2025 · Regular session · House bill
HB4226
HB4226 exempts qualifying motor-vehicle sales, use and rentals from the taxes imposed by Tax Code Chapter 152 for two groups:
Official caption: Relating to exemptions from the taxes imposed on the sale, use, or rental of a motor vehicle for a vehicle purchased, used, or rented by a nonprofit food bank or a provider of housing and related services.
Official report lists House author(s): Morales Shaw, Raymond, Lujan, Little, Ordaz. This does not identify sponsors or amendment drafters.
Bill explanation published · Version and amendment review scope is stated below · Individual amendment records may not be separately annotated.
Bill highlights
Selected points from the published explanation. Follow each point to its source-linked context; conditions and limits may matter.
- The exemption applies only to vehicle sales, use or rentals occurring on or after September 1, 2025.
What does it do?
HB4226 exempts qualifying motor-vehicle sales, use and rentals from the taxes imposed by Tax Code Chapter 152 for two groups:
- Nonprofit food banks: The vehicle must be purchased, used or rented by a qualifying food bank and used primarily for its purposes. The referenced Section 162.001 definition describes a nonprofit that solicits, stores and redistributes edible food to agencies feeding needy families and individuals—not every organization that occasionally serves food.
- Qualifying housing-and-related-service providers: The provider must be an entity described by Section 151.310(a) and serve people experiencing homelessness who have a disabling condition and have either been continuously homeless for at least a year or had at least four homelessness episodes in the preceding three years. The vehicle must be purchased, used or rented by that provider and used primarily to provide housing at a location the provider owns or controls.
The exemption applies only to vehicle sales, use or rentals occurring on or after September 1, 2025. It is not a general exemption from every tax or fee on every nonprofit-owned vehicle, nor does it automatically refund older transactions.
What changed along the way?
The introduced bill, House committee report and engrossed text covered food banks only. Although the opening language referred to sales, use and rental taxes, its eligibility wording said the vehicle was “purchased” by the food bank.
The Senate substitute expressly added “used, or rented” to that condition and added the separate housing-provider exemption. The final law retains both changes. The amendment index lists no floor amendments; the relevant change was the Senate committee substitute. The official history records House concurrence and the governor’s June 20 signature.
For the full amendment record, open the official amendment index.
Official bill versions
Compare the published text versions in the official text index. A change is not attributed to a specific amendment here without a verified record.
Who could benefit—and who could bear the costs?
Qualifying organizations can spend less on vehicle taxes, potentially leaving more resources for food distribution or housing services. The state receives less tax revenue. Eligibility depends on both the organization and the vehicle’s primary use; nonprofit status alone is insufficient.
The final fiscal note estimated a $571,000 loss to general-revenue-related funds in fiscal years 2026–2027, plus a $4,000 loss to the Property Tax Relief Fund. It states that general revenue must replace the latter loss for school funding. The combined direct revenue loss is $575,000; the $4,000 should not be silently folded into or confused with the $571,000 headline.
The estimate used vehicle-tax data for 20 food banks affiliated with Feeding Texas and population-growth assumptions. It expected no significant additional fiscal impact from the narrowly defined housing-provider exemption, given the limited organizations and infrequent purchases, and no local-government fiscal impact. These are estimates, not a promise of a particular organization’s savings.
Review boundary: This explains the exemptions and fiscal estimate, not a determination that a named provider or vehicle qualifies, or a waiver of registration, title or other requirements.
Official sources
- Bill history and latest recorded action
- Bill versions, analyses and fiscal notes
- Action history and votes
- Amendment index
Catalog report retrieved 2026-10-25. Check the official record for corrections or later changes.
