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Temple council approves proposed tax-rate resolutions, schedules two Aug. 28 hearings
Summary
The Temple City Council voted 5-0 to approve resolutions setting a proposed tax rate and scheduling public hearings and final adoption for Aug. 28; staff presented the components of the rate and the legal timeline under state truth-in-taxation rules.
Temple City Council voted unanimously Thursday to approve resolutions that set a proposed tax rate and schedule two public hearings on the tax rate and budget. The council approved items 3A, 3B and 3C as a package in a 5-0 vote, moving the formal public hearing and final adoption to Aug. 28, 2025.
The proposed actions put in motion the truth-in-taxation calendar and allow the city to hold a public hearing on the proposed rate at 10:10 a.m. on Aug. 28 and to consider final adoption of the tax rate and budget at 10:00 a.m. that same day. Staff repeatedly emphasized that, under state truth-in-taxation procedures, a proposed rate may be lowered later in the process but cannot be increased without resetting the required publication and hearing timeline.
Miss Bernard (staff member) told the council that the city's roll was certified July 22 and reviewed several benchmark rates: last year's rate (0.66265), the "no-new-revenue" rate (0.6144) and the voter-approval rate (0.7912). She also described the staff direction to return with a tax rate below 70 cents. In a technical breakdown presented to council, the maintenance-and-operations (M&O) component was shown as 37.5 cents and the debt-service component as 32.45 cents; staff said the total reflected a net increase in that overall composition compared with the prior year but reiterated that the proposed numbers can be reduced before final adoption.
Councilmembers did not debate the motion at length. Mayor Pro Tem Walker moved to approve items 3A–C; Councilmember Pilkington seconded. The mayor called the vote: the package passed 5–0.
Why it matters: votes to set a proposed rate and to schedule hearings are required steps under state truth-in-taxation rules and start the public-notice clock. The council's action preserves the city's ability to consider lower rates before final adoption but prevents raising the proposed rate without restarting the required notices and hearings.
Looking ahead: the council will hold a first-reading consideration of the tax roll and levying of taxes on Aug. 21 and will hold the scheduled public hearing and final adoption actions on Aug. 28, 2025.
