Lubbock County’s tax rate is highly contentious for at least the third year in a row.
Commissioners held a public hearing on the tax rate Monday morning – but will not vote on it until September. No one spoke during the hearing.
Commissioners have a consensus in budget talks to use the no-new-revenue tax rate for the coming budget cycle, but the decision is highly contentious.
County Auditor Kathy Williams, in a tense meeting with commissioners this month, said the proposed rate fails to meet ongoing expenses.
The proposed rate would generate less property tax revenue than last year, according to official records. And officials have clashed over proposed employee raises. To meet spending priorities discussed two weeks ago, Williams estimated the shortfall was at least $4 million – maybe $5 million.
New spending priorities
Cost of living adjustments (3 percent) for employees
Repair a section of roof at the detention center
Hire six new deputies for transporting inmates
Hire two new deputy constables
Restore “critical needs” funding for local volunteer fire departments
Higher health insurance costs
IT Department capital costs and maintenance
Sources: Conversation with Jordan Rackler and August 11 budget workshop meetings.
County Judge Curtis Parrish asked a commissioner if he’d like to cut COLAs (cost of living adjustments) during a budget workshop for the sheriff’s office on August 11.
Jordan Rackler, commissioner for Precinct 4, said, “I’m not cutting COLAs.”
Parrish responded, “You said cut COLAs.”
Williams interrupted, “I did!”
Then Jason Corley, commissioner for Precinct 2, interjected, “No, you’re not cutting COLAs.”
Williams openly contradicted him, saying, “I am cutting COLAs.”
Corley said departments can get the same budget as last year.
“Figure out how you want to spend it, and then we’ll pull from reserve if we absolutely have to cover the COLAs,” Corley said.
There was pushback to Corley’s statement including Michael Dalby, commissioner for Precinct 1, saying, “Take into account also that funding the COLA is a reoccurring expense.”
What Dalby meant is that higher salaries hit the budget year after year, but reserve money does not automatically recur.
The proposed tax rate this year
The proposed rate is the same as the no-new-revenue rate: $0.322782 per $100 of taxable value.
Last year’s rate was $0.327425. This year’s NNR is lower by $0.004643 (1.4 percent).
The average homestead value in Lubbock County will decrease a little more than $5,000 from $233,528 this year to $228,404 in the coming tax cycle.
The average Lubbock County tax will go down more than $27 from $764.63 to $737.25
The county’s tax levy will go down more than $1.55 million from $108.75 million to $107.2 million
Lubbock Lights reached out
LubbockLights.com successfully reached Judge Parrish and all four commissioners.
Commissioner Rackler said there’s a trust issue on the court.
“When the numbers have not matched up, year after year after year, it’s real hard to have faith,” Rackler said.
Rackler referenced last year’s outside audit that showed Lubbock County had extra money left over when commissioners were told the no-new-revenue rate would put the county in a deficit.
Williams, the county auditor, did not respond to our request for comment, but she defended herself to the commissioners in a recent public meeting – saying, “You’re telling me my numbers are wrong because we did better than what we budgeted.”
Corley told LubbockLights.com there was a big fuss when commissioners started adopting the no-new-revenue rate.
“Lubbock County didn’t go broke. Nothing collapsed. Nothing fell apart,” Corley said.
Parrish saw it differently, saying, “I believe that public safety and the safety of our citizens is our top priority. … This commissioner’s court has shirked that duty.”
Parrish said the proof of that is deputies leaving for other agencies that pay better. The same is true of prosecutors at Lubbock County, he said. Parrish did not think a COLA was enough to fix the problem.
Rackler said, “It’s going to take a couple years to get it to where the pay is right.”
Cary Shaw, commissioner for Precinct 3, said, “It’s going to take more than one year. … In order for us to fix the sheriff’s [department] salary, we would have to increase the average taxpayer’s taxes.”
Dalby was more circumspect about the risk of spending reserve money for pay raises – be it COLA or for the sheriff’s department.
“We’re still going to have to pull from reserves and contingency to balance this budget. I don’t believe we’re in quite as bad a shape as we were last year. But it still goes against a basic principle that I have not to balance from reserves,” Dalby said.
Dalby said he completely trusts Williams. Parrish said the same.
“I trust Kathy Williams. She is a very well recognized and a very competent auditor. We’ve received numerous statewide and nationwide awards for our budgeting,” Parrish said.
The August 11 kerfuffle
During the August 11 budget workshop, Williams said she was asked by the commissioners to prepare a budget that does not meet professional standards – specifically the GFOA, or Government Finance Officers Association.
Williams asked Corley, “So you don’t want to follow the GFOA’s recommendation on how to do a balanced budget. That’s what you’re telling me?”
Corley retorted, “Yeah, 100 percent!”
Williams addressed the entire Commissioners Court, saying, “Your job is to cut what you decided not to fund to balance this budget. … You had all day to do it. You did nothing.”
She said she would not present a budget that went above anticipated revenues but instead she would force the commissioners to publicly “amend” the budget she will present.
Sheriff Kelly Rowe was also unhappy – saying his department has 18 vacancies because it’s easy for his deputies and detention officers to find other nearby jobs at higher pay.
“Are we not doing a needs-based budget? We’re doing a no-new-revenue-rate budget. How long can you guys sustain that? Just every year it’s the same,” Rowe said.
“We continue to not address the issues that are longstanding – whether it’s facilities, whether it’s personnel, whether it’s whatever,” Rowe said.
He then added he’s the one who gets stuck with the ramifications.
Shaw pushed back, saying, “2021, 22 and 23 the county budget went up $119 million.”
Rowe said a portion of that was voter-approved.
But Shaw believes the budget has increased faster than population growth in recent years.
Rackler asked Williams how much more money is needed for employee pay raises and hiring two new deputy constables. The answer was $4 – $5 million, she said.
Parrish reminded the court it’s not just deputies who are leaving for higher pay. It’s also prosecutors in the District Attorney’s office.
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