On Wednesday, the Houston City Council will discuss adopting a property tax rate for fiscal year 2021. Officials have proposed a tax rate of $0.561840 per $100 of taxable value which will increase city taxes on the average homestead by $42 or 3.06%. The no-new-revenue tax rate—or the tax rate that will raise the same amount of property tax revenue from the same properties taxed during the prior and current years—is $0.549742 per $100 of value and, if adopted, will keep tax bills level.
“Now is not the time to raise taxes on hard-working Houstonians. Now is the time to hold the line,” says TPPF’s James Quintero. “If the city adopts the proposed tax rate, then homeowners will pay higher taxes and people struggling to make ends meet will have even less. Raising taxes today ought to be a nonstarter given the level of human misery, high unemployment rate exceeding 8%, and countless business closures.
“A better policy that will serve Houstonians is the no-new-revenue tax rate. This tax rate will lower tax bills across-the-board and protect the most vulnerable among us.”
The City of Houston will accept virtual public testimony at its 9:00 a.m. hearing on Wednesday, Oct. 21. All speakers must register in advance by 5:00 p.m. today by calling the City Secretary Office at 832-393-1100. If you do not register in advance, you will not be recognized to speak.
For more on the proposed tax increase, please visit:
https://www.texaspolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Quintero-Budgeting-for-Fiscal-Year-2021.pdf