City of El Campo council members voted to accept the 2025 certified property tax roll and, in a separate recorded vote, set the ceiling for the fiscal 2026 tax rate at the state-calculated no-new-revenue rate of 0.49144, the council decided at its meeting. The acceptance of the certified roll and the record vote to set the ceiling were both approved by voice vote.

The certified roll acceptance puts the Wharton County chief appraiser’s figures on the record for the city’s budget work. A staff presenter told the council the roll shows this year’s values increased “less than 5%” compared with last year and noted about $66,000,000 of value was listed as under review. “We are required by law to present this to you. We are confident that these numbers are, numbers that we can use towards our budget,” the staff presenter said.

Why it matters: setting the ceiling at the no-new-revenue rate means the city can avoid a state-required public hearing tied to a higher proposed tax rate; final adoption of a tax rate remains a later step. City staff said they adjusted the proposed fiscal 2026 budget so it would balance at the no-new-revenue ceiling and laid out several revenue and expenditure changes used to reach that result.

Council discussion and staff clarifications focused on how staff balanced the draft budget to the no-new-revenue ceiling and on risks that could require later changes. Staff described recent adjustments to projected sales-tax receipts (a modest increase assumed), a proposed water-and-sewer fee increase carried forward from the prior meeting, a recalculated administrative transfer from the utility fund to the general fund, and an updated franchise-fee calculation at 5 percent. Staff also said permitting revenue was increased by about $127,000 to reflect an anticipated school permit, and that the utility fund’s main-replacement line was reduced with $145,000 retained to address infrastructure in 2026.

Councilmember Hancock pressed staff on timing and review: he said he had numerous questions about the 146-page proposed budget and was uncomfortable setting a tax-rate ceiling without reviewing the full document. Staff replied they were not asking the council to adopt the budget that night, only to take the record tax vote to set the ceiling; if the council wanted a higher rate than the no-new-revenue figure, that would trigger a required public hearing. The presenter said staff could meet individually with council members and bring the budget back for additional review before final adoption.

Members also discussed the sales-tax assumption underpinning the draft; staff said they used a conservative 3 percent increase estimate and will monitor receipts for the first three months of the fiscal year and report back if projections diverge. Staff warned that if the city does not receive a timely audit in a future cycle, a recent legislative change could force the city to adopt the no-new-revenue rate by default.

Action taken: the council accepted the 2025 certified tax roll and set the tax-rate ceiling at the no-new-revenue rate of 0.49144 by record vote. Final adoption of the fiscal 2026 budget and the tax rate will occur at a later meeting in September after additional review and any required public hearings.

Next steps: staff will make the detailed proposed budget available for further council review, meet with councilmembers who requested additional information, and return to the council with revisions or to schedule a public hearing if the council elects a rate above the no-new-revenue ceiling.