ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Waller County participates in tax abatement agreements pursuant to Texas Tax Code Chapter 312, the Property Tax Abatement Act. A tax abatement is a limited duration agreement between the county and certain statutorily defined taxpayers that exempts all or a portion of the increase in the value of property from ad valorem taxation. Taxpayers that receive tax abatements are still required to pay ad valorem taxes on the value of property that is not abated under the agreement. For example, a taxpayer that receives an abatement on improvements made to real property, may still be required to pay ad valorem taxes on the land, any personal property located on the land, and any other property subject under Texas law to ad valorem taxation. Once the tax abatement agreement expires, the taxpayer is responsible for paying 100% of the ad valorem taxes assessed on the full value of its property. Tax abatement agreements allow the county to increase property tax revenue without increasing the tax rate by attracting new industry and capital investment in both new and existing industries, while also increasing employment rates by creating new jobs.
If a taxpayer is interested in requesting a tax abatement agreement from the county, it must first contact the Waller County Economic Development Partnership (“WCEDP”). The county contracts with the WCEDP to perform evaluations of potential tax abatement applicants. An interested taxpayer must receive an economic impact analysis from the WCEPD before it submits a tax abatement application to the County. All tax abatement agreements must be approved by the Waller County Commissioners Court in order to be effective.
More information on tax abatement agreements under Texas Tax Code Chapter 312 may be found on the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts’ website. https://comptroller.texas.gov/economy/development/prop-tax/ch312/