Houses on the 4700 block of Spring Avenue were built by a Community Housing Development Organization in Dallas. On Tuesday, the Dallas City Council’s finance committee evaluated options to increase or maintain tax exemptions for people over 65 and people with disabilities in line with other price increases that could impact property owners across the city.
Dallas council members showed support for keeping a property tax exemption steady instead of increasing it in a narrow vote shaped by budget pressures.
The City Council’s finance committee evaluated options to increase a property tax exemption for people over 65 and people with disabilities to keep up with other price increases on Tuesday.
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However, the committee ultimately decided to recommend that the tax exemption stay the same instead of recommending an increase in a 3-2 vote. The full City Council is set to consider the change on June 10.
City staff had introduced two scenarios to change the tax rate, one based on increases in the consumer price index for the elderly and another based on the year-over-year change in median residential market value. Both measures showed that seniors and property owners are seeing higher prices.
The current property tax exemption is $175,000 and can be claimed by people aged 65 and over and people with disabilities for a reduced property tax bill on their home. There are about 74,400 accounts that claim the exemption, according to committee documents.
In “Scenario A” introduced by city’s finance staff, based on the consumer price index, the exemption would increase by 3.78%, to $181,600, according to committee documents. Meanwhile, “Scenario B,” based on the median residential market value, would increase the exemption by 0.72%, to $176,300.
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The council decided to forgo those options in the annual review, opting to recommend keeping the exemption at $175,000.
The exemption has been evaluated yearly since 2021 and an increase was approved each time, according to committee documents. However, this year the city is facing budget pressures.
The city of Dallas has a $16.4 million general fund expense overage, a $3.8 million sales tax revenue shortfall and a separate $13.8 million gap in the employee health fund, according to previous reporting from The Dallas Morning News.
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The city has implemented cost cutting measures like a hiring freeze and has discussed other measures like closing libraries.
Council member Paul Ridley attended the meeting, although he isn’t on the finance committee.
“I think it’s time that we took stock of our financial situation as a city, considering the current budget; anticipated budget situation being very tight, and the fact that we have raised these exemptions substantially in the past few years,” Ridley said.
Following Ridley’s comments, Chad West, the committee’s chair, said he agreed with points raised about the budget.
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“We want to definitely take care of our seniors and our homeowners, with cost of living going up as much as it is for everyone, I think this is incredibly important for everyone,” West said. “But we also have a duty to the city to pay for services and make sure that we meet our obligations to our residents.”
West said he was open to supporting the smaller increase or keeping the exemption the same ahead of the vote.
The current exemption forgoes $91 million in revenue, according to committee documents. Increasing the exemption by 3.78% would mean the city wouldn’t claim an additional $3.4 million. Increasing the exemption by 0.72% would mean the city would forgo about $700,000.
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Mayor Pro Tem Jesse Moreno said he wouldn’t support the motion and looked forward to what the other council members had to say at full council.
“I’d love to see some of the relief options on here for our seniors who are on fixed incomes,” Moreno said. “I would like to see what else the city can do to ensure that we’re not letting those individuals fall behind.”