Abilene-Taylor events board keeps 50/50 venue-tax split, accepts audit and approves budgets

The Abilene Taylor County Events Venue District on Aug. 25 voted unanimously to maintain a 50%–50% split of the district’s 2% venue tax between Frontier Texas and the Taylor County Expo Center, accepted the district’s audited financial statements for the year ending Sept. 30, 2024, and approved revised fiscal 2025 and proposed fiscal 2026 budgets.

The board’s action followed presentations from Taylor County Expo Center director Rochelle Johnson and Frontier Texas executive director Jeff Salmon, and a staff review of the audited financial statements by Marjorie Knight. Knight told the board the auditors issued a clean opinion and reported total assets of $267,000, total liabilities of $205,000 and a net position of $62,284. She said total revenues were about $3,401,000 and total expenditures were about $3,376,000, leaving a net increase in net position of $25,786; hotel occupancy tax revenues were “almost $1,300,000,” down about $36,945 from 2023.

Johnson described the Expo Center as “a 501(c)(3) nonprofit” that leases the facility from Taylor County for $1 per year, does not receive county operating dollars, and relies heavily on the West Texas Fair and Rodeo and Western Heritage Classic for roughly half its budget. She said the center hosted 229 events in 2024 across about 213 days of facility use (not including set-up or tear-down), employs 18 full-time and about 200 temporary or seasonal workers, and reported roughly $1.4 million in payroll and $486,000 in utilities for 2024. Johnson also said the Expo Center has rebuilt part of an emergency reserve and plans to use increased venue-tax revenue to replenish reserves and to pay for large-ticket items the county did not include in its budget, naming an improved announcer stand as an example.

Salmon said Frontier Texas received $2,000,000 in bond proceeds tied to the current venue district construction project, that the organization matched those funds with about $2.3–$2.4 million in private fundraising, and that most construction punch-list items are complete aside from roofing work. He said the museum opened March 2, 2024, and remains finalizing a small number of contractor punch-list items before final payments.

On the budget measures, Knight said revised FY2025 estimates reflect recent collection trends and a roughly $308,000 (about 23%) increase in hotel-tax revenue for the year-to-date period used in the revision; the board’s packet projects disbursements rising to approximately $754,000 each for Frontier Texas and the Expo Center in FY2026 under current estimates. Knight told the board the debt-service transfer remains fixed by the bond schedule and that surplus monthly receipts are transferred after debt-service and the city’s 2% administrative fee are applied.

Votes at a glance: the board adopted the minutes of the June 17, 2024 meeting; administered the oath of office to newly appointed board member Miguel Espinosa and confirmed officers (Commissioner Chuck Sattler as president, Miguel Espinosa as vice president, Judge Phil Crowley as secretary and Shay Hall as treasurer); accepted the audited financial statements for the year ending Sept. 30, 2024; approved continuing the 50%–50% allocation of the 2% venue tax with the city continuing to receive its administrative fee as a passthrough; and approved the revised FY2025 and proposed FY2026 budgets. All actions passed on voice votes with no recorded opposition.

The board heard no public comments before moving through the agenda. With the budget and allocation decisions made, board members and presenters emphasized stability for operations and a continued focus on hosting multi-day, regional events that generate tourism dollars for hotels and restaurants.