59: Funding boost for Texas technical colleges
This amendment would create two new funds to support the Texas State Technical College System, which provides job training and career-focused education across the state.
The funds — called the Permanent Technical Institution Infrastructure Fund and the Available Workforce Education Fund — could be used to buy land, build new classrooms and labs, make major repairs to campus buildings and purchase equipment.
Unlike Texas universities, the technical college system doesn't have the power to collect local taxes. Instead, the money for these funds could come from several places, including money set aside by the Legislature, interest the funds earn over time and any private gifts, grants or donations. One of the funds could also receive money from the other.
Lawmakers would decide how much to put in these funds during future legislative sessions.
— Lucio Vasquez, The Texas Newsroom
Proposition 2 — SJR 18: A ban on capital gains tax
This amendment would constitutionally ban taxes on capital gains made from selling stocks or other investments.
Capital gains taxes are already effectively banned in Texas, only because they've been interpreted to fall under the state's ban on an income tax. But the proposition's author points to the state of Washington, which successfully defended its tax on capital gains in court, arguing some weren't protected by the state's law against income taxes.
This proposition aims to prevent something similar from happening in Texas, ensuring the state remains a "tax-friendly state," according to the resolution's analysis.
— Dylan Duke, KERA News
Proposition 3 — SJR 5: Mandatory bail denial
Senate Joint Resolution 5 would require judges and magistrates to deny bail to people accused of certain violent or sexual felonies, which is allowed but not mandated in the current state constitution. That includes murder, aggravated assault causing serious bodily injury, aggravated sexual assault and human trafficking.
The amendment would mandate that a judicial officer deny bail for an accused person if the prosecutor can prove that granting bail won't ensure that the accused appears in court. The prosecutor must show clear and convincing evidence — a higher legal standard of proof — to prove that granting the accused bail would risk public safety.
There must be a hearing over whether to grant or deny bail, and the accused person is entitled to have an attorney. If a judicial officer does grant bail, they have to write up their findings in a statement supporting their decision.
— Toluwani Osibamowo, KERA News
Proposition 4 — HJR 7: Water infrastructure funding
House Joint Resolution 7 would dedicate a portion of state tax revenues to build and repair water infrastructure.
If approved, the measure would give up to $1 billion a year in sales tax revenue to the Texas Water Fund, starting in 2027 and running for 20 years. While this would fall short of the state's water infrastructure needs, it would begin to address a serious problem, the measure's backers argue.
The money would be used to fix aging pipes and other infrastructure, to develop new water sources including through desalination, and to mitigate the effects of flooding.
— Andrew Schneider, Houston Public Media
Proposition 5 — HJR 99: Animal feed tax exemption
Animal feed is almost entirely tax exempt, from cultivation to retail sale. But animal feed in retail inventory awaiting sale is subject to personal property tax.
Proposition 5 seeks to close that gap. If approved by voters, House Joint Resolution 99 would give the Legislature the ability to exempt animal feed in retailers' inventories from personal property taxes as well as set rules and limitations on the exemption.
Supporters of the resolution said the current laws are unfair to retailers, and that taxes are typically assessed when warehouses are full "due to the seasonal needs of the agriculture business," according to the House Research Organization.
The HRO, a nonpartisan administrative department that seeks to provide impartial information to lawmakers, cites critics as saying the measure would give an unfair advantage to feed retailers, especially since "almost all other forms of inventory are subject to property tax."
— James Hartley, KERA News
Proposition 6 — HJR 4: Ban on some taxes aimed at financial service providers
The language of Proposition 6 may look dense, but the premise is simple: It would ban taxes on certain segments of the finance industry.
If approved, this amendment would permanently bar the state from imposing occupation taxes on businesses like stock exchanges and broker dealers, and on taxing securities transactions. That means without another amendment undoing the action, Texas won't be able to tax the buying and selling of stocks and bonds.
According to nonpartisan policy institute Every Texan, the proposition was put forward "in preparation for the establishment of the Texas Stock Exchange." The Dallas-based exchange is set to launch in 2026.
— Andy Lusk, KERA News
Proposition 7 — HJR 133: A property tax break for veterans' surviving spouses
If voters approve this amendment, some surviving spouses of military veterans will no longer need to pay property taxes.
To qualify, the widow or widower of a veteran couldn't remarry, and their spouse's death would have to be from a service-related condition or disease.
— Blaise Gainey, The Texas Newsroom
Proposition 8 — HJR 2: Inheritance tax ban
House Joint Resolution 2 would prohibit the Legislature from imposing "death taxes" applicable to a decedent's property or the transfer of an estate, inheritance, legacy, succession or gift.
Though Texas does not currently have an inheritance tax, this measure aims to prevent lawmakers from trying to impose a tax on an estate or when an estate or inheritance is transferred. It would not eliminate other existing taxes that can be associated with an inheritance, such as unpaid property taxes, according to committee discussions on the proposal.
Critics of this constitutional amendment have said it is unnecessary and would limit state lawmakers in the future, according to the House Research Organization.
Wealthy estates and high-net-worth individuals are the primary beneficiaries. Because only those with large estates face estate or gift tax liabilities, a constitutional ban mostly protects large transfers of wealth.
— Dan Katz, Texas Public Radio
Proposition 9 — HJR 1: Property tax exemption for landlords and business owners
House Joint Resolution 1 would increase the property tax exemption for business properties from $2,500 to $125,000 of the market value of their property.
The amendment would apply to personal property used for business purposes — things like inventory, vehicles and supplies. The amendment doesn't apply to real estate and would impact properties that are owned or leased.
Rep. Morgan Meyer (R-Dallas), who wrote the legislation that led to the amendment, says it would provide tax relief to small businesses.
"With another budget surplus, it is our responsibility to return this money to the taxpayers," Meyer said during a committee hearing on the bill.
Opponents warn increasing property tax exemptions will hurt local taxing entities' budgets. For example, the city of Fort Worth would lose as much as $8 million in revenue, said Brady Kirk, the assistant finance director of The FWLab.
Homeowners may have to pay the difference in their property taxes, Kirk told the Senate Committee on Local Government during a hearing on the bill.
— Caroline Love, KERA News
Proposition 10 — SJR 84: Temporary property tax exemption for homes destroyed by fire
Senate Joint Resolution 84 would exempt homeowners whose property was destroyed by fire from property taxes.
Property owners have to submit an application for an exemption to their county's chief appraiser no later than 180 days after the fire occurs to qualify. The chief appraiser will recalculate the home's value if it doesn't fully qualify and send an updated tax bill if needed.
There is currently no process in place to account for a major change in home value after a fire, said Sen. Angela Paxton (R-McKinney) who backed the measure. The amendment would be a boon to those whose homes are destroyed, Paxton said.
— Caroline Love, KERA News
Proposition 11 — SJR 85: School tax exemption for homeowners who are disabled or over 65
Senate Joint Resolution 85 would boost the amount of the state's homestead exemption — the portion of a home's value that cannot be taxed to pay for public schools — for residents over 65 or those who have a disability to $60,000, up from the current level of $10,000. Together with another constitutional amendment on the ballot, Proposition 13, this could lift the total homestead exemption for these individuals to $200,000, with an average annual tax savings of about $907.
Proponents of the amendment argue that many of these individuals are on fixed incomes, earning $36,000 a year or less, and that a homestead exemption of this size could help people stay in their homes.
If the amendment is approved, the state would have to make up for revenue school districts could no longer collect. That would cost the state about $1.2 billion in the 2026-2027 budget cycle, falling to $477 million per year afterwards before starting to climb again, according to the fiscal note attached to the accompanying Senate Bill 23.
Critics are concerned that state funding to education would not keep pace with losses, so if the state cuts funding to education in future budget cycles — as it did notably in 2005 — school districts will be forced to cut spending as well.
— Andrew Schneider, Houston Public Media
Proposition 12 — SJR 27: Changes to who disciplines state judges — and how
Senate Joint Resolution 27 would change the makeup of the commission that disciplines judges and adjust the Texas Supreme Court's authority "to more effectively sanction judges for judicial misconduct."
The amendment would require the State Commission on Judicial Conduct, or SCJC, to make discipline against state judges public. Discipline can only be private if the judge has never been sanctioned before and isn't being accused of a criminal offense.
Currently, the SCJC must consist of 13 members: a court of appeals justice, a district judge, two State Bar members, five citizens who aren't lawyers or government employees, one justice of the peace and three other lower-level judges.
Under this amendment, the SCJC would still have 13 members, but with a citizen majority and no designated members of the State Bar. Citizens on the commission would have to be at least 35 years old instead of 30.
Gov. Greg Abbott and the Texas Supreme Court would have the power to appoint commission members under this amendment. New commissioners must be confirmed by the Senate.
— Toluwani Osibamowo, KERA News
Proposition 13 — SJR 2: Increased school tax exemption for homeowners
Senate Joint Resolution 2 would boost the state's homestead exemption — again, the portion of a home's value that cannot be taxed to pay for public schools — to $140,000, up from the current level of $100,000.
Combined with the cuts to school tax rates in the state's budget, proponents argue, this would amount to an average of $484 in savings for 5.7 million homeowners across Texas.
In the 2026-2027 budget cycle, the state would have to make up more than $2.7 billion in general revenue that school districts would otherwise collect, according to the fiscal note attached to the accompanying Senate Bill 4. The state would have to make up more than $1 billion per year in such revenue after the current two-year cycle ends.
— Andrew Schneider, Houston Public Media
Proposition 14 — SJR 3: Funding for dementia research and prevention
Senate Joint Resolution 3 would create the Dementia Prevention and Research Institute of Texas and allocate $3 billion for research into dementia, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease.
The money would come from the state's general revenue fund, and the institute could receive up to $300 million per year in state appropriations. The amendment received bipartisan support in the Legislature.
DPRIT is modeled after the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas. Formed in 2009, the institute made Texas into the second-largest public funder of cancer research in the U.S., behind only the National Institutes of Health.
"The DPRIT initiative would do the same thing for Texas as it relates to Alzheimer's and other dementia research," said Joanne Pike, President and CEO of the Alzheimer's Association. "It would put Texas at the forefront of the fight against dementia, but it would also give additional resources for developing that next generation of treatments."
— Yvette Benavides, Texas Public Radio and Olivia Aldridge, KUT News
Proposition 15 — SJR 34: Solidifying parents rights
This resolution would change the constitution to affirm the rights and responsibilities of parents. But seemingly nothing would change because parents already have the right to care for their children, and make decisions concerning their upbringing.
A 'YES' vote would solidify those rights into the Texas Constitution.
Supporters say the change is needed because, currently, the constitutional rights of parents are found only in case law. Since that can fluctuate depending on the makeup of the courts, proponents say formalizing things would create added protection.
— Blaise Gainey, The Texas Newsroom
Proposition 16 — SJR 37: Clarifying citizenship as a requirement for voting
This proposition clarifies that a voter must be a U.S. citizen and registered in Texas to cast a ballot. Proponents say that's important because the state's constitution doesn't explicitly limit noncitizens from voting.
While current Texas law already limits voting to citizens, this measure codifies that restriction to prevent future legal or policy changes allowing noncitizen voting.
There is little evidence that noncitizen voting is a widespread problem in Texas.
Critics argue this proposition is purely symbolic, but its framing on the ballot could mislead voters into thinking that noncitizen voting is a serious problem here.
The push to get this proposition before voters in Texas stemmed from a city in California that allowed noncitizens to vote in school board elections.
— Blaise Gainey, The Texas Newsroom and Dan Katz, Texas Public Radio
Proposition 17 — HJR 34: Property tax breaks for border security projects
This amendment would allow the state Legislature to create a property tax exemption for landowners in counties that border Mexico.
The exemption would apply only to increases in a property's value that come from installing or building border security infrastructure, like fencing or surveillance systems.
If approved, lawmakers could pass laws giving property owners in those border counties the option to claim this exemption on their tax bills.
— Lucio Vasquez, The Texas Newsroom
Contributors to this story included Blaise Gainey and Lucio Vasquez of The Texas Newsroom, Houston Public Media's Andrew Schneider, Dan Katz and Yvette Benavides of Texas Public Radio, KUT's Olivia Aldridge and KERA North Texas reporters Andy Lusk, Caroline Love, Dylan Duke, James Hartley and Toluwani Osibamowo.
Copyright 2025 KERA
