HJR 34 Texas House · 89th Legislature (2025)

Proposing a constitutional amendment to authorize the legislature to provide for an exemption from ad valorem taxation of the amount of the market value of real property located in a county that borders the United Mexican States that arises from the installation or construction on the property of border security infrastructure and related improvements.

HJR 34 proposes a constitutional amendment to allow Texas lawmakers to create a property tax exemption for landowners in counties bordering Mexico. The exemption would apply specifically to the increased market value of real property resulting from border security infrastructure (like barriers or roads) and related improvements. If approved by voters in November 2025, this would let the legislature establish rules for qualifying properties and define "border security infrastructure." The change would directly affect property owners in border counties whose land value rises due to such projects. It does not exempt all property, only the value increase tied to border security construction.
Bill status passed both 4 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Mar 2025
Committee Review
May 2025
House Passage
May 2025
Senate Passage
May 2025
Governor
Introduced Mar 3, 2025 Last action May 23, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Engrossed Enrolled · 4 edits · May 23, 2025
MODERATE
The bill text was converted from a draft 'Engrossed' version to the final 'Enrolled' version ready for printing and signing. The substantive policy content regarding the tax exemption for border security infrastructure remains identical, while the formatting was cleaned up and official certification signatures were added.
TECHNICAL

Removed draft metadata, page numbers, and placeholder text to finalize the bill text for official use.

Added certification blocks with signatures and vote counts from the House and Senate to validate the bill's passage.

Inserted a note about digital content accessibility standards (WCAG 2.1), which is a procedural update rather than a change to the law itself.

Standardized the layout and spacing of the text to match the official enrolled format.

Floor votes · Senate May 21, 2025 · House May 5, 2025

How they voted

228
Passed
Total votes 30
May 21, 2025
D Democratic10
2 Yea 8 Nay
80% Nay
R Republican20
20 Yea
100% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
41
Key actions
13
Committee
10
Amendments
1
May 23, 2025
Introduced
Filed with the Secretary of State
executive
May 23, 2025
Upper · Passed
Signed in the Senate
upper
May 23, 2025
Lower · Passed
Signed in the House
lower
May 21, 2025
Lower · Passed
Senate passage reported
lower
May 21, 2025
Upper · Passed
Adopted
upper
May 20, 2025
Upper · Passed
Committee report printed and distributed
upper
May 20, 2025
Upper · Passed
Reported favorably w/o amendments
upper
May 19, 2025
Upper · Passed
Vote taken in committee
upper
May 7, 2025
Committee
Referred to Local Government
upper
May 7, 2025
Introduced
Read first time
upper
May 6, 2025
Introduced
Received from the House
upper
May 5, 2025
Lower · Passed
Adopted
lower
May 5, 2025
Introduced
Placed on Constitutional Amendments Calendar
lower
Mar 28, 2025
Lower · Passed
Committee report sent to Calendars
lower
Mar 27, 2025
Lower · Passed
Committee report distributed
lower
Mar 24, 2025
Lower · Passed
Reported favorably as substituted
lower
Mar 10, 2025
Lower · Passed
Left pending in committee
lower
Mar 10, 2025
Lower · Passed
Testimony taken/registration(s) recorded in committee
lower
Mar 3, 2025
Committee
Referred to Ways & Means
lower
Mar 3, 2025
Introduced
Read first time
lower
2 primary · 1 co-sponsor

Sponsors