The Providence Village Town Council and Town Manager Brian Roberson discussed the proposed budget and tax rate at Tuesday’s meeting.
The proposed tax rate increased by 7.66%, going from $0.474743 per $100 valuation in 2025 to $0.511093 in 2026, which, Roberson explained, is connected to the average homestead taxable value decreasing by 7.30%, going from $320,548 in 2025 to $297,142 in 2026.
“This is different than previous years because the tax rate actually goes up because property tax or property values have gone down tremendously,” Roberson said.
Since the proposed tax rate is less than the no-newrevenue tax rate, the town does not intend to increase the 2026 property tax rate for residents.
“For the average person, their tax burden shouldn't go up,” Roberson said.
Looking at the numbers, Roberson said, the biggest factors include the disabled veteran homesteads, which increased by 28.9%, and the absolute exemptions, which include public property, HOAs, nonprofits, schools and government-owned property, which increased by 36.16%.
“I believe it's tied mostly to what's going on in Foree Ranch with all the trails and amenities that they have in that development,” Roberson said. “All those properties would have come off our tax roll. This past year, for example, the baseball field became town property, and it's eight acres of that entire development there.”
Roberson then gave a budget overview.
In the general fund, the town added a deputy town secretary, ancillary insurance benefits, increased police funding to add an officer and a sergeant, and property insurance rose primarily because of the Brown Family Field in Foree Ranch.
In the capital fund, unspent money from projects the town hoped to start in the current fiscal year will be carried over to next year, such as the bridge sidewalk improvements.
In the utility fund, water and sewer rates will be up about 5%, and trash and recycling will go up about 4%.
“It's relatively flat otherwise,” Roberson said. “It's just if their costs go up, our cost has to go up.”
Roberson also explained the utility capital improvements project fund.
“We're expecting the ground storage tank to be completed in the new budget year,” Roberson said. “If they start before the new budget year starts, that'll come down naturally, but we're planning on those expenditures for next year, as well as our contribution to the regional lift station, and we have funds allocated for the waterline relocation on Main Street.”
He added that if TxDOT allows the work to begin next year, the town is prepared.
“I've been watching you do this for several years, and you always say it's going to be a tight year,” council member Klayton Rutherford said to Roberson. “I feel like this one's probably the tightest.”
Roberson shared that he feels confident about the sales tax revenue because the town has new development and buildings nearing completion.
“That is something that we will continue to see after the residential has stopped, is seeing more commercial growth, and those have a higher value, and they do, hopefully, produce some sales tax,” Roberson said.
He added that the more residents that order from online sites like Amazon, the more revenue the town gets.
The public hearing is set for Sept. 1 for the budget and tax rate, and the final action will be taken at the Sept. 15 meeting.
The agenda item continues to explain that residents can still voice their opinion about the rate.
Also at the meeting, Roberson shared that Republic Services continues to miss trash pick-up in some homes and streets with little to no communication.
“We've had several meetings with them over the past six months to a year almost now, and it'll get better for a week or two, and then we fall back into this,” Roberson said.
He added that the company has been unresponsive to his emails, and Mayor Pro Tem Kelly Nelson and Mayor Linda Inman shared that, as residents, they were experiencing it, too.
He added that at this point it will take more than proactive communication to correct the ongoing issues.
