2025 Texas Legislature: Preservation Legislation Overview
The 89th Texas legislative session came to a close in Austin on June 2nd. Below are some legislative highlights:
$100 Million for Courthouse Restoration Grants – A milestone $100 million was appropriated for Historic County Courthouse grants managed by the Texas Historical Commission. The courthouse grant program was launched in the late 1990s after years of advocacy by Preservation Texas and local stakeholders, including county judges across the state. Today, this program stands as the premier courthouse restoration initiative in the United States, and this funding ensures that many counties will benefit from it over the next two years.
$59 Million Allocated for Special Preservation Projects – The legislature allocated general revenue funds to be deposited in fiscal year 2026 into Texas Preservation Trust Fund Account to for the following projects across Texas:
$2,000,000 for the preservation of the Rio Vista Farm National Historic Landmark
$10,000,000 for the Juneteenth Museum of Fort Worth
$3,000,000 for the African American Museum of Dallas for archives and collections management
$5,000,000 for preservation of Rosenwald Schools
$30,000 for the Houston Museum of African American Culture
$30,000,000 for the restoration of the Ritz Theatre of Corpus Christi
$1,800,000 for the Texas Maritime Museum
$7,000,000 for the Juneteenth Museum of Galveston
Both Rio Vista Farm in Socorro (above left), and the Ritz Theatre in Corpus Christi (above right), had been included on our Most Endangered Places list.
Texas Historical Commission to Manage and Expand First Capitol State Historic Site – SB 1426, signed by Governor Abbott on May 15th, assigns the THC with responsibility for the operation, management, preservation, and development of the First Capitol State Historic Site and its replica located in West Columbia (Brazoria County). It directs the THC to maintain and enhance the site, including relocating the replica to a historically accurate location, constructing a replica of the first Republic of Texas senate building, and building a visitor center. It becomes the 41st state historic site administered by THC.
Texas Historical Commission Responsible for Historic Stone Markers and Monuments – HB 4187 gives the THC responsibility for the preservation, maintenance, and repair of up to 1,500 stone markers and monuments placed around the state from the 1930s through the 1960s, in addition to existing metal markers. These include markers installed by the Centennial Commission in the 1930s, the Civil War Centennial Commission in the 1960s, the THC’s predecessor—the Historical Survey Committee—in the 1950s and ’60s, as well as markers placed by the Republic of Texas.
Property Tax Exemptions Allowed for Cemeteries Without Identifiable Owners – HB 2723 was signed into law by Governor Abbott on May 24 and becomes effective on January 1, 2026. It removes the requirement to file a formal application for a property tax exemption for cemeteries. In recent years, at least eleven cemeteries lost their tax-exempt status because no one submitted the necessary paperwork, leading to foreclosure and sale for unpaid taxes. This law requires the chief appraiser to grant the exemption if they can reasonably determine that a property is a cemetery under the Texas Tax Code, even if the owner cannot be identified. The appraiser may seek help from government or nonprofit groups, such as Preservation Texas, to make this determination.
Independent Commission Created to Oversee Alamo Preservation – SB 3059 has been sent to the Governor. If signed into law, the bill would create an independent Alamo Commission to oversee the preservation, maintenance, restoration, and protection of the Alamo Complex and its contents in San Antonio. Currently, the Alamo is administered by the General Land Office.
Property Tax Reductions for Locally-Designated Historic Properties – HB 4809 has also been sent to the Governor. This bill, if signed, would enable owners of locally-designated historic properties to protest how their property is valued for taxes. They can challenge the value of the land, the building, or how the value is split between them, factoring in the impact of local restrictions. This can help lower their tax bills and make it easier to afford maintaining historic landmarks.
Failed Bill Would Have Undermined Historic Landmark Protections in Texas Cities – SB 2639, passed by the Senate, stalled and failed in the House. The bill would have created unnecessary new bureaucratic procedures for designating historic properties at the local level in Texas’s five largest cities—Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, and San Antonio. It also would have required compensating property owners for designation in certain cases. This bill appeared to serve no purpose other than to undermine efforts to protect historic landmarks threatened by new development in major cities.
