They have some choices, and some constraints.
Harris County government departments could see their budgets reduced by up to 5 percent as property taxes take an expected dip due to Hurricane Harvey’s widespread destruction.
The estimate is preliminary, County Budget Officer Bill Jackson said Friday. The extent of an anticipated decrease in property tax revenues will be determined after properties are appraised Jan. 1.
Jackson said the county plans to keep budgets flat, if possible. Most departments have received increases every year since the 2008 recession.
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It is not clear yet how much the storm has affected Harris County’s tax base as the extent of damage to property still is being determined.
Damaged homes will be worth less, and those owners can expect smaller property tax bills. In other cases, repairs to homes or other buildings could bring them back up to their original value. Properties unaffected by floodwaters could see a jump in value.
Jackson said the county’s public contingency fund – roughly $100 million – has helped pay for Harvey-related expenses, such as debris cleanup and overtime for county personnel who worked during and immediately after the storm. Jackson said Harvey-related overtime has totaled some $12 million, so far.
The county still is assessing what is likely to be hundreds of millions of dollars of damage to infrastructure, but most of that will be covered by insurance and some repairs can be reimbursed by the federal government.
Harvey’s impact on the county’s budget likely will come from a dip in property tax revenues, Jackson said. The county relies on property taxes for most of its revenue. Unlike the city, it does not collect a sales tax.
The possible property tax rate hike would come in the event the county does float bonds to rebuild and fortify its flood mitigation infrastructure. For now, the tax rate remains the same. The county also spent some money to buy out 200 homes in the more flood-prone areas. Needless to say, there would need to be a lot more of that to really make a difference, but it’s a start.
The rate stays the same the amount of taxes do not. Unlike the City of Houston, Harris County has no CAP on property taxes so they will receive on average about 6 to 10 percent more in property taxes for this year.
They also could raise the toll road fees by a slight amount they already bring in close to 2 billion dollars a year in tolls.
They misspeak and only get upset when the City tries do do the same. I am sick of paying property taxes to the county as we get almost nothing for it.