Property Tax Today features content regarding upcoming deadlines, action items and information releases.

Please let us know what you would like to see in future editions by sending property tax questions and/or suggested topics to Property Tax Communications. We will gladly address property tax matters under our authority.

Message from the Acting Comptroller

The past few months have been a busy and productive time for the Comptroller’s office. We issued a special session revenue estimate confirming that the Biennial Revenue Estimate remains on track, engaged with credit rating agencies to preserve Texas’ AAA rating, and supported Texans affected by flooding through tax filing extensions and providing information on potential property tax savings. We also highlighted the sales tax holiday to help families save on back-to-school essentials and visited the Texas Bullion Depository to showcase new functions — including the storage of precious metals IRA assets. At the same time, we’ve been moving quickly to get Texas Education Freedom Accounts up and running so that families can make the most of these new opportunities.

It takes a dedicated team to deliver on all of these priorities and the many other functions of the agency. Over the past few months, I’ve had the privilege of visiting several of our regional audit and enforcement field offices and speaking with community leaders across the state to see firsthand the impact of programs like Rural Law Enforcement Grants and broadband expansion initiatives. Whether it’s a small town or a fast-growing city, these efforts have a common goal: making sure every Texan has the tools and resources needed to thrive in today’s economy.

As we continue moving into fall, we’re focused on building on this momentum. One example is the launch of our new TexStats regional data dashboard — a tool that puts timely, localized economic insights directly into the hands of Texans, empowering communities and leaders to make informed decisions for the future.

The Property Tax Assistance Division (PTAD) has also been hard at work. In addition to supporting two special legislative sessions with key data and analysis, PTAD certified the 2024 School District Property Value Study (SDPVS) final findings to the commissioner of education on Aug. 15 and released the preliminary Methods and Assistance Program (MAP) reports to appraisal districts on Sept. 15.

PTAD continues to implement new legislative changes from the 89th Legislature. The 2025 Tax Code and 2025 Property Tax Laws books will soon be available for purchase, and the division has published the 2025 Texas Property Tax Law Changes (PDF) to summarize updates passed during the session. It’s been a privilege to meet many of you at recent meetings and seminars, and our team hopes to see you at the Property Tax Institute (PTI) in College Station, Dec. 16-17.

2024 SDPVS Final Findings

On Aug. 15, PTAD certified the 2024 final taxable value findings to the commissioner of education as required by Government Code Section 403.302. The 2024 SDPVS final taxable value findings are available on PTAD’s SDPVS webpage.

Of the 694 school districts splits studied in this cycle, 604 received valid findings; 16 qualified for year one of the grace period; seven qualified for year two of the grace period; 49 received state value; and 18 had local value that was greater than state value.

MAP Reviews

PTAD released preliminary 2025 MAP reports on Sept. 15. PTAD issues preliminary reports based on preliminary data received, documentation reviewed and interviews conducted by the MAP reviewer. PTAD may make changes to reports before issuing the final versions based on newly received data, documentation or other information. Appraisal districts must submit all remaining data for their final 2025 MAP reports by Nov. 1. PTAD will issue final 2025 MAP reports in January 2026.

Appraisal districts scheduled for 2026 MAP reviews will receive a preliminary data request list in mid-October with an early December due date.

TARP Reviews

In 2025, PTAD completed the 2024 Targeted Appraisal Review Program (TARP) reviews for appraisal districts with school districts that received three consecutive invalid final findings for the 2021, 2022 and 2023 SDPVS. PTAD posted the 2024 TARP reports on Oct. 7. Government Code Section 403.302(k-1) requires appraisal districts to implement the recommendations within one year of the report’s release.

PTAD released the 2023 TARP reports in February 2025. Appraisal districts reviewed in 2023 have until February 2026 to substantially implement recommendations.

Operations Survey

The 2024 Appraisal District Operations Survey data is now available on PTAD’s Data Reports and Surveys webpage. The webpage also features survey data from previous years and a data visualization tool that will soon be updated with the 2024 data.

Tax Code Section 5.03(b) authorizes PTAD to require an annual report on each appraisal office’s administration and operations. PTAD uses the Appraisal District Operations Survey to provide benchmark data useful to appraisal districts and to provide the Texas Legislature, policymakers and taxpayers information on appraisal district operations.

SDPVS Required Forms

Tax Code Section 5.09 requires PTAD to collect information to report the total appraised values, taxable values and tax rates of each county, municipality, school district and special district. Tax Code Section 5.09(a-1)(1) authorizes PTAD to prescribe the format and deadlines for submitting this data. PTAD’s Electronic Appraisal Roll Submission (EARS) Manual (PDF) offers additional information on this process.

Appraisal districts were required to submit the following SDPVS required forms and the required backup documentation specified on each form by Oct. 15:

• Form 50-253, Report on Value Lost Because of the School Tax Limitation on Homesteads of the Elderly/Disabled (PDF);
• Form 50-755, Report on Value Lost Because of School District Participation in Tax Increment Financing (TIF);
• Form 50-767, Report on Value Lost Because of Value Limitations Under Tax Code Chapter 313 (PDF);
• Form 50-851, Report on Value Lost Because of Deferred Tax Collections Under Tax Code Sections 33.06 and 33.065 (PDF); and
• Form 50-897-b, Data Collection for Limitation on Homesteads of Elderly and Disabled or Deferred Taxes (XLSX).

Indicate N/A on any form that does not apply or provide a statement identifying the form and why it is no longer required. Do not send blank or incomplete forms. The forms may be emailed to ptad.ears@cpa.texas.gov.

Failure to provide completed and signed SDPVS forms and/or required information by the deadline may impact a school district’s state funding and the appraisal district’s MAP review.

2025 Tax Rate Information

Tax Code Section 5.091 requires appraisal districts to report the total tax rate imposed by each taxing unit within their jurisdiction to the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts.

Appraisal districts must provide the information by using the Tax Rate Submission Spreadsheet, as detailed in the EARS Manual (PDF). This year, Form 50-886-a includes a new field to collect information on pending tax ratification elections. PTAD emailed this spreadsheet in early August with pre-populated information for the taxing units in each appraisal district.

Appraisal districts were required to provide the adopted tax rates by Oct. 15, indicating those taxing units with pending tax rate elections by placing a Y in the appropriate column of Form 50-886-a for those taxing units with a pending election. Appraisal districts must submit a subsequent post-election spreadsheet with the final tax rates by Nov. 15 indicating whether the election passed (Y) or failed (N) for each taxing unit in the appraisal district.

Chief Appraiser Eligibility

All chief appraisers must notify the Comptroller’s office in writing no later than Jan. 1 of each year as to whether they are eligible to be appointed or serve as chief appraiser. To be eligible to serve, a chief appraiser must either be a certified Registered Professional Appraiser (RPA) or have the appropriate professional designation (Member Appraisal Institute (MAI), Assessment Administration Specialist (AAS), Certified Assessment Evaluator (CAE) or Residential Evaluation Specialist (RES)). A chief appraiser who is not an RPA but who has an MAI, AAS, CAE or RES designation must obtain an RPA certification within five years of appointment or beginning of service as chief appraiser.

Chief appraisers must submit written notification by emailing a completed Form 50-820, Notice of Chief Appraiser Eligibility (PDF), to ptad.communications@cpa.texas.gov.

Property Taxes in Disaster Areas

On July 16, the governor updated the July 4 disaster declaration due to heavy rainfall and flash flooding.

On July 23, the governor updated the July 4 disaster declaration due to heavy rainfall and flash flooding, adding Edwards, Kinney, Real and Schleicher counties.

On Aug. 12, the governor issued a disaster declaration for 191 counties due to increasing wildfire danger.

On Aug. 20, the governor amended and renewed the July 4, 2025, disaster declaration due to heavy rainfall in 30 counties and the July 8, 2022, disaster declaration for exceptional drought conditions posing a threat of imminent disaster in 55 counties.

On Sept. 19, the governor amended and renewed the July 4, 2025, disaster declaration due to heavy rainfall in 30 counties and the July 8, 2022, disaster declaration for exceptional drought conditions posing a threat of imminent disaster in 57 counties.

Tax Code Section 11.35, Temporary Exemption for Qualified Property Damaged by Disaster, allows qualified properties that are at least 15 percent damaged by a disaster in counties included in the declaration to receive a temporary exemption of a portion of the property's appraised value. Qualified property includes:

• tangible personal property used for income production;
• improvements to real property; and
• certain manufactured homes.

Property owners must apply for the temporary exemption no later than 105 days after the governor declares a disaster area. Form 50-312, Temporary Exemption Property Damaged by Disaster (PDF), is available on PTAD's Property Tax Forms webpage.

You can find more information on statutory relief for property owners in disaster areas on PTAD’s Property Taxes in Disaster Areas and During Droughts webpage.

Farm and Ranch Survey

The 2025 Texas Farm and Ranch Survey is available online and was mailed to agricultural appraisal advisory board members requesting 2024 data.

Data compiled from the survey responses is an essential part of the SDPVS, authorized under Government Code Section 403.302. Information you provide increases the accuracy of the SDPVS findings that PTAD certifies to the Texas Education Agency, resulting in more equitable funding of public school districts.

As resources, we also provide an instructional guide and an informational video about the survey on our website.

We requested survey responses by Oct. 15. If you have any questions, please contact Sarah Gutierrez or Joseph Pargas.

Property Tax Law Changes

PTAD recently published 2025 Texas Property Tax Law Changes (PDF) that provides general summaries of property tax legislation enacted by the 89th Texas Legislature.

Questions regarding legislation’s meaning or interpretation should be directed to an attorney or other appropriate legal counsel.

Proposed Constitutional Amendments

On Nov. 4, 2025, Texas voters will decide whether to approve the following property tax-related constitutional amendments:

• Proposition 5 (H.J.R. 99): The constitutional amendment authorizing the Legislature to exempt from ad valorem taxation tangible personal property consisting of animal feed held by the owner of the property for sale at retail.
• Proposition 7 (H.J.R. 133): The constitutional amendment authorizing the Legislature to provide for an exemption from ad valorem taxation of all or part of the market value of the residence homestead of the surviving spouse of a veteran who died as a result of a condition or disease that is presumed under federal law to have been service connected.
• Proposition 9 (H.J.R. 1): The constitutional amendment to authorize the Legislature to exempt from ad valorem taxation a portion of the market value of tangible personal property a person owns that is held or used for the production of income.
• Proposition 10 (S.J.R. 84): The constitutional amendment to authorize the Legislature to provide for a temporary exemption from ad valorem taxation of the appraised value of an improvement to a residence homestead that is completely destroyed by a fire.
• Proposition 11 (S.J.R. 85): The constitutional amendment authorizing the Legislature to increase the amount of the exemption from ad valorem taxation by a school district of the market value of the residence homestead of a person who is elderly or disabled.
• Proposition 13 (S.J.R. 2): The constitutional amendment to increase the amount of the exemption of residence homesteads from ad valorem taxation by a school district from $100,000 to $140,000.
• Proposition 17 (H.J.R. 34): The constitutional amendment to authorize the Legislature to provide for an exemption from ad valorem taxation of the amount of the market value of real property located in a county that borders the United Mexican States that arises from the installation or construction on the property of border security infrastructure and related improvements.

The Texas Secretary of State's website provides additional information on proposed constitutional amendments.

Action Items

Below is a list of action items for the fourth quarter of 2025. You can find a full list of important property tax law deadlines for appraisal districts, taxing units and property owners on PTAD's website.

• Oct. 15 – SDPVS required forms due.
• Oct. 15 – Adopted tax rate information due for all appraisal districts using Form 50-886-a, SDPVS Tax Rate Submission Spreadsheet (XLSX).
• Oct. 15 – Farm and Ranch Survey responses due.
• Nov. 1 – Final MAP documents for 2025 reports due.
• Nov. 15 –Post-election submittal of adopted tax rates due for all appraisal districts using Form 50-886-a, SDPVS Tax Rate Submission Spreadsheet (XLSX).
• Dec. 31 – Taxpayer liaison officer comments received due.
• Jan. 1 –Chief appraiser eligibility forms due.

If the deadline falls on a Saturday, Sunday or a legal or state holiday, the act is timely if performed on the next regular business day.