From 2019 to 2022, Shackelford County realized an average property tax decrease, thanks to a massive cut in the average taxable value at Moran ISD.
That counts as a win in a state where property taxes continue to eat up homeowners’ resources.
Texas Scorecard has been conducting a comprehensive review of property taxation across the state, examining tax rates and average valuations to determine how bad things have gotten and uncover any bright spots.
Over the past three years, taxing entities in Shackelford County—located approximately 35 miles northeast of Abilene—have a mixed record for raising, maintaining, or lowering taxes on citizens, like other counties.
All but two of the taxing entities, Shackelford County and the County Hospital, lowered their tax rates between 2019 and 2022. Both cities in the county—Albany and Moran—lowered their rates and kept tax levels in check.
Albany dropped its rate from 0.6866 in 2019 to 0.6104 in 2022. The reduction was nearly enough to outpace a rise in average taxable values. Taxpayers pay an average of $8 more per year.
Moran saw an even steeper reduction, cutting its rate from 0.7451 in 2019 to 0.5875 in 2022. The average tax bill also fell, indicating a direct effort to reduce taxpayers’ burdens.
The school district, Moran ISD, also lowered its rate from 0.9700 in 2019 to 0.8956 in 2021—a rate which held steady through 2022. Despite a lack of further rate changes, the average taxable value was halved.
Even if valuations had remained the same across the observed years, the tax rate would have been flat.
Although Albany ISD’s rate decreased slightly from 0.9700 in 2019 to 0.9441 in 2022, average tax bills rose due to increased taxable values. The district saw a modest 2.93 percent tax hike over three years.
In addition to having a low tax record, no bonds have been floated in the past five years, and the county’s taxing entities have opted not to hire taxpayer-funded lobbyists.
From now until tax day in 2025, Texas Scorecard will report on counties across the state, highlighting local officials working to lighten, or at the very least not increase, property taxpayers’ burdens.
Conversely, public servants who have added to taxpayers’ already burdensome loads will also be scrutinized.
