Staff is budgeting about $191 million in new general fund revenue and a tax rate of $0.457485 per $100 valuation, which comes in more than $0.04 lower than the fiscal year 2021-22 tax rate of $0.4977 per $100 of assessed value, according to the city’s budget documents.
McKinney's Chief Financial Officer Mark Holloway pointed out that the city’s sales tax revenue is increasing, which allows the city to lower the property tax rate. For FY 2022-23 the city expects to have property taxes make up 52% of the budget and sales taxes to make up 21% of the budget. The previous year's property taxes made up 54% of the budget, and sales taxes also made up 21%.
“The city is growing less reliant on property taxes, more reliant on sales taxes,” Holloway said.
The general fund budgets for 50 new staffing additions, which includes 10 positions to the fire department and 16 to the police department, including a director of public safety. This position will be filled by McKinney Police Chief Greg Conley. In this new position, Conley will oversee McKinney’s police department, fire department and the office of emergency management, and he will help strengthen the city’s policies regarding public safety, according to a city news release.
Beginning Oct. 1, Assistant Chief Joe Ellenburg will serve as interim police chief while the city searches for a permanent replacement for Conley, according to the city news release. “You guys just saw the most sweeping tax rate reduction in the history of our city,” Council Member Charlie Philips said.
The new fiscal year begins Oct. 1.
“The adopted budget represents the efforts and input from citizens, the City Council, city staff and other stakeholders,” City Manager Paul Grimes said in a city news release. “McKinney continues to find ways to balance the demands for city services and capital project investments toward our future with the economic challenges that a high inflation environment brings to our taxpayers. There is no perfect answer, but we think this budget weighs that balance fairly.”
For additional information on the city’s budget, visit www.mckinneytexas.org/budget.
