SAN ANTONIO - How many times have you gone to the polls on election day, read a proposition, and had no idea what it really meant?
This election is not what the League of Women Voters’ calls “a fun election” -- but they say voting on Texas amendments might benefit you one day, so knowing what they mean is crucial.
“It’s very good to know what sort of changes are being made to the constitution and how it might affect you,” says Janet.
This election, along with county propositions, you’ll see eight state propositions.
Two of them are a result of COVID.
Proposition 3 works to amend the Texas Constitution to stop the state from limiting religious services even if it’s for health reasons.
“This actually basically prohibit state government from enforcing, essentially, one of their terms -- social distancing and restrictions on religious practices or religious ceremonies,” says Jon. “restricted to say 25% occupancy and such -- that’s now gone. This basically prohibits that kind of order.”
Then there’s Prop 6, which allows individuals at nursing homes and assisted living facilities to have a caretaker that cannot, for any reason, be barred from visiting them.
“This amendment is designed, essentially, to ensure that long-term caregivers long-term care residents have a right to an essential caregiver. And this one, I should note, had virtually no opposition in the legislature,” says Jon.
Propositions 7 and 8 deal with property taxes and who can have limited taxes:
Prop 7 extends a homestead tax limit for a surviving spouse that’s at least 55 years old of a disabled person.
Prop 8 extends that same tax limit to people who have lost a spouse in the line of duty.
Professor Taylor says other propositions may not have as wide of a public reach but they close loopholes in the law.
Prop 1 allows professional rodeos to have raffles like other professional sports.
Prop 2 grants counties in Texas the power to create money for infrastructure projects, just like at the state level.
“It’s more about the idea that Texas already underfunds our transportation by billions each year, so this is a way actually to assist counties, and, doing something that cities are already doing,” Jon says. “It would be much like what you find in terms of the cities as a case of using property taxes in order to pay for the debt.”
Propositions 4 and 5 address judicial accountability for judges.
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