The budget process for the City of Allen begins in January and culminates in the action by the City Council to adopt the budget and set the tax rate. This process includes the City Council Strategic Planning session held in January and the City Council Budget Workshop that was held August 14-15.

According to the Texas Truth-in-Taxation Law, the City Council is required to conduct a Public Hearing on the Tax Rate if the City's proposed tax rate exceeds the lower of the voter-approval tax rate ($0.491785) or the no-new-revenue tax rate ($0.484052). The proposed tax rate is $0.485000. September 8, 2020, is the date the Allen City Council set for the public hearing on the tax rate.

No other business may be conducted at the hearing. State law requires that a vote on the tax increase may not be held later than the seventh day after the date of the public hearing. The governing body may vote on the proposed tax rate at the conclusion of the public hearing. If the governing body does not vote on the proposed tax rate at the public hearing, the governing body shall announce at the public hearing the date, time, and place of the meeting at which it will vote on the proposed tax rate.

After the budget is adopted, the Council must adopt an ordinance setting the tax rate. This action completes the budget process. The tax rate includes two components: a levy for the General Fund (maintenance and operations) and a levy for debt service. The ordinance requires the City's tax collector to collect and deposit those funds in the City's accounts in accordance with the allocation between maintenance and operations and debt as designated in this ordinance.

The City's proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2020-2021 reflects a tax rate of $0.485000 per $100 of appraised valuation. Due to continued growth in the City's tax base from new improvements and existing properties, the total tax revenue generated, based on a rate of $0.485000 per $100 of the certified estimated values, would be $72,556,000 which is $396,703 more than last year's budget as calculated by truth-in-taxation. Of that amount, $1,975,481 is attributed to new property added to the tax roll this year.

Staff recommends that the City Council conduct a public hearing and adopt an Ordinance setting the tax rate of $0.485 for the Fiscal Year 2020-2021 budget.

I move that the property tax rate be increased by the adoption of a tax rate of $0.485000, which is effectively a 0.20 percent increase in the tax rate, and adopt Ordinance No. __________ setting that tax rate for the Fiscal Year 2020-2021.