Early Voting Begins in Smith County

By VICTORIA OLIVARES/Staff Writer

Early voting began in Smith County on Monday, Oct. 20 and will last until Oct. 31. There are 17 state of Texas propositions to be voted on by the community. 

For students to vote in Smith County, they need a photo ID, such as a Texas Driver’s License or U.S. passport. A complete list of approved IDs can be referenced on the Smith County elections website. A UT Tyler student ID is not an approved form of identification. 

Early Voting Locations: 

There is a total of 5 voting locations in Smith County. Look at the website for alerts on a location being closed. 

• The HUB: 304 E. Ferguson Street, Tyler, TX 75702
• Heritage Building: 1900 Bellwood Road, Tyler, TX 75701
• Lindale Kinzie Community Center: 912 Mt. Sylvan St., Lindale, TX 75771
• Noonday Community Center: 16662 CR 196, Tyler, TX 75703
• Whitehouse Methodist Church: 405 W. Main Street, Whitehouse, TX 75791

Early Voting Hours:

• 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Oct. 27-29
• 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Oct. 30-31

Election Day Voting Locations:

There is a variety of locations on Election Day; look at the website for alerts on a location being closed. 

• Arp First Baptist Church: 304 W. Front St., Arp, TX 75750
• Bullard Southern Baptist Church: 716 N. Houston St., Bullard, TX 75757
• Cameron J Jarvis Library: 102 S. Georgia St., Troup, TX 75789
• Chapel Hill Fire Department: 13801 CR 220, Tyler, TX 75707
• Clarkston Elementary School: 2915 Williamsburg Dr., Tyler, TX 75701
• Crossbrand Cowboy Church: 11915 FM 2015, Tyler, TX 75708
• First Baptist Church Gresham: 16844 CR 165, Tyler, TX 75703
• First Christian Church: Christian Life Center Gym: 4202 S Broadway Ave, Tyler, TX 75701
• Flint Baptist Church: 11131 FM 2868 W, Flint, TX 75762
• Glass Recreation Center: 501 W. 32nd St., Tyler, TX 75702
• Heritage Building: 1900 Bellwood Rd., Tyler, TX 75701
• Hideaway Members Svcs Building: 101 Hide-A-Way Ln, Hideaway, TX 75771
• Hill Creek Baptist Church: 14749 Hwy 110 S, Whitehouse, TX 75791
• Main Location The HUB: 304 E. Ferguson St., Tyler, TX 75702
• Jones-Boshears Elementary School: 3450 Chandler Hwy, Tyler, TX 75702
• Lanes Chapel Methodist Church: Family Center: 8720 Old Jacksonville Hwy, Tyler, TX 75703
• Lindale Kinzie Community Center: 912 Mt. Sylvan St., Lindale, TX 75771
• Mt. Carmel Baptist Church: 10519 FM 344 E, Whitehouse, TX 75791
• Noonday Community Center: 16662 CR 196, Tyler, TX 75703
• Old Tyler Airport: 150 Airport Dr., Tyler, TX 75704
• Rose Heights Church – Lindale: 12465 FM 16, Lindale, TX 75771
• Shiloh Road Church of Christ: 1801 Shiloh Rd., Tyler, TX 75703
• St. Louis Baptist Church: 4000 Frankston Hwy., Tyler, TX 75701
• St. Violet Baptist Church: 14129 FM 2767, Tyler, TX 75708
• Swan Wood Springs Methodist Church: 12005 US Hwy 69 N, Tyler, TX 75706
• Three Lakes Middle School: 2445 Three Lakes Pkwy., Tyler, TX 75703
• Tyler Senior Center: 1915 Garden Valley Rd., Tyler, TX 75702
• Whitehouse Methodist Church: 405 W. Main St., Whitehouse, TX 75791 
• Winona Community Center: 520 Dallas St., Winona, TX 75792

Election Day Voting Hours: 

7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Nov. 4

The following is a summary of each proposition that members of the community will have a chance to vote on. The wording on the ballot will be different and is available to see on their website. 

Proposition one:

SJR 59 is proposed to establish two funds for capital projects and equipment purchases for educational programs through the Texas State Technical College, or the TSTC. This will now expand through an amendment that allows their board to use the funds to acquire land, accomplish building improvements, buy more equipment, get library books or other materials and ensure all loans are repaid. 

Proposition two:

SJR 18 proposes to prohibit current laws to impose tax on capital gain of an individual, family, land or other finances. This will include taxation of capital assets or the transfer of an asset. It will not prohibit the rate of sales taxes, taxes on goods or services, or other forms of taxes in this way. 

Proposition three: 

SJR 5 proposes a requirement of denying bail for individuals who are accused of certain criminal offenses. It would only apply to individuals who are accused of murder, capital murder, aggravated assault of a person causing serious bodily injury or weapon, aggravated kidnapping, aggravated robbery, aggravated sexual assault, indecency with a child or trafficking of persons. Individuals will be denied bail pending a trial if the opposing side shows that bail will prevent them from appearing in court or for the safety of the community. Judges or magistrates will then be required to write an order that includes the findings and a statement explaining their justification for granting bail. It will not take away the claims of arguing against being denied bail or to fight if bail is set too high. No one has to be forced to give a testimony before a judge makes their decision on bail. A judge or magistrate will take into consideration everything and individuals are entitled to counsel at a hearing over this new amendment.

Proposition four:

HJR 7 is an amendment to use funds coming from state sales towards the Texas water fund. This would authorize the Texas Water Development Board to allocate and transfer funds. This will also cause them to suspend funds when a disaster hits to re-prioritize towards disaster relief instead or other needs instead. 

Proposition five:

HJR 99 proposes an amendment to implement a tax break for animal feed for retail sale and ad valorem tax. This would allow for additional eligibility requirements to also be put into place for exemptions. 

Proposition six:

HJR 4 is a constitutional amendment to ban the tax on securities trading, such as stock exchanges. It will specifically ban an occupation tax and a tax on securities transactions. It will not ban the general business tax, the taxation on mineral production, insurance premium taxes, sales and use tax, or document fee taxes. 

Proposition seven: 

HJR 133 proposes to give surviving spouses of armed services veterans tax exemptions on their homes. This would exempt all or a part of the property tax on their residence if the veteran passed away due to service-related conditions under federal law. This would only apply if the surviving spouse has not remarried since the veteran’s death. 

Proposition eight: 

HJR 2 is an amendment to stop the government from putting a tax on a person’s land after they have passed away. It would specifically ban any future state taxes on estates, inheritances, legacies or successions, gifts, or generation-skipping transfers. If a tax existed before Jan. 1, 2025, then it is still viable. However, these existing taxes can not be raised and can no longer apply to new people or situations.

Proposition nine: 

HJR 1 proposes a constitutional amendment to change certain tax exemptions for businesses that use their own resources to be raised up to 125,000 dollars instead of the minimum necessary to cover the loss of property tax.

Proposition ten:

SJR 84 will allow temporary tax exemptions for individuals whose homes were destroyed by a fire. This amendment will allow individuals to temporarily stop paying these taxes based on the value of the destroyed portion of the home. The legislature will then decide how long this exemption will last and who will qualify. 

Proposition eleven:

SJR 85 is a constitutional amendment to allow for raising the tax exemptions for those who are 65 years of age or older or a person who is disabled. This exemption will now raise from 10,000 to 60,000 dollars. 

Proposition twelve: 

SJR 27 would change the way the State Commission on Judicial Conduct is structured and operated. SCJC would have 13 members total, 6 appointed by the Texas Supreme Court and 7 citizens appointed by the governor who are 35 years or older. The SCJC can now only issue a private reprimand or extra training if the judge has not received one before and if the issue does not involve criminal action. They will also have more power to suspend judges without pay as punishment. The chief justice of the Texas Supreme Court will also choose appellate justices on the reviews board that the SCJC recommends to retire or remove judges altogether. SCJC terms will be two, four, and six years in a staggered system which begins on Jan. 1, 2026. After this, all terms would be six years. 

Proposition thirteen:

SJR 2 will raise the school property tax exemption for homeowners from the original $100,000 to $140,000. This amount will not be taxed by school districts on both general elementary and secondary public schools. 

Proposition fourteen: 

SJR 3 is an amendment to establish a new fund called the Dementia Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (DPRIT) that will also create the Dementia Prevention and Research Fund for it. This will provide grants for research, treatment and prevention of dementia, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease and all related disorders. This will also authorize the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts to put in 3 billion from the state general revenue into the new Dementia Prevention and Research Fund. 

Proposition fifteen: 

SJR 34 proposes a constitutional amendment to affirm that parents have a responsibility to nurture and protect their children and their right to exercise actions when it comes to raising said children. 

Proposition sixteen:

SJR 37 is an amendment that states only United States citizens would be allowed to vote in Texas elections. 

Proposition seventeen: 

HJR 34 is a constitutional amendment to implement a tax exemption for property owners who live against the border of the United Mexican States. A portion of this is due to the value increase with border security infrastructure and related improvements. This legislation will demand a definition of this and would need additional eligibility standards for this exemption. 

There will be a live streaming of the voted ballots being counted on Oct. 31 when early voting ballots are delivered. It will continue to do so until all votes are accounted for. For more information, visit smith-county.com/government/departments/elections/current-election-information.