Texas 2025 Constitutional Amendments - Voter Cheat Sheet
On Nov. 4, Texans will vote on 17 constitutional amendments. Here’s a plainlanguage breakdown of what each proposition means, along with possible pros and cons. This is an educational guide, not official ballot wording.
Proposition 1: TSTC Infrastructure Fund
What it does: Creates funds to support Texas State Technical College buildings, equipment, and repairs.
Pros: Stable funding for workforce training.
Cons: Less budget flexibility for Legislature.
Proposition 2: Ban Capital Gains Tax
What it does: Prohibits Texas from taxing capital gains (realized or unrealized).
Pros: Protects individuals/ investors from future taxes.
Cons: Limits future revenue options for the state.
Proposition 3: Bail Reform
What it does: Allows judges to deny bail for certain serious crimes; requires written explanation if bail is granted.
Pros: Increases public safety, keeps violent offenders jailed pretrial.
Cons: Raises concerns about fairness and presumption of innocence.
Proposition 4: Water Fund
What it does: Directs sales tax revenue into a Texas Water Fund for infrastructure and supply. Pros: Provides stable funding for water projects.
Cons: Reduces flexibility in use of sales tax revenues.
Proposition 5: Animal Feed Tax Exemption What it does: Exempts retail animal feed inventory from property taxes.
Pros: Helps farmers and store owners.
Cons: Reduces local tax revenue.
Proposition 6: Securities Tax Ban What it does: Bans occupation/transaction taxes on securities businesses.
Pros: Protects the financial sector from new taxes.
Cons: Restricts state’s ability to raise revenue in the future.
Proposition 7: Veteran Spouse Exemption
What it does: Lets Legislature give property tax breaks to surviving spouses of veterans who died from service-related illness.
Pros: Supports military families.
Cons: May reduce local tax revenues.
Proposition 8: Inheritance/ Estate Tax Ban
What it does: Prohibits state inheritance or estate taxes.
Pros: Protects family inheritances from taxation.
Cons: Removes possible future revenue source.
Proposition 9: Business Property Exemption
What it does: Exempts up to $125,000 of business equipment/property from taxes.
Pros: Helps small businesses.
Cons: Cuts into the local tax base.
Proposition 10: Fire-Destroyed Homes
What it does: Provides temporary property tax exemption while rebuilding a fire-destroyed home.
Pros: Eases financial burden on homeowners recovering from disaster.
Cons: Temporary revenue loss for local governments.
Proposition 11: Elderly/ Disabled Exemption
What it does: Increases school tax exemption for homeowners 65+ or disabled.
Pros: Provides property tax relief to seniors/disabled.
Cons: Reduces school tax revenues unless state offsets. Proposition 12: Judicial Oversight Changes
What it does: Reworks judicial conduct commission and adds new review tribunals.
Pros: Improves accountability for judges.
Cons: Risk of politicizing judicial discipline.
Proposition 13: Homestead Exemption Increase
What it does: Raises school homestead exemption from $100,000 to $140,000.
Pros: Saves homeowners money.
Cons: Shifts costs away from schools unless reim- bursed.
Proposition 14: Dementia Research Fund
What it does: Creates a new state institute with $3B for dementia/brain disease research.
Pros: Funds important medical research.
Cons: Large cost, oversight
concerns.
Proposition 15: Parental Rights
What it does: Adds constitutional language affirming parents’ right to direct children’s upbringing.
Pros: Reinforces parental authority.
Cons: Vague wording may cause legal disputes.
Proposition 16: Citizenship for Voting
What it does: States only U.S. citizens can vote in Texas elections.
Pros: Affirms existing law in the Constitution.
Cons: Largely symbolic, redundant with federal law.
Proposition 17: Border Security Property Tax
What it does: Allows exemption of increased property value from border security infrastructure. Pros: Supports landowners near the border.
Cons: Cuts into local tax revenues.
Additional Ballot Items: Limestone County:
Those in the Groesbeck Independent School District will also see a bond proposition on their ballot. More information about the bond can be found in a previous edition of the Journal (Aug. 21) as well as at any of the upcoming Bond Townhall Meetings which will take place at 6 p.m. on the following days in these locations: Oct. 6 at H.O. Whitehurst Oct. 16 at the Kosse Community Center Oct. 28 at Groesbeck High School
Informative flyers and pamphlets can also be found in various locations in town including the Journal office.
Falls County:
Falls County voters will see an additional proposition on their ballot, with a proposition put forward by the Falls County Emergency Services District No. 1 What it does: Create local sales and use tax. This proposition is a funding decision. The Emergency Services District needs more money to operate (for things like fire trucks, ambulances, equipment, and personnel) and is asking the community to approve a sales tax to pay for it. Voters must decide if the benefit of better-funded emergency services is worth the cost of a higher sales tax in their area (no more than 1.5%)