A new state constitutional amendment approved by voters in November 2025 and implemented through House Bill 9 created a $125,000 exemption for income-producing tangible personal property. According to Bell County's Tax Appraisal District, this exemption cost local taxing entities an estimated $12.1 million in property tax revenue in 2026.
Where
Bell County, Texas
When
Jan. 1, 2026; estimated calculated as of Sept. 23, 2026
Bell County taxing entities lost an estimated $12.1 million in property tax revenue; school districts and colleges accounted for about $6.7 million of that loss, with the state Foundation School Program partially offsetting school district losses.
Exemption for income-producing tangible personal property$125,0001Who pays or receives it: Businesses; benefit received
Exempted property value in 2026$579.3 million1Who pays or receives it: Previously would have gone to Bell County taxing entities
Estimated property tax revenue loss for Bell County taxing entities in 2026$12.1 million1Who pays or receives it: Bell County taxing entities
Estimated revenue loss to school districts and colleges in Bell County$6.7 million1Who pays or receives it: Bell County school districts and colleges
Previous exemption for property with taxable value below $2,500$1.38 million1Who pays or receives it: Previously exempted in 2025
Who's involved
Tax Appraisal District of Bell CountyEstimated revenue loss from exemption
Billy WhiteChief Appraiser, Tax Appraisal District of Bell County
State Rep. Hillary HicklandR-Belton, joint author of HB 9
Howard 'Scot' AreyFormer vice president with appraisal district, property-tax reform advocate
The facts
Proposition 9 authorized a $125,000 exemption for income-producing tangible personal property.1
House Bill 9 implemented Proposition 9 and took effect Jan. 1, 2026.1
The new $125,000 exemption replaced a previous exemption for property with taxable value below $2,500.1
Roughly $1.38 million was exempted under the previous provision in 2025.1
The new exemption accounted for more than $579.3 million in exempted value in 2026.1
Under HB 9, school districts are held harmless for revenue loss through the state Foundation School Program.1
State Rep. Hillary Hickland is a joint author of House Bill 9.1
The originally proposed exemption amount was $250,000 but was reduced in the final version.1
Who said what
These are statements and claims made by the people involved. They are reported, not verified.
Billy White, Chief Appraiser Anytime new exemptions are enacted, the tax burden is shifted to others.1
Howard Arey, property-tax reform advocate Legislators could have applied exemption only to school districts and required state backfill.1
State Rep. Hillary Hickland Nearly $6 million of the $12.1 million impact is tied to public schools held harmless.1
State Rep. Hillary Hickland HB 9 was intended to let businesses reinvest tax savings in operations and communities.1
Howard Arey Local effect of exemption gets passed to other taxpayers instead of using state surplus.1
State Rep. Hillary Hickland Local governments have multiple tools besides raising tax rates including abatements and grants.1
Where the sources disagree
Whether $12.1 million revenue loss figure can be directly compared year-to-year White cautioned direct comparison is not possible due to appraisal roll changes [1]; however, the difference of roughly $577.9 million in exempted value compared to prior year is noted [1]
These outlets were found through Google News headlines. Google decides which outlets appear there, and they lean mostly one way, so this sheet can only be as balanced as the reporting it was built from. Leanings are AllSides Media Bias Ratings.
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