At its Aug. 19 meeting, the Robinson City Council opened public hearings to receive comment on a proposed property tax rate and the fiscal 2025–26 budget, and discussed the role of recently issued debt in the proposed rate. City staff said the proposed operating portion of the tax rate would decline slightly while most of the increase would fund debt service on certificates of obligation tied to street work and a ladder truck.

Council and staff said the proposed tax-rate package matters because it would allow the city to address decades of deferred street maintenance. City Manager Craig LeMint said the council and staff calculated three formal rates under truth‑in‑taxation procedures: a no‑new‑revenue rate (44.3426 cents per $100 of valuation), a voter‑approval rate (53.9732 cents per $100) and a de minimis rate (53.9667 cents per $100). The budget presented to council in early August used a proposed rate of 50.9937 cents per $100; that is the figure staff and council said they plan to pursue when they adopt the rate after the public‑hearing process.

LeMint told the council the city issued $33,000,000 in certificates of obligation on Aug. 5 and that $25,000,000 of that amount is tax‑supported. He said $2.5 million of the tax‑supported portion is earmarked for a fire ladder truck and $22.5 million for street reclamation and reconstruction. LeMint said the operational portion of the tax rate is actually decreasing by about one‑quarter of a cent while the full tax‑rate increase reflected in the proposed budget covers debt service.

Resident Mike Green told the council he is concerned about rising home valuations and repeated tax increases, asking, “When are we gonna start seeing some relief from taxes?” Councilmembers responded by urging residents to review meeting materials and videos and by describing the council’s long‑running focus on street repairs. Councilman Charlie Birch, speaking as a long‑term resident, summarized the council’s view that the city has been operating with fewer staff than peer cities and that the streets problem will not be solved without a substantial, time‑limited financing plan.

Councilmembers scheduled a separate meeting to adopt a final tax rate—advertised for Aug. 26, 2025—and did not adopt a final rate at the Aug. 19 hearing. The public‑hearing process on the budget also remains open; staff presented fund summaries showing the general fund at $10,414,766 (a 5.2% increase), the utility fund at $11,910,111 (a 3.6% increase) and the debt‑service fund at $3,313,085 (a 47.5% increase driven by the new tax‑supported COs). Staff identified drivers of the increases as the debt service for the COs, salary adjustments (2.5% across‑the‑board and up to 2.5% merit increases), and increased water‑purchase costs under the city’s contract with Waco.

No final vote to adopt the tax rate or the budget occurred at the Aug. 19 meeting; councilmembers directed staff to finalize materials for the adoption meeting, and the council invited further public comment at the scheduled adoption session.

Next steps: the council will reconvene to consider final adoption of the proposed tax rate and budget at the advertised meeting on Aug. 26, 2025. Staff said engineering and contractor work for the street program will begin in the months after debt closes.