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The Harris County Office of Management and Budget rolled out its proposed budget to county commissioners Aug. 17, with priorities for pay parity, bolstering the justice system and maintaining existing services outlined amid a $181 million shortfall.
However, the proposal also comes with a recommendation for a 3.5% tax rate increase, according to budget documents.
The gist
OMB Executive Director Daniel Ramos presented the $3.096 billion budget for the upcoming fiscal year, which starts Oct. 1.
The budget proposal includes the county’s general fund, Harris County Toll Road Authority, Harris Health and Harris County Flood Control District.
Per a press release, the budget prioritizes funding for:
The budget was created amid financial pressures from “rising healthcare costs, jail outsourcing, increased indigent defense expenses, state-mandated spending requirements, continued jail outsourcing and diminishing federal aid,” per a news release.
The county also has to grapple with losing federal funding it received during the pandemic, with money from the American Rescue Plan Act, or ARPA, ending at the end of the year.
These expenses put the projected current-level-of-service gap at about $181 million, according to the release. This is a slight increase from the previously estimated $178 million shortfall, as Community Impact previously reported.
Despite financial pressures, no layoffs were recommended in the budget as the county comes to the end of its year-long hiring freeze.
The budget outlines an estimated 12%, or $327 million, expense increase compared with last year’s adopted budget. These increases include:
What they’re saying
In a letter included in the budget, Ramos said the budget presented “a unique set of challenges” with the second year of law enforcement pay parity, the pay equity study and “historic increases” in healthcare spending.
“While not popular, this budget attempts to right size the county’s spending on benefits and other fixed costs to bring financial stability to future county budgets,” Ramos said.
Ramos also highlighted “compounding unfunded legislative mandates and a difficult economic environment” as stressors on the budget.
The court discussed how House Bill 9, which provides a greater property tax exemption for business owners, will generate less money for the county than previous years. The bill, as Community Impact previously reported, exempts up to $125,000 of a business’s personal property.
Almost $9 billion in value across the state was exempted, Ramos said in a media briefing Aug. 14.
In a statement, Harris County Administrator Erica Lee Carter said the proposed budget “reflects the difficult choices necessary to maintain the services Harris County residents rely on while addressing the fiscal challenges the County faces.”
“Our priorities remain clear: protecting public safety, supporting our workforce, maintaining essential services and being responsible stewards of taxpayer dollars,” Carter said.
Before you go
The court is expected to vote on the tax rate at its Sept. 8 meeting.
To balance the proposed budget, the court would have to approve a tax rate of about $0.71. This meets the threshold of a 3.5% increase from last year’s rate, which would allow voters to approve or deny it on their ballots in November, according to the state comptroller website.
Harris County Commissioners Court meetings are held at 9 a.m. in Downtown Houston. The administration building is located at 1001 Preston St., Houston. Meetings are also available to livestream here.
