Updated at 2:30 p.m. with additional reaction.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott will ask the Legislature to cap the annual revenue growth of cities, school districts, counties and other local taxing jurisdictions at 2.5 percent.

It's part of a 33-page property tax reform plan that Abbott unveiled Tuesday in Houston. He'll also talk about the plan Wednesday in Arlington.

"With the skyrocketing rise in property taxes, more and more Texans face the risk of being forced out of the homes they have lived in for decades," Abbott said in a news release. "Young families who are just starting out are having trouble affording their first home and businesses are unable to grow and hire more workers. Enough is enough."

Abbott, who's running for a second term as governor, has long made property tax relief a top agenda item.

But the Republican-controlled Legislature has not been able to pass such measures because of concerns about curbing local control and hamstringing local officials who need to fix potholes, provide public safety, maintain infrastructure and educate students.

Last year, legislators were unable to agree on a property tax plan. After failing to pass legislation in the regular session that ended in May, a special special session last summer ended with the House and Senate unable to agree on what percentage increase in the property tax rate would require voter approval. The House wanted to limit increases to 6 percent; the Senate wanted 4 percent.

Abbott's plan could be troubling for fast-growing areas, including those in North Texas.

McKinney Mayor George Fuller was on his way to City Hall on Tuesday afternoon to read a brief from Austin about the proposal. Leader of one of the country's fastest-growing cities, he's supportive of "the spirit" of a revenue cap, but is unsure what it could mean for his Collin County suburb that isn't yet built out.

"What I am leery of is, when you try to implement something that is broad stroke across an entire state, where you have fast-growing cities and you have cities that are completely grown up," he said in a phone interview. "There's not a one-size-fits-all solution."

Instead, he said, lawmakers should look to the state for school finance tax relief for residents.

"The real reform needed is there," he said.

Reaction from both sides

Democrats and others criticized the plan.

"Gov. Abbott's plan is also a remarkable attack on the cities that drive the Texas economy," said Chris Turner, chairman of the House Democratic Caucus. "His plan bemoans the growth of public sector employees, as if a state that has grown by more than 3 million people since 2010 should be able to get by with the same number of police officers and firefighters."

Turner, D-Arlington, described the governor's proposal as "election-year politics."

"Property taxes are too high, and that's because Governor Abbott and the Republican Legislature rely on rising school district property tax collections to balance the state budget," Turner said. "Under Gov. Abbott, the state's spending on public education is actually declining this year, forcing homeowners to pick up more of the slack. Any plan that purports to address property taxes without reforming our broken school finance system is not a serious plan."

Ann Beeson, executive director of the nonpartisan Center for Public Policy Priorities, blasted Abbott's plan as "misguided."

"Like the failed legislation from the 2017 regular and special Texas legislative sessions but worse, the Governor's misguided proposal suggests that he doesn't trust Texans to make the best decisions for our communities," she wrote in a statement. "If Governor Abbott is really concerned about property taxes, then he should join the business leaders and other Texans calling for more state investment in public schools. Cuts to state funding of public education have meant more reliance on property taxes as well as crowded classrooms and worse teacher retention."

But Kevin Roberts, executive vice president of the conservative Texas Public Policy Foundation, praised the proposal.

"The Governor's proposal to cap revenue growth from property taxes is a critical step in protecting taxpayers, homeowners, and small businesses," Roberts said in a prepared statement. "Texans are getting taxed off their own property, making it impossible for some people to stay in their homes or grow their businesses. The Governor's plan will give citizens more control over the exploding cost of owning and operating property in the state."

Top state leaders believe that a change in leadership, with the retirement of moderate Republican Speaker Joe Straus, could pave the way for a property tax bill.

"It is my hope that leadership in the House next session understands that we're not going to wait any longer for real property tax reform and relief and that we'll have a partner to get this done," Patrick said at Abbott's appearance in Houston, according to the Texas Tribune. He later said he hopes a commitment to reducing property taxes is "one of the prerequisites before House members" vote on their next leader, the Tribune reported.

Funding education

Abbott's proposal comes as lawmakers are looking for ways to put more money into public education. If lawmakers approve his plan, they would, in theory, have to find more money for education.

But lawmakers have been unable to settle on an effective formula. Abbott is expected to produce an education finance plan before the Legislature convenes next year.

His tax plan states that out-of-control property taxes have hurt poor and middle-class Texans, resulting in gentrification of neighborhoods that average Texans can no longer afford.

The governor hopes capping tax revenue collection would stabilize neighborhoods and aid in economic development.

"Since 1997, total property tax collections in Texas have increased by 195 percent," the plan reads, adding that "a revenue cap and lower rollback rate could work in concert to strenuously protect against property tax increases."

Along with the revenue cap, Abbott's property tax proposal would:

— Prohibit the Legislature from imposing unfunded mandates on local jurisdictions.

— Require appraisal district directors to be locally elected officials, such as incumbent county commissioners or city council or school board members. It would "prohibit employees of taxing entities from serving in any capacity with an appraisal district or appraisal review board. It would also mean that elected officials would be evaluating appraisals."

— Improve the rights of property owners in the tax appraisal and protest processes.

— Improve property tax transparency by requiring the Texas comptroller to develop and maintain a comprehensive database of property tax rates and levies applicable to every property in the state.

— Improve the transparency of local debt, prohibit debt from being used for nonspecified purposes, and restrict the use of certificates of obligation.

— Require a two-thirds supermajority vote to approve issuance of new local debt.

If approved by the Legislature, the revenue cap would start in 2021.

"Under the plan I am announcing today, Texas will take action to limit property tax growth, secure private property rights and ensure that Texas remains the most exceptional state in the nation," Abbott said.

But Andrew White, the Houston businessman running in the Democratic Party primary for governor, disagreed.

"In an election year, Gov. Abbott is trying to show he has a solution to crushing property taxes by capping the rate of growth — while ignoring the underlying causes of it: our failing education and healthcare systems," White said. "He's had three years to do something about the problem and has come up short. His plan is flawed, and it's time for new thinking. Texas can do better."

The cap would exclude new property growth or improvements to existing property.

Local authorities would change their tax rate to meet the revenue collection cap. Under the plan, collecting revenue above the cap could occur, if it's approved by two-thirds of voters from the taxing jurisdiction.

Abbott studied property tax caps in states including Massachusetts and New Jersey before developing his plan. Those states, however, have income taxes as part of their funding formulas. Texas has no state income tax.

Read Abbott's plan here:

Staff writer Nanette Light contributed to this report.