The Tarrant Appraisal District (TAD) board voted to adopt a $33.9 million budget for fiscal year 2027, the first budget to fund a staff count of 194 – the lowest level since 1999. Payroll costs remain the largest expense, consuming about 67% of the total budget, or $22.7 million, for salaries, retirement, insurance benefits, and pension contributions.
Staff reductions and salary increases
The board’s plan reflects a 5% reduction in staff positions compared with 2024. Despite the smaller workforce, the budget still provides for a 3% merit increase for employee salaries each year. Training and travel expenses have risen by roughly 26%, reaching about $550,000, to support anticipated out‑of‑county travel for staff development.
Election costs added to the budget
A new expense this year is the cost of electing three TAD board members. A state‑mandated change now requires voters to directly choose board members, a shift from the previous appointment system. The November election is projected to cost the district $800,000. The board decided to cover half of that amount, $400,000, with existing committed funds and to spread the remaining cost across the 2028 budget, effectively splitting election expenses over two fiscal cycles.
Chief Appraiser Joe Don Bobbitt explained via email that the approach “was made in order to begin budgeting for the election in the years moving forward, with approximately half of the cost coming from each year’s budget for the biennial election.”
Overall budget changes
The approved budget represents a 2.6% increase over the previous year’s budget and a 2.35% rise in the 73 taxing units governed by TAD. The board trimmed about $500,000 from the $34.4 million proposal initially presented by Bobbitt, keeping the overall increase modest while addressing the new election expense.
While the district’s primary function is to assess property values for tax purposes, the budget decision underscores the balance between maintaining essential staffing levels, providing modest compensation growth, and meeting newly mandated electoral costs.
For further information, contact government‑accountability reporter Cecilia Lenzen at [email protected].
Original reporting: Fort Worth Report — read the source article.
