The city staff of Fort Worth is proposing a half-cent increase in the property tax rate for Fiscal Year 2025 to maintain the quality and availability of services and programs.
The property tax rate increase would mark the first such rise in nearly three decades.
“Since 1995, there have been some long stretches without tax rate cuts, but no tax rate increases,” a city spokesperson wrote in an email to NBC 5.
Fort Worth city manager David Cooke mentioned that the typical homeowner in Fort Worth would experience an increase of $60 in their annual property tax bill. This estimate is based on a property valued at $285,000 in fiscal year 2024, projected to rise to $294,399 in fiscal year 2025 while retaining a 20% homestead exemption.
Cooke said that the city’s budget is expanding at a slower pace compared to previous years.
“This year’s general fund growth is half of what it was last year,” Cooke said during a budget work session with city council members on Tuesday.
He said they’re seeing slower growth in property values than in past years and estimated that they’d have $4 billion more in the budget.
“A $4 billion drop in net taxable assessed value has an impact on resulting tax rates,” Cooke said on Tuesday.
Cooke said most of the tax rate increase would go toward street maintenance. According to the city, $3.5 million will go toward the city’s new ambulance service.
Cooke said they looked at ways to make budget cuts, like getting rid of some vacant positions instead of trying to fill them.
“If we didn’t think those positions were going to be filled, some of them were eliminated as part of this year’s budget,” he said on Tuesday.
Mayor Pro-Tem Gyna Bivens expressed her desire to enhance efficiency across various departments, including development services.
District 10 City Councilmember Alan Blaylock, who has advocated for lower property taxes in the past, said he’s still committed to lowering taxes.
“Affordability is a pressing concern, and the City of Fort Worth should not add to the financial burden on families. As we navigate the budget discussions, I will continue to champion lower taxes while also advocating for enhanced public safety and infrastructure. As I have done in the past two years, I will vote in line with these priorities,” he wrote in an email to NBC 5.
Darfetta Muhammad said she worries about a tax rate increase’s impact on her 81-year-old mother.
“That extra $60 or $50 does play a part on a person that’s on a fixed income,” she said.
She said with rising property values, they already find themselves with a larger property tax bill and have started cutting costs elsewhere, like fewer visits to one of their favorite local joints, Paris Coffee Shop.
“She used to be able to come anytime. Now, it’s like, ‘Let me see if I can afford to come this time,’” Muhammad said.
She and her mother understand that the extra revenue will go toward city services, but at the same time, she said some services that her mother relies on have been cut, like a bus line being removed from in front of her home.
The Muhammads said they look forward to attending community meetings about the issue.
According to Cooke’s presentation, the following meetings have been scheduled:
- Wednesday, Aug. 21, 6 p.m., Southwest Community Center
- Thursday, Aug. 22, 6 p.m., Eagle Mountain Saginaw Admin. Building
- Monday, Aug. 26, 6 p.m., Highland Hills Community Center
- Tuesday, Aug. 27, 6 p.m., Northside Community Center
- Wednesday, Aug. 28, 6 p.m., Chisolm Trail Community Center
- Thursday, Aug. 29, 6 p.m., Basswood Elementary School
- Wednesday, Sept. 4, 6 p.m., Handley/Meadowbrook Community Center
- Thursday, Sept. 5, 6 p.m., Como Community Center
- Saturday, Sept. 7, 11 a.m., Riverside Community Center
- Monday, Sept. 9, 6 p.m., Blue Haze Elementary School
- Wednesday, Sept. 11, 6 p.m., Truett Wilson Middle School
- Thursday, Sept. 12, 6 p.m., virtual meeting
City council members will hold more budget work sessions that are also open to the public on Aug. 27, Sept. 5, and Sept. 6.
There will be a public hearing on the budget on Sept. 10 and a public hearing on the tax rate on Sept. 17. The council will vote on whether to adopt the tax rate on Sept. 17.