The Waxahachie City Council on Monday approved placing a proposed property-tax rate of 61¢ per $100 of assessed value on the table for the 2025–26 budget and scheduled a public hearing for Monday, Sept. 8 at 5:30 p.m.

Chad, a city staff member, told the council the proposed FY 2025–26 budget includes a property-tax rate of 61¢, unchanged from the prior year: “The FY 2025, 2026 proposed budget includes a property tax rate of 61¢. This remains unchanged from the prior year's tax rate.” He and another staff member said that because of changes in assessed values and the council’s decision to increase the homestead exemption, the average homestead will see a slight decrease in tax bills even with the same rate.

A councilmember moved to set the proposed rate and schedule the hearing; the motion passed on a recorded vote. Staff told the council the final tax rate will be adopted along with the budget at the Sept. 15 meeting after public hearings.

The council’s action is a required procedural step under the property-tax code to set a proposed rate and schedule hearings. Staff said they will publish required notices and return for the final tax-rate adoption vote during the budget adoption process.