Qualifying child care providers in Tarrant County will have a 50% property tax exemption this year, half of the savings that providers in the Fort Worth city limits will see.

The Tarrant County Commissioners Court voted unanimously for the exemption on Tuesday more than a month after the Fort Worth City Council passed a 100% tax break of a facility’s appraised value. Impacted child care facilities in the county could see up to $200,000 in savings, according to county officials. The exemption applies to child care providers who own and rent their early childhood spaces.

The 50% exemption was the minimum percentage required by state law. Other county governments in Texas including Dallas, Travis, Harris and Bexar counties have approved 100% tax breaks that also go into effect this year.

Commissioner Roy Charles Brooks made the motion for the exemption and recommended the court consider a full tax break next year, similar to the way the court rolled out its homestead exemption by approving 10% last year and then doubling it to 20% this year. The court also approved the increased homestead exemption on Tuesday before finalizing the child care property tax exemption.

“I think that it’s very, very important that our families get relief with the cost of child care expenses. Child care expenses have risen much more rapidly than inflation. It is a tremendous burden on families with one child in child care, not to mention those families with two or more in child care,” Brooks said.

Gloria Simmons, owner and director of PollyWog Early Learning Academy on Miller Avenue and Lil’ Hoppers Learning Center on Easter Lancaster Avenue, told commissioners that child care providers are struggling to make ends meet and advocated for a 100% exemption that would show businesses and low-income families that their county representatives value high-quality, affordable child care. Simmons said she would use the additional money to buy uniforms for the children enrolled in her programs, who sometimes wear the same clothes they wore the day before.

“As you all know, child care programs are the backbone of our community and our economy. We provide safe and nurturing environments for our youngest citizens so that their parents can go to work and go to school,” Simmons said. “This property tax relief, it would finally give me and my fellow providers some breathing room.”

To qualify for the tax break, child care programs must be part of Texas Rising Star, the state’s quality rating and improvement system for early childhood programs. Within these programs, there must also be at least 20% of enrolled children receiving subsidized services through the Texas Workforce Commission.

The exemption comes after almost 65% of Texas voters approved Proposition 2 in November, which allowed local governments to issue property tax breaks to qualifying programs. The cost savings are a win for an industry that’s struggled financially to provide affordable tuition to families and to pay liveable wages to early educators.

Although Commissioners Manny Ramirez and Alisa Simmons voted in favor of the tax policy, they voiced concerns about its rollout and utilization. Ramirez noted that officials should be cognizant about the savings actually being passed on to providers who rent their space and that landlords don’t take advantage of the policy. Simmons said she is generally against using tax relief to solve problems such as this one but acknowledged the lack of affordable child care specifically in her precinct, which includes southeast Tarrant County and Arlington.

“While I’m not sure that a property tax exemption is the best instrument to help our affordable child care providers, it seems to be the only realistic instrument available,” Simmons said.

Tracy Davis, owner and director of Imagine Nation Learning Centers, also spoke in favor of the tax relief during public comment, telling commissioners her expenses have increased about 30% with increasing pay to early educators and general food costs. Davis plans to utilize the extra funding for her centers’ outdoor classroom program by making it more accessible to children amid the hot Texas temperatures with shading and misting fan equipment.

“(For) children who engage in regular sensory play, (it) promotes physical health, social skills and cognitive development,” Davis said. “We need more sensory opportunities for these children to enjoy the outdoors more than just three months of the year.”