Tax assessor-collector says collections steady; exemptions and flood complicate valuation outlook

Tax Assessor-Collector Bob Warren told the Kerr County Commissioners Court Thursday that county tax collections through April are ‘slightly above last year's rate,’ reporting a 92.95% collection rate compared with 92.84% at the same point last year.

Warren said preliminary values from the central appraisal district (KCAD) show about a 2.2% countywide increase in appraised value as of the end of April but cautioned those numbers are preliminary and that certified values — required to compute the tax rate — may not arrive until late July. "They have till July 25 to get the certified values to me," he said, and once values are in he will calculate rates in early August.

Warren attributed uncertainty in valuations to recent flood damage in North Fork and to a voter-approved exemption that removed what he estimated as $82,900,000 from the tax roll for business inventory and equipment. "While it'll be a savings to the business owner, when you're calculating the rate, it shifts the burden to the real estate owner," Warren said, adding that shift represented "about 300 plus thousand in levy" for Kerr County.

Commissioners pressed Warren on whether recent homestead exemptions for residential homeowners would affect county rates; Warren said the residential exemption applied to school districts and not the county. He also confirmed that new construction is included in the appraisal data, citing roughly $140 million in new value countywide and noting commercial projects such as a recently completed Frost Bank building contributed to that new value.

Warren told the court he would continue to monitor collections during the next 30 to 45 days and update the court as certified values arrive. "I'll do my best to keep the court apprised of anything that I see that's significant," he said.