Cibolo City council workshop weighs voter-approval tax rate to close FY26 budget gap

City staff presented the FY26 budget update at a Cibolo City Council workshop, recommending the voter-approval tax rate of 52.26¢ to close a shortfall and cover one-time expenses while keeping the city’s fund balance above the recently adopted 25% minimum.

The recommendation matters because staff said recurring revenues currently fall short of recurring expenses by about $462,000; using the voter-approval rate would allow the city to avoid a deeper draw on reserves while funding onetime items such as a local grant match for the MVCPA award, litigation costs, nonprofit grants, computer replacements and a contribution to the Schertz Library.

City staff framed the choice as a financial trade-off. “The Texas truth in taxation process is dictated by property tax code and Texas local government code,” said Anna Miranda, city staff member, while explaining certified property values and the calculations that produced the range of tax-rate options. City staff reported that Guadalupe County certified Cibolo’s 2025 taxable value at about $3.69 billion, roughly 2.6% below 2024’s certified value.

Staff said declining residential values—an average homestead decrease of about 3.8%—mean that even a modestly higher tax rate could still…