Texas Capitol Building/Photo by Noah Dawson
According to results from the Texas Secretary of State, voters in Texas have approved 13 of 14 proposed amendments to the state constitution.
The biggest winner was Proposition 9, which authorized the legislature to provide a cost-of-living adjustment to some beneficiaries of the Teacher Retirement System of Texas. The item passed with 83.73% of the vote, a higher percentage than any other statewide ballot item.
Close behind Proposition 9 was Proposition 4, which will more than double the property tax homestead exemption. It also contains several other provisions, such as adjusting the limitation of school district taxes imposed on homesteads of the elderly and disabled. Proposition 4 passed with 83.43% of voters supporting the measure.
The most narrowly passed ballot measure on statewide ballots was Proposition 12, which abolishes the Galveston County Treasurer’s Office. The item passed with 52.94% of the vote statewide. To pass, the item had to also pass in Galveston County. There, it also won a narrow victory, with 53.17% of votes cast supporting the measure.
Proposition 10 had a similarly narrow victory, earning just 54.99% of the vote. That proposition allows the state legislature to exempt inventory held by manufacturers of medical or biomedical supplies from taxation.
Proposition 13, which would have increased the retirement age for judges, was the only item to fail, having garnered just 37.31% of the vote. This item will have a major impact locally, as it means 108th District Court Judge Doug Woodburn will not be eligible for reelection.
Just over 2.5 million votes were cast statewide, though several ballot measures received a large number of undervotes. Proposition 1 had the most votes cast, both for and against, of any item, with 2,559,130 votes cast on that measure. The Proposition 12 measure to abolish the Galveston County Treasurer’s Office had the least participation of any statewide ballot measure, with only 2,286,897 votes cast on that item.
Here is the percentage breakdown for all 14 ballot measures:
Proposition 1: 79% - 21%
Proposition 2: 65% - 35%
Proposition 3: 68% - 32%
Proposition 4: 83% - 17%
Proposition 5: 64% - 36%
Proposition 6: 78% - 22%
Proposition 7: 65% - 35%
Proposition 8: 69% - 31%
Proposition 9: 84% - 16%
Proposition 10: 55% - 45%
Proposition 11: 63% - 37%
Proposition 12: 53% - 47%
Proposition 13: 37% - 63%
Proposition 14: 77% - 23%