Government
BY THOMAS LEFFLER
The city of Schertz has passed its scal year 2025-26 budget and property tax rate, opting for a rate increase of just over $0.02 per $100 valuation. Schertz City Council voted 5-2 on Aug. 19 to pass a $139.3 million total budget with a property tax rate of $0.5118 per $100 valuation, up from the previous rate of $0.49 per $100 valuation. The property tax rate increase was adopted on Sept. 2, due to issues with improperly posting the ordinance online. Council members Mark Davis and Paul Macaluso were the two dissenting votes on the budget. With the $0.5118 rate, the city will add a recurring Cost of Living Adjustment, or COLA, an annual raise of $317,000. The city will also add one-time costs of $315,000 to street projects and a one-time cost of $100,000 to sidewalk projects, according to previous agenda documents. Five council members supported the selected tax rate as well as the COLA, street and sidewalk expenditures. Davis supported the same $0.5118 rate, but with the removal of the COLA in favor of adding recurring annual costs of $315,000 to streets and $100,000 to sidewalks. Macaulso supported the no-new-revenue rate of $0.5064 while adding in the one- time street and sidewalk costs. A fourth option, a tax rate of $0.5190 with recurring COLA and recurring street and sidewalk expenditures, received no council support. Schertz passes $139.3M budget
What else?
What the council is saying
The city’s rate increase is also brought on by an 8.6% increase in disabled veteran homestead exemptions, or DVHS exemptions, in 2025. According to the Bexar County Tax Asses- sor-Collector’s o ce, various exemptions exist for disabled veterans, including House Bill 3613 of the 81st Texas Legislature, which authorized a 100% exemption for a residence homestead to a qualifying disabled veteran. Finance Director James Walters said that 23% of Schertz homesteads have such exemptions, and said the city’s FY 2024-25 tax rate without the exemptions would be $0.4091.
The $0.5118 rate was selected as the consensus rate after prior council discussions saw some support for the no-new-revenue rate and a rate of $0.5190. Mayor Pro Tem Tim Brown said the city needed to stick to a COLA to keep up with employee pay scales. “To me, it’s a no-brainer. When you look at the surrounding cities, they’re averaging a 3, 4, 5% COLA—1% is almost a slap in the face, but at least it’s something,” Brown said. Macaluso agreed with Gutierrez, wanting the no-new-revenue rate and said that a COLA is “almost unheard of” in private business. “In a time where some residents’ home values are going down, but they’re not going to be able to actually see that bene t of a lower tax rate, I just think going back to them and asking them for more is just not what I support,” Macaluso said. Council member Allison Heyward pushed back on the merit system, saying not everyone is eligible for merit and that a 1% COLA could be used towards items like income taxes and health care costs.
FY 2024-25 rates are used as examples for cities that have not approved their budget. Disabled Veteran Homestead Exemption entities FY 2024-25 tax rates
Fair Oaks Ranch $0.2853 Schertz
$0.4900
Universal City
“It’s not that I’m saying we don’t value our sta , but we have to nd a perfect balance as to what we’re going to pay our sta and how much of a
$0.5144
Copperas Cove
$0.6081
Temple
burden we’re going to put on our taxpayers." RALPH GUTIERREZ MAYOR
$0.6265
Killeen
$0.6573
El Paso
$0.7614
SOURCE: CITY OF SCHERTZ COMMUNITY IMPACT
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