GETTING READY FOR THE 2025 CONSTITUTIONAL ELECTION
The election is Tuesday, November 4, 2025. On the ballot will be Texas Constitutional Amendments and some local races (check BallotReady or your local election office for a list of local races)
On November 4, 2025, Texas voters will be asked to approve or reject 17 constitutional amendments. These cover a wide range—from tax relief (Prop 2–11, 13, 17), public safety (bail, judicial oversight), education and workforce funding (Props 1, 4), parental and voting rules (Props 15–16), and major health research funding (Prop 14). Each measure, if it gets a majority of votes, becomes part of Texas’s constitution. That makes future changes much more difficult, requiring another legislative supermajority, and voter approval.
How and why do we amend the Texas Constitution?
The Texas Constitution is our foundational legal document that outlines the structure and functions of the state government. It lays out the rights of citizens and the limits of state power. It is not meant to be changed without substantial political and public support.
Only the Texas Legislature can propose constitutional amendments—citizens cannot initiate statewide referenda or ballot initiatives. Proposed amendments are styled SJR 1, HJR 1, and so forth, short for Senate Joint Resolution or House Joint Resolution. A joint resolution must pass each chamber by a two–thirds supermajority (at least 100 House votes and 21 Senate votes). Once passed, the proposed amendment is placed on the ballot for a general election (in this case, November 4, 2025). Voters simply vote “yes” or “no,” and a simple majority of votes cast decides approval. The amendment may add to, remove from, or modify the text of the constitution.
County clerks must post the full amendment text at least 30 days before the election, and the Attorney General reviews and approves explanatory statements that appear in newspapers and on the ballot.
The Texas Secretary of State drew the ballot order in June 2025, confirming 17 separate propositions will appear in the November election—the largest such slate since 2003.
Why so many amendments at this time?
With 17 amendments proposed, this is the largest number on one ballot in Texas since 2003. As legislators address property taxes, water, education, judicial reform, and criminal justice, they opted to embed many changes into the constitution—meaning if voters approve, legislature-level rollback becomes much harder. Critics argue this bypasses regular budget oversight and reduces flexibility. In practice, this centralizes power with the state’s legislative body—specifically with the leadership of the Texas House and Senate.
This system can dampen populist surges—whether progressive or conservative— because the people have no direct legislative mechanism outside of elections. For instance, while marijuana legalization or school choice might have strong public support, they will never reach the ballot unless the Legislature chooses to act.
What’s on the ballot?
Click the dropdowns below to read about each amendment. You can download the PDF version of the ballot language of all 17 amendment proposals.
Proposition 1: Technical college infrastructure fund. (SJR 59)
Creates two dedicated state funds—one for Texas State Technical College infrastructure, another for workforce education capital needs. Seeded with about $850 million from general revenue. These funds would be outside the regular state budget and enjoy constitutional status.
In plain English: Setting up a separate, permanent pot of money—protected by the Constitution—to build and equip tech colleges. No need for annual budget approval
See how your legislator voted:
Proposition 2: Capital gains tax ban. (SJR 18)
Prohibits any state tax on capital gains (realized or unrealized) for individuals, families, estates, or trusts. Texas currently does not have a capital gains tax, so this cements that status permanently.
Plain English: Forever bans the state from taxing your investment profits—whether you sell or just hold.
See how your legislator voted:
Proposition 3: Bail denial authority (SJR 5)
Requires judges to deny bail in certain felony cases where prosecutors show the suspect poses risk of flight or danger to the community—tightening existing rules.
Plain English: Judges would be required to keep certain serious offenders in jail before trial—if the state proves risk to safety or flight.
See how your legislator voted:
Proposition 4: Revenue for water fund (HJR 7)
Dedicates a portion of sales and use tax revenue to the Texas Water Fund to support water infrastructure, supply expansion and rural access.
Plain English: Automatically sends state sales tax dollars into a special water fund to build pipelines, reservoirs, and shore up water supplies across Texas.
See how your legislator voted:
Propositions 5–11: Various property/inventory tax exemptions
- Prop 5 (HJR 99) exempts animal feed held for sale from property tax—helping ranchers/farmers.
- Prop 6 (HJR 4) blocks legislature from adding an occupation tax on securities transactions.
- Prop 7 (HJR 133) lets surviving spouses of veterans who died from service-related conditions keep a homestead property tax exemption.
- Prop 8 (HJR 2) bans state-level “death taxes” (estate, inheritance, gift taxes).
- Prop 9 (HJR 1) exempts tangible property used for income production (e.g., equipment) from ad valorem taxes.
- Prop 10 (SJR 84) creates a temporary tax exemption for rebuilt value when a home is entirely destroyed by fire.
- Prop 11 (SJR 85) expands the value exemption on elderly or disabled homeowners’ homesteads for school district taxes.
🗣️ Plain English: Mostly tax-cut measures—exempting livestock feed, business equipment, veteran’s homes, and rebuilding homes from taxes, while freezing some tax increases for seniors or disasters.
Proposition 12: Judicial conduct reforms (SJR 27)
Revises the structure and authority of the State Commission on Judicial Conduct, the reviewing tribunal, and the Texas Supreme Court to discipline judges more effectively.
Plain English: Tightens oversight of judges—clarifies who investigates complaints and how sanctions can be applied.
See how your legislator voted:
Proposition 13: Homestead exemption increase (SJR 2)
Raises the exemption for residence homesteads from $100,000 to $140,000 for property tax purposes at the school-district level.
Plain English: More of your home’s value is shielded from school property taxes—leaving homeowners with lower tax bills.
See how your legislator voted:
Proposition 14: Dementia Prevention & Research Institute (SJR 3)
Creates the Dementia Prevention and Research Institute of Texas, establishes a $3 billion research fund, and allocates initial funding via state general revenue. If voters approve, the institute will formally begin operating in December 2025 with facilities planned near Midland, plus research into Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and related disorders.
Plain English: A big, state-backed research center and fund for brain diseases—funded with $3 billion to study dementia and create new treatments.
See how your legislator voted:
Propositions 15–17: Voting, parental rights & border tax exemption
- Prop 15 (SJR 34) affirms parents as their children’s primary decision-makers.
See how your legislator voted:
Record Vote House
Enabling legislation SB 5
- Prop 16 (SJR 37) clarifies in the Constitution that only U.S. citizens may vote—codifying existing state/federal law.
See how your legislator voted:
- Prop 17 (HJR 34) allows property in border counties to receive a property tax exemption for value added from border security infrastructure.
Plain English: Reinforcing parents’ authority over children, embedding citizenship requirement for voting in the Constitution, and lowering tax bills on property improvements tied to border security in counties next to Mexico.
See how your legislator voted:
Official Language on the Ballot
Proposition 1 – SJR 59
“The constitutional amendment providing for the creation of the permanent technical institution infrastructure fund and the available workforce education fund to support the capital needs of educational programs offered by the Texas State Technical College System.”
Proposition 2 – SJR 18
“The constitutional amendment prohibiting the imposition of a tax on the realized or unrealized capital gains of an individual, family, estate, or trust.”
Proposition 3 – SJR 5
“The constitutional amendment requiring the denial of bail under certain circumstances to persons accused of certain offenses punishable as a felony.”
Proposition 4 – HJR 7
“The constitutional amendment to dedicate a portion of the revenue derived from state sales and use taxes to the Texas water fund and to provide for the allocation and use of that revenue.”
Proposition 5 – HJR 99
“The constitutional amendment authorizing the legislature to exempt from ad valorem taxation tangible personal property consisting of animal feed held by the owner of the property for sale at retail.”
Proposition 6 – HJR 4
“The constitutional amendment prohibiting the legislature from enacting a law imposing an occupation tax on certain entities that enter into transactions conveying securities or imposing a tax on certain securities transactions.”
Proposition 7 – HJR 133
“The constitutional amendment authorizing the legislature to provide for an exemption from ad valorem taxation of all or part of the market value of the residence homestead of the surviving spouse of a veteran who died as a result of a condition or disease that is presumed under federal law to have been service-connected.”
Proposition 8 – HJR 2
“The constitutional amendment to prohibit the legislature from imposing death taxes applicable to a decedent’s property or the transfer of an estate, inheritance, legacy, succession, or gift.”
Proposition 9 – HJR 1
“The constitutional amendment to authorize the legislature to exempt from ad valorem taxation a portion of the market value of tangible personal property a person owns that is held or used for the production of income.
Proposition 10 – SJR 84
“The constitutional amendment to authorize the legislature to provide for a temporary exemption from ad valorem taxation of the appraised value of an improvement to a residence homestead that is completely destroyed by a fire.”
Proposition 11 – SJR 85
“The constitutional amendment authorizing the legislature to increase the amount of the exemption from ad valorem taxation by a school district of the market value of the residence homestead of a person who is elderly or disabled.”
Proposition 12 – SJR 27
“The constitutional amendment regarding the membership of the State Commission on Judicial Conduct, the membership of the tribunal to review the commission’s recommendations, and the authority of the commission, the tribunal, and the Texas Supreme Court to more effectively sanction judges and justices for judicial misconduct.”
Proposition 13 – SJR 2
“The constitutional amendment to increase the amount of the exemption of residence homesteads from ad valorem taxation by a school district from $100,000 to $140,000.”
Proposition 14 – SJR 3
“The constitutional amendment providing for the establishment of the Dementia Prevention and Research Institute of Texas, establishing the Dementia Prevention and Research Fund to provide money for research on and prevention and treatment of dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and related disorders in this state, and transferring to that fund $3 billion from state general revenue.”
Proposition 15 – SJR 34
“The constitutional amendment affirming that parents are the primary decision makers for their Children.”
Proposition 16 – SJR 37
“The constitutional amendment clarifying that a voter must be a United States citizen.”
Proposition 17 – HJR 34
“The 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.”