The City of Hutto has shared its preliminary budget, with a projected certified property value of $6.4 billion. Finance Director Alberta Barrett outlined the budget, noting that a drop in existing property values may necessitate a higher no-new-revenue tax rate.

Key Budget Details

Barrett explained that existing property values in the city are lower than they have been in the past. Because these property values are dropping, the no-new-revenue tax rate inherently needs to become higher. Barrett estimated that the no-new-revenue rate will be 0.399627, while the voter approval tax rate is estimated at about 0.431749.

A portion of the discussion involved the fiscal impact of establishing a city fire department, which would require an estimated 2.5-cent tax rate increase. The combined rate would still fall just below the estimated voter approval rate of 43 cents.

What’s Next

This is the first of several budget presentations that will be brought before council. Key dates include a public hearing/meeting on the budget and/or tax rate on September 3, and a public hearing/meeting to adopt the budget and/or tax rate on September 10, if it is not adopted at the September 3 meeting.

Original reporting: Community Impact — Austin — read the source article.