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Commission opens tax-rate hearing, will recess to 6 p.m. after newspaper ad error
Summary
Brown County commissioners opened a public hearing on a proposed tax-rate increase but recessed the hearing to 6 p.m. after discovering a legally required newspaper notice printed an incorrect time; the commission said it will continue the hearing tonight to allow residents who saw the incorrect ad to attend.
Brown County commissioners opened a public hearing on the proposed tax rate for tax year 2025 but recessed the hearing to continue at 6 p.m. after a newspaper ad printed the wrong meeting time. The county's public notice materials listed a 9 a.m. hearing, but the Brownwood Bulletin — the paper required by law to carry the notice — printed a 6 p.m. time that matched a different city's ad layout, the presiding official said.
The presiding official (name not specified) said the county would open the hearing at 9 a.m. as noticed on the county website and in some publications, then suspend proceedings and reconvene the hearing at 6 p.m. "We're gonna open a public hearing this morning, 09:00. We're gonna continue the public hearing tonight at 06:00," the presiding official said. The split schedule is intended to give anyone who relied solely on the Brownwood Bulletin the chance to appear.
The official said the county will investigate how the Brownwood Bulletin altered the ad the county provided — the paper apparently copied a notice for another city and changed only the county name and some figures, leaving the other city's meeting time in place. The official said repeatedly that, under state notice law, publication must appear in a "local newspaper of general circulation," and noted a concern that circulation patterns have changed with digital news. The county noted that mailing notices is an alternative but said that option could be "very, very, very expensive."
Commissioners opened the hearing this morning; there were no public comments at that time and the hearing was closed for the morning session. The commission scheduled a continuation of the tax-rate hearing at 6 p.m. in the same room, and plans to take final budget and tax-rate actions that evening.
The presiding official also briefly discussed ongoing agenda-notice procedures and said the county will post agendas online by Tuesday at 5 p.m. and meet statutory posting requirements. No formal vote was required to recess and continue the public hearing; the change was announced on the record to preserve the county's compliance with notice requirements and to allow attendees to participate at the later session.
