Hearings on budgets, tax rates underway

Local municipal and county taxing entities are reaching the end of their budget periods and have scheduled a number of public hearings before finalizing their budgets and tax rates for their new fiscal years. Graham ISD The Graham Independent School District has proposed a rate which is unchanged from their last four year’s actual total tax rate of 1.347 cents per $100 valuation.  A public meeting was held at the GISD Administrative Office Building at 8 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 30 to discuss the school district’s budget and determine a tax rate to be adopted. The district was required to have a budget and tax rate approved and in place before the start of their new fiscal year on Sept. 1. City of Graham The city of Graham, whose new fiscal year begins Oct. 1, has three public hearings scheduled for their proposed budget and tax rate. Those proposed rates are a total tax rate of $0.658123 per $100 valuation, an effective tax rate of 0.639483 per $100 valuation and a rollback rate of $0.696052 per $100 valuation. They were proposed by the City Council during their budget workshop meeting on Aug. 15. Those are: • 6 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 5, in the Council Chambers at the Graham Visitor and Business Center, 608 Elm Street. • 9:30 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 7 at the same location. • 6 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 12 at the same location. Young County Young County Commissioners on Aug. 14 proposed a tax rate increase of 7.87 percent, raised from last year’s rate of .741629 per $100 valuation, to a proposed rate of .799995 per $100 valuation. The county’s new fiscal year begins Oct. 1. The total amount of taxes imposed in the preceding tax year was $6,551,659. With the new rate in the proposed 2017-18 tax year, the county would take in $7,367,429. The second of two required public hearings on the proposed budget and tax rate was held Monday, Aug. 28, in the Young County Courthouse, Room 106. Commissioners are scheduled to vote on the tax rate at 9:30 a.m. Monday, Sept. 11, at the same location.