On Thursday morning, the Lubbock City Council will hold a public hearing on a proposed property tax hike of one penny per hundred.
The hearing will begin at 8:00 a.m. and then be followed by a first reading and vote on the tax rate.
According to the Lubbock Central Appraisal District, the city’s tax rate for 2017 was $0.53802 per $100 of taxable value. The proposed rate for 2018 according to a city council agenda will be $0.54802.
The city is obligated to make a notice of public hearing on the proposed tax rate.
It says in part: “This budget will raise more total property taxes than last year’s budget by $5,484,779 or 6.62%, and of that amount, $2,762,871 is tax revenue to be raised from new property added to the tax roll this year.”
The portion of taxes dedicated to maintenance and operations (not the portion dedicated to paying off debt) will increase taxes on a $100,000 home by $7.10.
The city’s budget will generate $215.3 million. The council plans to spend more than $221 million. The $6 million difference will come out of reserve funds.
The City Council will have a second reading and final vote on September 13 at 5:15 p.m.
The effective tax rate for 2018 is $0.530192, according to public records.
Those same records said, “The effective tax rate is the total tax rate needed to raise the same amount of property tax revenue for City of Lubbock from the same properties in both the 2017 tax year and the 2018 tax year.”
City Councilman Jeff Griffith said the increase in property taxes will go directly to increasing public safety and setting up police sub stations in Lubbock neighborhoods.
