Category Archives: City management and operations

Property Tax Rates in Dallas County Cities

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Introduction

Tax rates are probably the most important policy decision a city government can make. These rates determine the scope and scale of the city services that the community can afford. The needs of businesses and households differ, and those tax rates are an important signal to them about the type of government services and level of operations they might expect in that community. The property tax is especially important in Texas. This post will summarize how the property tax rates of cities in Dallas County have changed over the last two decades. Tax rates have generally increased in Dallas County, but these increases have been concentrated in some cities and happened during certain periods.

Setting Tax Rates

According to the Texas Municipal League, 89 percent of cities and towns in Texas impose a property tax. This tax accounts for 41 percent of all municipal revenue in the state. The property tax is the most flexible revenue source available to a municipality. The city council may set a tax rate without the need for a referendum. Case law has also shown that the property tax rate, if imposed according to state law, is not subject to repeal by any voter initiative. Before imposing a rate, the city council must approve a budget that reflects a property tax. Upon adoption of that budget, the council votes to set a tax rate. As long as the annual increase in that tax is less than 108 percent of the effective tax rate, the levy is not subject to potential voter challenge. The effective tax rate is the rate that would bring in the same revenue as last year given the changes in appraised values. Senate Bill 2 is now under consideration by the Texas House of Representatives and would reduce the trigger for a roll-back election to 105 percent.

The maximum tax rate a city may impose varies according to its classification under state law. Home rule cities, essentially those operating under their own charter, may impose a rate up to $2.50 per hundred dollars of property value. We are not aware of any city in the state that has imposed a rate anywhere near that level. Most cities have rates that are less than a third of that.  General law cities, depending on type and population, have various maximum rates: Type A over 5,000 population, $2.50, under 5,000 population, $1.50; Type B, 0.25; Type C cities’ maximum rate varies between $0.25 and $2.50, depending on population.

The Data

The following analysis is based on tax rates for the 25 cities that are primarially in Dallas county. These cities are: Addison, Balch Springs, Carrollton, Cedar Hill, Cockrell Hill, Coppell, Dallas, DeSoto, Duncanville, Farmers Branch, Garland, Glenn Heights, Grand Prairie, Highland Park, Hutchins, Irving, Lancaster, Mesquite, Richardson, Rowlett, Sachse, Seagoville, Sunnyvale, University Park and Wilmer. Portions of many of these cities lay in surrounding counties, but they are required to impose a uniform tax rate on all their jurisdiction. The same tax rate applies to all property types: residential, commercial and personal property. We obtained historical tax rates from the Dallas Central Appraisal District for 1998 to 2016. These tax rates were in effect for the fiscal years immediately following. For example, the 2016 tax rate was used to collect property tax revenue for the fiscal year that ends in September 2017.

Changes in City Tax Rates

In Dallas county, property tax rates are generally higher today than in 1998. The average tax rate in 1998 was 0.5772. The average rate in 2016 was .6677. This amounts to an increase in the average rate across all cities of 9 cents per $100 in property value. The median tax rate, that is the rate of the city with the middle tax rate, grew about 8 cents over the period.

This growth was not uniform. The pattern of increase since 1998 is a stair step. Tax rates increased after the 2001 recession and remained level until the Great Recession, when they increased again. This is evident in Figure 1, which shows the median tax rate over the period.

Rates increase after recessions in 2001 and 2008.

The property tax base responds slowly to economic recessions. As the economy declines, appraisals tend to take several years to fully reflect the impact of the downturn. When we look at the five years following the last two recessions, we can see how these Dallas County cities responded. Five years after the 2001 recession, 12 of the 25 cities in Dallas county had higher tax rates compared to the year of the recession. These cities increased their rate by 7 cents on average. Five years after the Great Recession, 18 of 25 cities had higher rates five years later. Their average increase was 8 cents. This is similar to the pattern nationally, where cities struggled with declining appraisals for three years following the end of the recession.

Another interesting feature of this data, is that the difference between the highest tax rate and lowest tax rate each year also increased, especially after the Great Recession. See Figure 2. This gap became dramatic in recent years and probably reflects a combination of factors and sharp tax rate increases in just a few cities.

The range in tax rates across cities has increased in recent years.

Tax rates have changed in Dallas County for many reasons. In some cases, increases in tax rates were a response by cities to recessions. Many of these cities also decreased the rate of growth in their budgets and cut many programs. In other cases, taxes were increase to accommodate higher debt loads. Most cities in Dallas County are relatively mature and have streets and water mains that are reaching the end of their useful life. Decisions about operations and infrastructure will continue to weigh heavily on local leaders.

Next week we will look more closely at the tax base of these cities to better understanding reasons for these tax rate changes.

Texas Property Tax: The Big Picture

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Introduction

This month, we will take an in-depth look at property taxation in Texas. The property tax is the most important source of revenue for Texas cities, accounting for almost half of municipal revenues. The property tax is the primary local revenue source for local school districts. This time of year, property owners will receive their appraisals from their local central appraisal districts’ (CADs.) A certified tax roll will be delivered to local governments in July. That tax roll will be used by city councils, school boards, county commissioner’s courts and various special districts to set property tax rates for the upcoming budget year. This week, we will provide a high-level review of property taxation in Texas for local leaders. In following weeks, we will examine trends in property tax based and rates in the DFW area and methods for forecasting property tax revenues.

History of Property Tax in Texas

Josh Haney provides an interesting history of the property tax in Texas. This tax, in place since before Texas independence was a huge source of both state and local revenue. For much of early statehood it amounted to more than half of state revenues. With local responsibility for administration, tax appraisals varied wildly from community to community. A standardized system, that ended state use of the property tax, also created the local appraisal districts in 1982. This gave us the current form of property taxation still in place today, though numerous statutory and constitutional changes have refined it.

Tax Year Cycle

The property tax cycle can be divided into four phases. Appraisal districts are required to appraise properties based on their value as of January 1 each year. CADs generally complete this process by the end of April and notify property owners of their appraisals. The CAD will also provide local jurisdictions with this preliminary information by the end of April so cities, counties, school districts and special districts can draft their budgets for the following year. This information informs decisions for operating and capital budgeting. Next, property owners can protest their appraisals. Appraisal review boards will complete these disputes by July. CADs must provide local taxing jurisdictions with a certified property tax base roll by July 25th. This value will be used by local governments to finalize budget preparation and set a tax rate. Local governments must set this tax rate after approving the budget and before September 30. The final phase of the tax year begins on October 1 when tax bills are mailed to property owners. Payment is delinquent on February 1 the following calendar year.

Truth in Taxation: Effective Tax Rate and Roll-Back Rate

The concept of truth in taxation, embodied in the Texas Constitution and state law essentially permits taxpayers to assess their property tax burden and influence the local political process that sets budgets and tax rates. The effective tax rate and the roll-back rate are important concepts under truth in taxation.

The effective tax rate is a hypothetical tax rate that would bring in the exact same amount of revenue as collected by local government in the previous year. This rate can change from year-to-year because it depends on changes in appraised values of existing property. If previously existing property appraisals are higher, then the effective tax rate will be lower than last year’s official tax rate. If property appraisals have fallen, such as during a recession, then the effective tax rate will be higher than last year’s official tax rate. The rate is calculated by excluding the value of new real estate constructed during the previous year.

The roll-back rate is a buffer to growth in property taxes that can be implemented by local taxpayers. It reflects the maximum tax increase a city government can adopt for its upcoming budget year without risking a roll-back election. According to the Texas Municipal League, there are half a dozen roll-back elections annually and a small majority are successful in rolling back the tax rate. The roll-back at the time of this writing is 108 percent of the effective tax rate. That means, that a city council can chose to adopt a property tax rate that is equal to or less than its effective tax rate without risk of a roll-back election. Rates set above 108 percent of the effective rate can trigger a citizen petition to call a roll-back election. Proposed legislation in the 2017 Texas Legislative Session would change the roll-back rate to 104 percent and make a roll-back election mandatory, without a petition.

In addition to excluding newly constructed property from the calculations, the effective and roll-back rates only apply to the portion of the tax rate that supports general government operations. The fraction of the tax rate that supports debt service (called interest and sinking or I&S) is not subject to the roll-back provision.

Statewide Trends in Property Values

Property taxes are generally calculated at the local level, by appraisal districts, for each taxing jurisdiction in the state. Changes in property tax bases can vary dramatically from community to community depending on local economic conditions. Given the overall importance of the property tax to local governments, we would like to have some baseline to easily compare tax base performance across the state. The Texas Comptroller provides us with a reasonable metric. It is charged with evaluating the appraisals made by local CADs for all the independent school districts in the state. The primary purpose of the property value survey is to support calculation of state funding formulas for K-12 education. It is not comprehensive, but provides some details to study statewide property tax base trends.

Based on these reports, between 2011 and 2016, the total taxable value of real and personal property in Texas grew 32 percent from $1.7 trillion to over $2.2 trillion. The annual increase was relatively consistent each year at over 5 percent. By comparison, for single-family homes, the statewide total has grown by 39 percent over the same period. Home property values, presented an increasing growth rate in recent years. This seems to reflect home price increases we have seen throughout the state. Annual increases in the last three years have exceeded 9 percent. Next week we will expand our analysis and take a closer look at DFW cities.

Changing Attitudes and Community Engagement

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Local prosperity is like two sides of a coin. On one side, you have what the public sector does and the other you have what the private sector does. You can’t build a prosperous community without both. Like sides of a coin they are bound together. Public engagement is the glue that holds the two sides together. Proper engagement, whether for budgeting, long range planning or community development will transform the way both cities and their stakeholders work together for mutual benefit.

Done correctly, local leaders can build processes that harness the energy and initiative of households and businesses to build the tax base that will sustain the services needed by the private sector. The private sector also needs to reimagine its role and assume its place through a renewed civics.

Even with an economic recovery, many communities around the country face resource limits but expectations for services remain high. Local leaders like city managers, mayors and council members can take the lead in working with their communities to build an environment that will support both private and public pursuit of prosperity. Some local leaders are already pursuing a number of technical reforms, but these will not deliver the same long-standing results as community engagement. These include trying to do a better job with service delivery through more effective operations, adding on complex management systems and planning process and transparency in the form of open data.

We have talked before about community engagement here and here. In the remainder of this post we will discuss existing attitudes and how they should change to use community engagement to rebuild civics as a collective practice.

Currently our communities are too often characterized by assumptions and behaviors like the following.

Residents can:

  • Act like consumers and not citizens
  • Think local government is solely responsible for quality of life and economic development
  • Assume their responsibilities end with paying taxes, and sometime voting

City staff can:

  • Unveil policies and programs without a prior public discussion of options, implementation and consequences
  • Think the public is an obstacle to getting their job done
  • Assume private interests are automatically trying to cheat the public or others

These need to change and the root of that change can be found in better engagement by all. Sustainable communities will be ones where public and private activities are coordinated, complementary and mutually supportive. This can only happen with a more robust public engagement process.

For all but the most charmed cities, we believe prosperity in the next few years will require a renewed civics. That means residents and business owners will shift from being passive consumers of municipal services to partners with local government in securing successful community outcomes. They can reclaim their role as citizens and participants in local political life. At the same time, local leaders can coordinate a process from which a new community vision can emerge. City staff play their part by becoming consultants on how residents and businesses can make the most of local services and participate in collective outcomes.

Some examples of the changed attitudes and behaviors include:

  • Management and staff appreciating that community members have skills and assets that can help at each stage of the policy and operational chain.
  • City staff cultivating a mindset that expects the best of local families and businesses (without abdicating their responsibility to protect life and property.) Staff can start looking for ways to help the private sector solve shared problems.
  • City staff learning to craft important policies in a more participatory process that starts with open data and analysis. This process will maintain public participation in evaluating options and creating the implementation plan.
  • Citizens accepting that social, economic and community outcomes depend on their actions too. Public provision can’t possibly achieve meaningful gains in areas like neighborhood vitality, safety, sanitation and health.

Unless your city has all the revenue it needs and your community goals are being perfectly achieved, you are probably not taking advantage of all your community’s potential unless you tap it through real community engagement.