The Brownwood City Council held a special called meeting Tuesday morning in which a public hearing was held regarding the 2022-23 fiscal year budget. At a 5:30 p.m. meeting later today, the budget will be approved on first reading after another public hearing. On Tuesday, Sept. 6, the budget will be approved on second and final reading.

The 2022-23 proposed budget is $39,606,811, and 8.34% increase over the 2021-22 budget of $3,048,424.

City Manager Emily Crawford said in the proposed budget document on the city’s website, “The City budget is one of the most important documents that shapes the future of our community. We must balance the urgent needs of today, the vision of the City we are shaping, and the values of our residents. I am proud to work with this Council who understands the complexity of addressing multiple demands while being fiscally conservative. I am also proud of our Budget Team, Department Heads, and all the staff who invested days and weeks into compiling thousands of pieces of data into a comprehensive budget.”

Regarding the budget increase, Crawford said, “Unusual economic factors have impacted the City budget unlike any year prior. Inflation across all sectors has increased the costs of goods and services we need to serve our residents. Fuel, paving materials, pipe, equipment, and chemicals have been the most severely affected. Supply chain issues, manufacturing delays, and labor shortages have also driven up costs. None of these factors are within our control, but we have worked diligently to stay within our current budget and plan for next year’s expenses.”

Among the highlights of the budget:

* Valuations of property inside the City limits increased 15.03% to a total of $1.186 billion. New taxable values added to the tax roll are $155,072,369. Properties subject to tax freeze equates to approximately $172 million.

* Sales tax for the current fiscal year has outperformed budget expectations by about 9.5%. With recent increases in interest rates and prolonged inflation, we are projecting little to no growth. Sales tax revenue is budgeted at $6,251,424 which is an increase of .86% over last year’s budget.

* To offset elevated costs of fuel and materials, the City has raised utility rates, but at an amount less than inflation. All rates described below are based on residential accounts and average use. Commercial accounts will have the same percentage rate increase. Except for the water consumption rate, all other utility rates have not gone up in three years.

Water Base Rate

Current: $28.23/month

Recommended: $29.50/month

Difference: 4.5%

Average Impact: $1.27/month

Water Consumption Rate

Current: $2.41 per 100 c.f.

Recommended: $2.76 per 100 c.f.

Difference: 14.52% or .35 cents per c.f.

Average Impact: $3.50/month for 10 c.f

Sewer Rate

Current: $3.46 per 100 c.f.

Recommended: $3.62 per 100 c.f.

Difference: 4.5% or .16 cents

Average Impact: $1.25/month for 8 units

Sanitation Rate

Current: $22.39/month

Recommended: $23.40/month

Difference: 4.5% or $1.01

Average Impact: $1.01/month

Impact to Residential Utility Customer per Month (based on average use)

Water Base: $1.27

Water Consumption: $3.50

Sewer: $1.25

Sanitation: $1.01

Total: $7.03

The tax rate was also discussed during Tuesday morning’s meeting. The tax rate will be approved on first reading at the Tuesday, Sept. 6, and on second and final reading in a special called meeting Sept. 13. The new fiscal year begins Oct. 1.

The No-New-Revenue tax rate is $.6280 per $100 valuation. The proposed tax rate is $.6864 per $100 valuation which exceeds the No-New-Revenue tax rate by 9.29%. The proposed tax rate is a reduction from last year of $.0453 or 6.19%. This is the third year for a decrease in the tax rate and the lowest rate since 1994.

Based on .6864 tax rate, the annual city taxes on the average Brownwood home are $914.71 annually or $76.23 monthly

Although the tax rate went down, the average residence valuation went from $118,405 to $133,262. Therefore, the new average household will see their City property tax go from $866.37 to $914.71 per year, an increase of $48.34.

For the typical Brownwood household, 23.93% of taxes goes to Brown County, 29.64% goes to the City, and 46.43% goes to Brownwood ISD.

The complete City of Brownwood budget can be found at the following link: Proposed-Budget-FY-22-23 (brownwoodtexas.gov)