At a Sept. 12 meeting, members of the Commissioners Court approved the new budget along with a tax rate of $0.215718 per $100 valuation. The Dallas County tax rate has been declining since FY 2019-20, when the rate was set at $0.2431 per $100 valuation.
“I’m glad to be part of this budget, District 4 Commissioner Elba Garcia said at the meeting. “It was challenging, but nonetheless we finished with a lower tax rate ... and a balanced budget.”
The context
While the new tax rate marks a 1.02% decrease from the previous fiscal year, county officials expect the average homeowner to see an increase to their bill by 10.85%—or about $62 annually—due to the taxable value on the average homestead increasing by 12% in the county, according to budget documents.
The increase in tax revenue for the county is expected to be nearly $81.4 million.
Diving deeper
During the meeting, District 2 Commissioner Andrew Sommerman, who represents parts of east and north Dallas, introduced a number of amendments to the budget that were passed, including:
- Eliminating salary or reclassification increases for high-ranking employees in the county’s juvenile division
- Increasing pay for certain attorneys in the juvenile division
- Adding a civil litigation attorney, a civil advisory attorney, a conviction integrity unit attorney and a conviction integrity unit legal secretary
The new budget and tax rate will go into effect Oct. 1 and end Sept. 30, 2024.
