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Hardin County Courthouse
Hardin County residents will see a slight decrease in the county tax rate as the Commissioners Court approved the proposed budget for the Fiscal Year 2023 and the proposed tax rate at their July 28 special meeting.
Under the proposed budget, County Judge Wayne McDaniel reported the total amount of revenue budget was $26,365.535 for all four funds (Road and Bridge, General, Jury and Debt Services). Revenue from ad valorem taxes is $22,360,589, along with $4,000,004 in revenue from other services such as fines and fees, according to McDaniel. He also reported there was a $1,281,591 increase in ad valorem taxes over the current year. The ad valorem taxes total is based on a collection rate of 99%. The total amount of expenses is the same as revenue.
“I present to you a balanced budget … without the need to use any fund balance to balance the budget,” said McDaniel. “Most of the increase in revenue is contributed to increases in wages that were approved by the Commissioners Court during our workshops.
“We agreed to a 4.5% increase across the board for all personnel and elected officials. We also consented to a number of special wage increases that were recommended by the Salary Committee for various departments and personnel.”
Other increases in expenditures include fuel, health insurance, general liability insurance, utilities and miscellaneous expenses.
The FY 2023 proposed budget will raise $1,294,556, or 6.08%, more revenue from property taxes than the FY 2022 budget. Property tax revenue to be raised from new property added to the tax rolls this year is $434,573.
He noted the tax rate applied to the proposed budget for FY 2023 is 54.0835 cents per $100 valuation — which is the proposed tax rate.
“The decrease in the proposed tax rate is 2.86%,” said McDaniel.
The current tax rate is 55.6777 cents per $100 valuation for the 2021 tax year.
“The proposed tax rate does meet the statute and will not trigger an election,” he added. The No-New Revenue Tax Rate (50.9266 cents) is the tax rate for the 2022 year for the same amount of property tax revenue for Hardin County, from the same properties in the 2021 and 2022 tax years.
The Voter Approve Rate of 58.4095 cents is the highest tax rate that Hardin County may adopt without holding an election to seek voter approval.
“Any rate higher than that would trigger an election that would occur next May,” added McDaniel. “And if the voters didn’t approve it, we’d be in a big mess.”
McDaniel added there’s a public hearing set for Aug. 23 for discussion on the tax rate and budget.
Pct. 1 Commissioner L.W. Cooper noted this was the second year in a row the court has decreased the tax rate.
According to the Tax Collector-Assessors Office, the average homestead price this year is $108,411, but will go up the next year to $109,910.
The judge added under the proposed tax rate, a homeowner would save $9.12 per year on an average homestead of $109,910.
“It’s not a big saving, but it went down one-and-a-half cents on the tax rate,” McDaniel said.
Elsewhere in the county, by a narrow 4-3 vote, the Lumberton ISD Board of Trustees approved the proposed tax rate for the 2022 at its Aug. 4 meeting at the Administration Building, adding an increase in taxes seeking to raise funds for employee raises.
Board President James Kersh, along with Trustees Kevin Edwards, Dr. Chad Hammett and Brett Yarbo voted in favor of the proposed tax rate, while Trustees Kim Olexa, Lauren Rothe and Sharon Spears opposed the action.
Trustees must adopt the final budget on Aug. 22.
Kersh stated the proposed tax rate is 3 cents above the State Compression Rate of 0.8546 (85.46 cents). Revenue from the possible 3-cent increase will help raise employees’ pay, the LISD board president noting that the district has one of the lowest starting salaries for 1-5 year teachers in the area. Kersh added that LISD officials and a Community Action Committee (CAC) have worked for almost a year on possible remedies, and the LISD board will also vote to place a potential Voter Approved Tax Rate Election (VATRE) on the Nov. 8 ballot.
“All of the funds from this effort will be designated to a payroll function set aside for raises, new staff or benefits,” said Kersh.
The VATRE will add 3 cents to the budget for approximately an additional $1.5 million annually to LISD’s budget.
“There is also a compression to the tax of approximately 2 cents for next year. The result is a gain of 1 cent at a cost of approximately $20 per year for an average $200,000 home in LISD,” stated Kersh.
According to the Texas Education Agency (TEA), VATRE is an election required by the state Legislature to ask voters to approve a modified tax rate to increase revenue for teachers and staff and address continued school growth.
Early this year, LISD trustees approved a $1,200 retention incentive for employees.