Kendall County Appraisal District presents 2026 budget, expansion plans; Boerne authorizes city manager to approve budget

Kendall County Appraisal District (KCAD) officials, including chief appraiser Nadia McNeil and the city's appraisal board representative John Willard, briefed the Boerne City Council on July 8 about the appraisal district's proposed fiscal year 2026 budget and a planned expansion of the appraisal district's building.

Why it matters: The appraisal district values properties and certifies taxable values that affect local taxing entities; changes to KCAD staffing, facilities and exemptions passed by the Texas Legislature can affect local tax levies and the timing of property value certifications.

What presenters said

- Budget and operations: KCAD's proposed fiscal year 2026 budget was described as a 7.8% increase over the prior year. McNeil said the increase includes space remodeling and the addition of two new positions to accommodate growth and higher parcel counts. She told council the office is running out of space and is planning to add approximately 2,500 square feet to the current building and to add one more residential appraiser in 2026; staff are in protest season and plan to certify values on time.

- Legislative impacts: John Willard summarized recent state-level changes that could affect local taxing entities, including a so-called circuit breaker limiting non-homestead increases and an increase in the business personal property exemption (from $2,500 to $125,000 if voters approve a constitutional change), with implementation timelines tied to voter action and state statute.

- Facility expansion financing: KCAD's board chair discussed plans to expand the 5,000-square-foot building by roughly 2,500 square feet to add offices and separate public access for appraisal review board (ARB) hearings. The presentation included an estimated project cost as stated by KCAD's speaker; KCAD staff said recent legislative changes would allow financing of the expansion and that participating taxing entities would be asked for their share of the financing based on allocation percentages (staff estimated the city's share at roughly 8.7—to—9 percent).

Council action

Council approved Resolution 2025-R44 authorizing the city manager to approve the KCAD's fiscal 2026 appraisal and collections budgets. Motion by Councilor Wilson; second by Councilman Bunker. Vote: 5-0.

Clarifying details

McNeil said KCAD corrected its parcel count after the presentation and that the submitted budget packet reflects the current parcel count. She reported KCAD passed recent Comptroller reviews and its annual financial audit with no material exceptions.

Next steps

With the council's authorization the city manager will execute the procedural approval; KCAD will continue to work with the Texas Comptroller's office on the 2025 review and to certify values for taxing entities on the schedule required by state law.