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A series of new laws passed by the Texas Legislature and signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott are due to take effect in the Lone Star State on January 1, 2025.
These will remove most of the requirements for annual vehicle inspections, allow Texans to designate authorized agents to look after data held by private companies and create a new judicial district, among other moves.
Newsweek contacted Texas Governor Greg Abbott for comment on Tuesday by email outside of regular office hours.
Annual Vehicle Inspections Eliminated
Texas House Bill 3297 removes the requirement for annual mandatory safety inspections for non-commercial drivers as part of the vehicle registration process.
However, emissions testing, which costs up to $18, will be required in the Texas counties of Brazoria, Collin, Dallas, Denton, El Paso, Ellis, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Johnson, Kaufman, Montgomery, Parker, Rockwall, Tarrant, Travis and Williamson, with Bexar set to join this list in 2026.
Drivers will also be required to pay a $7.50 vehicle inspection fee which will go to the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles.
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Rep. Cody Harris, the author of Texas House Bill 3297, said the move would save Texans money. As reported by The Austin American-Statesman he said: “These inspections are a waste of time for Texas citizens and a money-making Ponzi scheme used by some shady dealerships to upsell consumers with unnecessary repairs.
“Texans are responsible, fiercely independent, and I trust them to keep their cars and trucks safe while on the road.”
Property Tax Relief Act
January 1 will see sections 3.05, 3.08 and 3.15(b) of Texas Senate Bill 2, also known as the Property Tax Relief Act, will come into effect providing additional funding to schools in some areas where property tax revenue has fallen below expenditure due to tax limitations, such as those granted to elderly and disabled residents.
According to the Texas State Law Library the new measures provide “‘circuit breaker’ limitations on increases to the appraised value of real property not covered by a homestead exemption.”
Much of the Property Tax Relief Act, which Governor Abbott signed into law in July 2023, has already taken effect. This provided $18 billion in property tax relief, with state government compensating local authorities for their loss in revenue from property taxes.
Texas Data Privacy and Security Act
The Texas Data Privacy and Security Act, also known as House Bill 4, was passed to give customers more control over those parts of their personal data that are controlled by private businesses.
Whilst much of this has already taken effect, adding restrictions on the sale and processing of customer data by businesses, a new provision allowing consumers to designate authorized agents to look after their data takes effect on January 1.
Creation of 477th Judicial District
House Bill 3474 was passed in 2023 with the aim of reforming the Texas state judicial branch with a series of updates to its practices and procedures.
Most of them have already taken effect but Section 1.009, which created the new 477th Judicial District in Denton County, comes into place on Wednesday. This is designed to make it easier for residents of Denton County to access the justice system.
San Antonio River Authority Year Shift
Section nine of the Texas House Bill 1535 concerning the San Antonio River Authority takes effect on Wednesday, amending the district’s fiscal year so going forward it comes to a close on September 30.
A recommendation to this effect was made by the Sunset Advisory Committee.