The Denton County Appraisal District board placed Chief Appraiser Hope McClure on paid leave during its Sept. 13 meeting.

The board discussed the matter during an over two-hour executive session before voting to oust the top administrator.

The board named Deputy Chief Appraiser Don Spencer the interim chief appraiser.

The appraisal district is a political subdivision of Texas that focuses on discovering and appraising property for ad valorem tax purposes.

The decision comes after several Denton County entities disproved the appraisal district’s budget. Those that voted against the district’s 2023 budget include Denton County commissioners, Flower Mound Town Council, Lewisville, Highland Village, Argyle and Lewisville ISD.


The Denton County Appraisal District has been late releasing home valuations for two of the last three years, said Liz Stewart, Argyle ISD chief financial officer, during a Sept. 19 board meeting. Because of the delay, the board was stalled in passing its tax rate Sept. 19 just before the Sept. 30 deadline.

LISD Superintendent Lori Rapp spoke during the Denton County Appraisal District board meeting and thanked the board for its decision to find new leadership.

“I want to say thank you for the action that you’ve taken in order to listen to the entities and to listen to the feedback that we provided,” she said.