Attorney General Ken Paxton has notified more than 110 additional Texas cities that they may not raise their property tax rates above the no-new-revenue rate after his office found they failed to meet state financial audit and transparency requirements.
The latest notices expand Paxton’s enforcement effort under Senate Bill 1851, a 2025 law that limits a noncompliant municipality’s authority to raise ad valorem taxes. In May, the attorney general notified more than 130 cities of the same restriction after reviewing records from more than 1,000 municipalities statewide.
“I am continuing to fight to stop cities from unlawfully raising taxes on hardworking Texans,” Paxton said. “My office has been investigating cities across Texas. Now, over 110 new cities have been notified that they must not raise property taxes in violation of state law. I will continue to make sure that taxpayers are protected from unlawful tax increases.”
SB 1851 requires a municipality to have its records and accounts audited annually and to prepare an annual financial statement based on that audit. Cities must also file the financial statement and the auditor’s opinion with the municipal secretary or clerk within 180 days of the end of the city’s fiscal year.
If the attorney general determines that a municipality failed to meet those requirements, the city cannot adopt a property tax rate above its no-new-revenue rate for the tax year beginning after the determination. The restriction remains in effect for subsequent tax years until the city completes the audit and prepares or files the required financial documents.
The no-new-revenue rate is calculated under the Texas Tax Code to generally allow a local government to collect roughly the same amount of property tax revenue from existing property as it did the previous year, excluding revenue from newly added property.
Paxton’s office began the statewide review in April, when it requested documents from more than 1,000 municipalities to assess compliance with SB 1851. That investigation first resulted in notices to more than 130 cities in May. The newest letters were sent to a separate group of municipalities identified as noncompliant.
The more than 110 cities that received the latest violation-determination letters include:
Adrian, Annona, Aransas Pass, Avery, Blackwell, Blossom, Bogata, Bonney, Brazoria, Brownsboro, Charlotte, China, Clifton, Clint, Cottonwood Shores, Cotulla, Cranfills Gap, Cresson, Cumby, Darrouzett, Detroit, Dickens, Dish, Edgecliff Village, Electra, Florence, Friona, Gallatin, Godley, Goldthwaite, Goodlow, Goodrich, Gorman, Grand Saline, Granger, Greenville, Gruver, Hallsburg, Hallsville, Hawk Cove, Hawkins, Hawley, Hereford, Hilshire Village, Hudson, Indian Lake, Ingram, Itasca, Ivanhoe, Jones Creek, Kempner, Kendleton, Kennard, Kingsbury, Kress, La Villa, Ladonia, Linden, Log Cabin, Lone Star, Lyford, Mason, Mathis, Mission, Moody, Morgan, Munday, New London, Newton, Nordheim, Oakwood, Odem, Oglesby, Overton, Palacios, Pasadena, Pattison, Peaster, Penitas, Pine Forest, Point Comfort, Port Isabel, Presidio, Rancho Viejo, Rice, Robinson, Roman Forest, Round Mountain, Round Top, San Leanna, Sanford, Santa Fe, Seadrift, Simonton, Spearman, Springlake, Stockdale, Stockton Bend, Stratford, Strawn, Sunset Valley, Taylor Landing, Throckmorton, Toyah, Trinidad, Tulia, Uhland, Vega, Vinton, Weimar, Winfield, Winnsboro, Woodcreek, Woodsboro, Wortham, and Yorktown.
The Office of the Attorney General said the investigation remains ongoing and that additional cities could receive violation determinations if they are found not to comply with state audit requirements.
