Projections in the city budget show the average taxable home value in Pflugerville will sit at $241,037 in 2019, a year-over-year increase of 7.4 percent.
Although homeowners will likely see their tax values rise, the tax rate itself was dropped from 2018. City Council Tuesday evening voted to set the city's property tax rate at $0.4976 per $100 valuation for 2019. Pflugerville's property tax rate sat at $0.5399 per $100 valuation in 2018—more than $0.04 higher than this year's adopted rate.
The property tax value increases come as the city projects a combined 14.1 percent increase in appraisal values by the Travis and Williamson Central Appraisal Districts.
In its 2019 budget, the city of Pflugerville states that residential construction grew at an "accelerated pace" in 2018 and the city's projections expect that trend to continue in the coming fiscal year. As more and more residential properties come online within city limits, Pflugerville is experiencing tremendous growth. Projections show Pflugerville's population to grow to 67,000 residents, a 5 percent uptick.
BUDGET BREAKDOWN
City council on Tuesday night passed Pflugerville's 2019 fiscal year budget, which included outlined provisions for public safety equipment needs, infrastructure improvements and more.
The city of Pflugerville 2019 budget furthermore allocates up to $26.79 million for capital projects such as roads and facilities construction.
Several key roads projects have millions of dollars allocated to move construction forward in the coming year. The Weiss Lane improvements project has $10.8 million earmarked for construction, accounting for the largest share in capital improvements costs.
"We understand that transportation for our community is very critical with more cars on the road," said Pflugerville City Manager Sereniah Breland.
The capital improvements budget also allocates $4 million for construction of a sports complex, as well as $3.4 million for continued improvements to Lake Pflugerville.
The budget shows an $8.76 million increase in revenues compared to the 2018 fiscal year amended budget, totaling $145.94 million. Most of the city's General Fund revenues will come from property and sales taxes, which account for 70 percent of revenues combined. That percentage is similar to the share of revenues in last year's budget. City staff project that collected sales taxes will increase by $800,000 in 2019, up to $9.4 million.
Expenses in the budget passed by council Tuesday night eclipse $140 million, a $5.96 million increase from the amended 2018 fiscal year budget.
Pflugerville Police Department expenditures total $13.51 million account for 36 percent of the expenses in the 2019 city of Pflugerville budget. Equipment upgrades for bodyworn cameras and handheld radios are outlined in the budget, totaling $366,362.
Administration and streets and drainage expenditures account for the next two largest chunks of expenses in the 2019 fiscal year budget, representing 15 and 14 percent of the budget, respectively. Combined, the two departments total more than $10 million in budget expenses.
The adopted 2019 fiscal year budget goes into effect Oct. 1.
Clarification: This article has been changed to reflect that $241,037 is the projected average taxable home valuable for 2019, not the projected property tax cost.
