Boerne council confirms proposed budget and tax‑rate notices, clears $4 million bond issuance plan; staff rolls out new permitting portal and outlines water‑t‑t

The Boerne City Council took a package of routine but consequential fiscal steps and received staff briefings on permitting technology and water‑quality issues.

Budget and tax items: Council accepted the city’s proposed fiscal year 2025–26 budget for public notice and confirmed the proposed tax rate of $0.4716 per $100 valuation for purposes of required legal notices. The council also set two public hearings on the budget and tax rate for Aug. 26 and Sept. 9, 2025. The council received the certified appraisal roll and related tax calculations as required by state law. All motions passed 5–0.

Plan of finance and bonds: With staff support from Hilltop Securities, council approved a proposed plan of finance to issue the remaining $4,000,000 of voter‑approved 2022 general obligation bonds (parks and mobility) as a 20‑year amortized issue. Officials said the city’s strong financial position and liquidity support competitive rates; staff expect bond proceeds to be deposited after attorney general review and a planned competitive sale in September. Hilltop representatives said the issuance is structured to avoid raising the city’s interest‑and‑sinking tax rate and to preserve capacity for future issues.

New permitting portal (MyGov): City staff demonstrated the newly implemented MyGovernmentOnline (MGO) permitting and licensing module, which launched July 14. Staff said the system replaces the legacy SmartGov workflow and provides an applicant dashboard, application previews, online payments (including eCheck), contractor licensing consolidation and improved notifications. Tyler Holyoke and Planning staff said the number of calls for basic permit assistance has decreased since the launch; staff are scheduling public training and said they will provide recorded tutorials and in‑lobby kiosks for residents or contractors who need help. Staff emphasized that the legacy system will be migrated after remaining active projects are finalized and data migration is complete.

Environmental programs and dark‑sky/tree conservation: Ryan Bass, environmental planner, summarized programs that support tree preservation (urban forestry program, tree inventory, fee‑in‑lieu fund and oak‑wilt mitigation), water conservation (rainwater rebates, irrigation audits and reclaimed/purple‑pipe reuse) and dark‑sky enforcement (full cutoff fixtures, photometric studies, color‑temperature guidelines and complaint response). Staff noted legal limits on municipal authority to prevent private tree removal in some areas: state law restricts municipalities’ abilities to prohibit removals on private property outside municipal code or extraterritorial jurisdiction.

Water quality and smell/taste concerns: Public concerns about water taste and odors (geosmin) and disinfection‑byproduct (DBP) sampling were addressed by Director Mike Mann. He said the city has seen DBP results affected by seasonal surface‑water organics and varying groundwater percentages. Staff are conducting a pilot study of enhanced treatment and are designing granular activated carbon (GAC) filtration and considering ozone plus carbon for the new treatment plant; those technologies are expected to reduce geosmin and DBP formation. Mann said the full new plant will be online in roughly four years and that interim measures and planned GAC installation aim to mitigate current taste/odor and DBP issues.

Why it matters: The budget, tax‑notice confirmations and bond plan define the city’s funding strategy for capital projects and operations; the new permitting portal and the water‑treatment work address ongoing operational and service concerns residents raised in public comments.

Actions recorded: Council approved the certified tax roll and calculations, received the proposed budget and confirmed the proposed tax rate for notice, set two public hearings (Aug. 26 and Sept. 9), and approved the plan of finance for the remaining 2022 GO bond authorization. All votes were unanimous (5–0).