Texas Proposition 10, Tax Exemption on Medical Equipment and Inventory Amendment (2023)
Texas Proposition 10 | |
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Election date November 7, 2023 | |
Topic Taxes | |
Status Approved | |
Type Constitutional amendment | Origin State legislature |
Texas Proposition 10, the Tax Exemption on Medical Equipment and Inventory Amendment, was on the ballot in Texas as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment on November 7, 2023.[1][2]The ballot measure was approved.
A "yes" vote supported amending the state constitution to authorize the state legislature to provide for an ad valorem tax exemption on equipment and inventory manufactured by medical or biomedical companies. |
A "no" vote opposed amending the state constitution to authorize the state legislature to provide for an ad valorem tax exemption on equipment and inventory manufactured by medical or biomedical companies. |
Election results
Texas Proposition 10 |
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Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
1,370,569 | 55.00% | |||
No | 1,121,576 | 45.00% |
Overview
What did the amendment do?
- See also: Text of measure
The amendment authorized the state legislature to exempt from ad valorem taxation tangible personal property, including finished goods or goods used in the manufacturing process, possessed by a manufacturer of medical or biomedical products. The state legislature passed Senate Bill 2289, the enabling legislation, during the regular legislative session. SB 2289 defines medical and biomedical property as "tangible property that is (A) stored, used, or consumed in the manufacturing or processing of medical or biomedical products by a medical or biomedical manufacturer; or (B) intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of a condition or disease or in medical or biomedical research." This included devices, therapeutics, pharmaceuticals, personal protective equipment, tools, implants, instruments, and apparatuses. The law took effect on January 1, 2024.[2][3]
Who supported and opposed the amendment?
- See also: Support and Opposition
Sen. Joan Huffman (R-17) authored the amendment. The Texas Medical Center, Texas Healthcare and Bioscience Institute, Greater Houston Partnership, and Biotechnology Innovation Organization registered in support of the amendment when it was considered by the Senate Finance Committee. No organizations registered in opposition to it.[4]
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title was as follows:[2]
“ | The constitutional amendment to authorize the legislature to exempt from ad valorem taxation equipment or inventory held by a manufacturer of medical or biomedical products to protect the Texas healthcare network and strengthen our medical supply chain.[5] | ” |
Constitutional changes
- See also: Article 8, Texas Constitution
The measure added section 1 of Article 8 of the state constitution. The following underlined text was added:[2]
Sec. 1-x. The legislature by general law may exempt from ad valorem taxation the tangible personal property held by a manufacturer of medical or biomedical products as a finished good or used in the manufacturing or processing of medical or biomedical products.[5] |
Readability score
- See also: Ballot measure readability scores, 2023
Using the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL) and Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) formulas, Ballotpedia scored the readability of the ballot title for this measure. Readability scores are designed to indicate the reading difficulty of text. The Flesch-Kincaid formulas account for the number of words, syllables, and sentences in a text; they do not account for the difficulty of the ideas in the text. The state legislature wrote the ballot language for this measure.
The FKGL for the ballot title is grade level 23, and the FRE is -7. The word count for the ballot title is 37.
Support
Supporters
Corporations
- Biotechnology Innovation Organization
- Greater Houston Partnership
- Texas Healthcare and Bioscience Institute
- Texas Medical Center
Arguments
You can share campaign information or arguments, along with source links for this information, at editor@ballotpedia.org
Opposition
Opponents
Organizations
Arguments
Campaign finance
If you are aware of a committee registered to support or oppose this amendment, please email editor@ballotpedia.org.
Cash Contributions | In-Kind Contributions | Total Contributions | Cash Expenditures | Total Expenditures | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Support | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
Oppose | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
Media editorials
- See also: 2023 ballot measure media endorsements
Ballotpedia identified the following media editorial boards as taking positions on the proposition.
Ballotpedia lists the positions of media editorial boards that support or oppose ballot measures. This does not include opinion pieces from individuals or groups that do not represent the official position of a newspaper or media outlet. Ballotpedia includes editorials from newspapers and outlets based on circulation and readership, political coverage within a state, and length of publication. You can share media editorial board endorsements with us at editor@ballotpedia.org.
Support
Opposition
Background
Senate Bill 2289 (2023)
The state legislature passed Senate Bill 2289, the enabling legislation, during the regular legislative session. SB 2289 defined medical and biomedical property as "tangible property that is (A) stored, used, or consumed in the manufacturing or processing of medical or biomedical products by a medical or biomedical manufacturer; or (B) intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of a condition or disease or in medical or biomedical research." This included devices, therapeutics, pharmaceuticals, personal protective equipment, tools, implants, instruments, and apparatuses. The law took effect on January 1, 2024.[3]
SB 2289 was passed in the Senate by a vote of 26-4 and in the House by a vote of 132-12 with five absent or not voting.[6]
The Senate Finance Committee estimated that the net impact of the bill through the biennium ending August 31, 2025, would be a negative impact of $28.8 million, increasing to a negative impact of $41.1 million in fiscal year 2028.[7]
Texas ad valorem property tax system
In 1968, Texas voters adopted Proposition 7, which provided for a gradual reduction in the state property tax and eventual abolishment after 1978, with exceptions for certain institutions of higher learning. In 1982, this exception for certain higher education institutions to levy state ad valorem property taxes was repealed with the passage of Proposition 1. As of 2023, only local taxing units, cities, counties, school districts, junior colleges, and special districts levy ad valorem taxes.
Referred measures on the Texas ballot
- See also: List of Texas ballot measures
In Texas, a total of 281 ballot measures appeared on statewide ballots between 1985 and 2022. Two hundred forty-eight ballot measures were approved, and 33 ballot measures were defeated.
Texas statewide ballot measures, 1985-2022 | |||||||
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Total number | Annual average | Annual minimum | Annual maximum | Approved | Defeated | ||
# | % | # | % | ||||
Texas ballot measures in odd-numbered years
Between 1995 and 2021, Texans decided on 175 statewide ballot measures appearing on odd-numbered year ballots. Voters approved 160 measures and defeated 15.
Path to the ballot
- See also: Amending the Texas Constitution
To put a legislatively referred constitutional amendment before voters, a two-thirds (66.67%) vote is required in both the Texas State Senate and the Texas House of Representatives.
This amendment was introduced as Senate Joint Resolution 87 on March 10, 2023. On April 13, 2023, the state Senate passed SJR 87 by a vote of 26-4 with one absent. On May 17, the state House passed SJR 87 by a vote of 125-10 with 14 not voting and one vacancy.[1]
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How to cast a vote
- See also: Voting in Texas
Click "Show" to learn more about voter registration, identification requirements, and poll times in Texas.
How to cast a vote in Texas | ||||||
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Poll timesIn Texas, all polling places are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Central Time. An individual who is in line at the time polls close must be allowed to vote. Texas is divided between Central and Mountain time zones.[8]
Registration
To register to vote in Texas, an applicant must be a United States citizen, a resident of the county in which he or she is registering, and at least 17 years and 10 months old.[9] The deadline to register to vote is 30 days before the election. Prospective voters can request a postage-paid voter registration form online or complete the form online and return it to the county voter registrar. Applications are also available at a variety of locations including the county voter registrar’s office, the secretary of state’s office, libraries, and high schools. Voter registration certificates are mailed to newly registered voters.[10] Automatic registrationTexas does not practice automatic voter registration. Online registration
Texas does not permit online voter registration. Same-day registrationTexas does not allow same-day voter registration. Residency requirementsProspective voters must reside in the county in which they are registering to vote. Verification of citizenshipTexas does not require proof of citizenship for voter registration. Section 18.068 of the Texas Election Code says the following:
In January 2019, the Texas secretary of state’s office announced that it would be providing local election officials with a list of registered voters who obtained driver’s licenses or IDs with documentation such as work visas or green cards. Counties would then be able to require voters on the list to provide proof of citizenship within 30 days.[12] The review was halted by a federal judge in February 2019, and Secretary of State David Whitley rescinded the advisory in April.[13][14] A news release from Whitley’s office stated that “... going forward, the Texas Secretary of State's office will send to county voter registrars only the matching records of individuals who registered to vote before identifying themselves as non-U.S. citizens to DPS when applying for a driver's license or personal identification card. This will ensure that naturalized U.S. citizens who lawfully registered to vote are not impacted by this voter registration list maintenance process.”[15] Verifying your registrationThe Texas Secretary of State’s office allows residents to check their voter registration status online by visiting this website.
Voter ID requirementsTexas requires voters to present photo identification while voting.[16] The following list of accepted ID was current as of February 2023. Click here for the Texas Secretary of State's page on accepted ID to ensure you have the most current information.
Identification provided by voters aged 18-69 may be expired for no more than four years before the election date. Voters aged 70 and older can use an expired ID card regardless of how long ago the ID expired.[16] Voters who are unable to provide one of the ID options listed above can sign a Reasonable Impediment Declaration and provide one of the following supporting documents:[16]
The following voters are exempt from showing photo ID:[16]
Voters who do not have a photo ID can obtain a Texas Election Identification Certificate (EIC) at any Texas driver’s license office during regular business hours. Voters can also obtain an Election Identification Certificate from a mobile station. Locations are listed here.[16] |
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Texas State Legislature, "SJR 87 Overview," accessed April 14, 2023
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Texas State Legislature, "SJR 87 Text," accessed April 14, 2023
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Texas State Legislature, "Senate Bill 2289 Text," accessed June 1, 2023
- ↑ Texas State Legislature, "Witness list," accessed July 24, 2023
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source. Cite error: Invalid
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tag; name "quotedisclaimer" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ Texas State Legislature, "Senate Bill 2289 Overview," accessed June 1, 2023
- ↑ Texas State Legislature, "Fiscal Note," accessed September 11, 2023
- ↑ VoteTexas.gov, "Who, What, Where, When, How," accessed February 27, 2023
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, “Request for Voter Registration Applications,” accessed February 27, 2023
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, “Voter Registration,” accessed February 27, 2023
- ↑ Texas Constitution and Statutes, “Election Code,” accessed February 23, 2023
- ↑ The Texas Tribune, “Texas officials flag tens of thousands of voters for citizenship checks,” January 25, 2019
- ↑ The New York Times, “Federal Judge Halts ‘Ham-Handed’ Texas Voter Purge,” February 28, 2019
- ↑ The New York Times, “Texas Ends Review That Questioned Citizenship of Almost 100,000 Voters,” April 26, 2019
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, “Secretary Whitley Announces Settlement In Litigation On Voter Registration List Maintenance Activity,” April 26, 2019
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 16.4 Texas Secretary of State, "Required Identification for Voting in Person," accessed February 27, 2023 Cite error: Invalid
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