Commissioners Court took no action on tax rates Monday and county budget officials did not propose specific figures for each agency the commissioners oversee, but some increase in the overall tax rate appears likely. The combined rate at which the county, Flood Control District, Port of Houston and Harris Health would collect the same revenue next fiscal year as this year is slightly higher than the current combined rate of 62.4 cents per $100 of taxable value.
The maximum combined rate the court could set without a referendum would be 71.7 cents, about 15% higher than the current rate. The budget office proposal would increase the county rate, specifically, from 38.1 cents to 41.9 cents per $100 of taxable value.
To help balance the budget, officials are proposing $61 million in departmental offsets and countywide savings and drawing $16 million from funds left over from the current fiscal year. The county has not yet determined exactly where all of the proposed savings will come from.
County officials said the proposed budget would maintain priority services without layoffs.
“The FY27 proposed budget reflects the difficult choices necessary to maintain the services Harris County residents rely on while addressing the fiscal challenges the County faces,” said Harris County Administrator Erica Lee Carter. “Our priorities remain clear: protecting public safety, supporting our workforce, maintaining essential services and being responsible stewards of taxpayer dollars.”
Ahead of Monday’s budget hearings, Commissioners Adrian Garcia and Lesley Briones blamed state and federal policies for adding to the financial pressures facing the county.
Both commissioners are up for reelection in November.
“We are trying to stretch your local taxpayer dollars as much as possible while we’re the fastest-growing area in the country,” Briones said.