HARLINGEN — City commissioners are considering the first property tax increase in years.
Last night, commissioners discussed a possible tax rate increase of as much as four cents per $100 valuation.
“I’m just putting it out for discussion,” Commissioner Tudor Uhlhorn said.
Mayor Chris Boswell said commissioners will schedule a meeting to discuss the matter.
City officials have proposed a $41 million general fund budget with a $15.1 million cash reserve fund capable of operating the city for 133 days in case of an emergency.
For seven years, the city’s property tax rate has stood at 58 cents per $100 valuation.
Under the current tax rate, 1 cent generates $328,945.
But the proposed budget would come with a cut in street repairs while continuing to operate without a fund used to replace vehicles, Uhlhorn said.
Uhlhorn said he’s concerned the city stopped funding the replacement of patrol cars and other vehicles.
In 2010, the city scrapped a general fund account used to replace patrol cars and other vehicles, City Manager Dan Serna said in an earlier interview.
The city does not plan to buy police cars for the upcoming fiscal year, Serna said.
Serna said he plans to pull $500,000 from cash reserves to fund a street improvement project.
This year, the city took $500,000 from cash reserves to fund $1.5 million in street repairs, Serna said.
“When we proposed that balanced budget, there are some things we are deferring that in the future we will pay for,” Uhlhorn said. “I know the citizens are always concerned about improving the appearances of the city, the appearances of the streets.”
For the rest of this story and many other EXTRAS, go to our premium site, www.MyValleyStar.com.
Subscribe to it for only $6.99 per month or purchase a print subscription and receive the online version free, which includes an electronic version of the full newspaper and extra photo galleries, links and other information you can’t find anywhere else.
