McKinney | June 2025

State

BY COLBY FARR & HANNAH JOHNSON

5 legislative updates from North Texas-area lawmakers

Lawmakers had until June 2 to pass legislation as part of the 89th Texas Legislature session, which has come to a close with some bills dying prior to the deadline. Bills voted through both chambers will head to Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk and may be signed or vetoed by Abbott until June 22. Catch up on five bills filed by DFW-area lawmakers, including legislation that would affect local transportation, property taxes and more. 1 Ten Commandments bill passes through to the governor Senate Bill 10, which would require public schools to display the Ten Commandments, was sent to Gov. Abbott on June 1 to be signed into law. SB 10 was filed in February and co-authored by Sen. Phil King, R-Weatherford, and multiple North Texas senators. The bill requires all public elementary and secondary schools to display the Ten Commandments in each classroom in a copy that is at least 20 inches tall and 16 inches wide.

4 Homestead exemption bill signed into law by the governor Senate Bill 4, which would increase the homestead property tax exemption to $140,000 for homes taxed by school districts, was signed into law by Gov. Abbott June 16. The exemption would apply retroactively to 2025 tax bills. The bill was co-authored by multiple North Texas legislators, including Sen. Angela Paxton, R-McKinney; Sen. Kelly Hancock, R-North Richland Hills; and Sen. Tan Parker, R-Flower Mound. The bill is contingent on a constitutional amendment election sent to voters in November.

2 Youth social media ban fails to move forward A bill to ban social media use for children under the age of 18 failed to move past legislators. House Bill 186 was filed by Rep. Jared Patterson, R-Frisco, and would have required social media companies to verify users’ ages.

3 DART sales tax bill dies in the House House Bill 3187, which would have affected Dallas Area Rapid Transit’s sales tax revenues, died in the House after lawmakers failed to schedule the bill for a second reading. The bill, filed by Rep. Matt Shaheen, R-Plano, would have mandated that 25% of DART’s sales tax revenue be made available to member cities for mobility projects.

Homestead exemption proposals Senate Bill 4 would raise tax exemptions on Texans’ primary homes to $140,000 and would apply only to taxes levied by public schools.

The improvements could have included:

Current Proposed

$100K

Constructing and maintaining sidewalks, trails and streets

Installing and maintaining streetlights and traffic signals

$140K

SOURCE: TEXAS LEGISLATURE ONLINE/COMMUNITY IMPACT

5 Cancer screening bill for firefighters signed by the governor House Bill 198, filed by Rep. Ben Bumgarner, R-Flower Mound, requires political subdivisions to offer free occupational cancer screenings for firefighters. The bill, signed into law by Abbott on May 29, requires cancer screenings for every firefighter after five years of employment, as well as free annual screenings after the initial screening. The law will go into effect June 1, 2026.

100% 50% 75% 25% Percent of firefighter deaths attributed to cancer

+39.71% increase

SOURCE: TEXAS FIRE CHIEFS ASSOCIATION/COMMUNITY IMPACT

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