Texarkana council adopts FY2025 budget, OKs 0.65 tax rate and $497,000 tax-note sale
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Summary
On Sept. 9 the Texarkana, Texas City Council adopted the FY2025 budget, approved a property tax rate of 0.650000 per $100 of assessed value (described in the meeting as a 4.95% increase), and authorized a two-year tax-note sale sized to net about $497,000 for city projects.
The Texarkana, Texas City Council on Monday adopted the city’s fiscal year 2025 budget, set a property tax rate of 0.650000 per $100 of assessed value and approved the private placement sale of Tax Notes Series 2024 that will net the city roughly $497,000 in project proceeds.
During a public hearing and subsequent roll-call votes, councilors unanimously approved the budget ordinance that amends revenue and expenditure estimates for the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, 2024 and adopts the budget and appropriations for the year beginning Oct. 1, 2024. City staff said the packet included a small amount of additional grant funding added since the prior briefing; specific grant amounts were not specified in the meeting packet or comments.
Council member Page moved the budget ordinance and Council member Davis seconded; the motion passed on roll call. Mayor (unnamed) declared the motion unanimous.
Separately, the council approved an ordinance fixing the tax rate for the city. Council member Davis moved and Council member Matlock seconded the measure to adopt a property tax rate of 0.650000 per $100 of assessed valuation. At the meeting the rate was described by a council speaker as effectively a 4.95% increase. The council approved those motions on successive roll-call votes, each recorded as unanimous.
The council also authorized issuance and sale of a two-year series of tax notes. Marty Hsu of Hilltop Securities, the city’s financial adviser, told the council the notes were marketed via private placement and that Amogy Bank submitted the winning proposal at an interest rate of 5.32%. "These were sold through a private placement," Hsu said, and the winning proposal "came in from Amogy Bank who provided an interest rate of 5.32%." Hsu said the notes are callable without penalty, have a final maturity in 2026 and are sized and structured to "net the city $497,000 for your project proceeds." He added the bonds will be submitted to the Texas attorney general for approval and the city expects to receive funds on Oct. 8.
What it means: the adopted budget and tax decisions fund the city’s maintenance and operations and capital projects for FY2025, with some grant-funded additions noted by staff. The tax-note proceeds are intended to support identified project needs; the meeting record ties the net proceeds to a city project but does not specify which specific capital project will receive the funds.
Votes at a glance: the budget ordinance, the tax-rate ordinance and the tax-note authorization each passed by unanimous roll-call vote. The minutes and roll calls in the meeting transcript record affirmative votes from councilors present; individual vote entries were read aloud by the city secretary during roll call.
Next steps: staff will submit the tax notes to the attorney general for approval and expect to receive proceeds in October; the council scheduled related public hearings and additional votes as noted in the agenda packet.
