Whitesboro citizens packed a public hearing Friday night and convinced officials in the small North Texas city to reverse course on raising property taxes by as much as 30 percent without voters’ approval.
After listening to public comments during a three-and-a-half-hour meeting, Whitesboro City Council members voted unanimously to adopt the no-new-revenue tax rate and make cuts needed to balance the budget at the new rate.
All the commenters spoke against raising taxes, especially without voters having a say.
“The citizens of this town are struggling. We’re tightening our belts,” Whitesboro resident Rebecca Meals told the mayor and aldermen. “When times are hard, you must adjust your budget.”
Meals and others questioned some of the proposed spending that was driving the tax hike, including a pickleball court and park bathrooms costing $320,000.
“Are the toilets made of gold?” asked Meals.
Whitesboro, a city in Grayson County with a population of about 4,200, originally proposed a maximum tax rate of $0.51—a 30 percent increase over the 2023 rate that would have cost the average homeowner an additional $337 a year.
The city planned to approve the huge tax increase without a public vote, using a carve-out in the 2019 property tax reform law that exempts municipalities with fewer than 30,000 residents from a 3.5 percent voter-approval cap imposed on larger cities.
Following an earlier tax rate discussion, city officials lowered their proposed rate to the voter-approval rate of $0.499—still a 25 percent increase.
At the beginning of Friday night’s meeting, the city administrator proposed yet another tax rate of $0.44—a 10 percent increase.
While citizens in the standing-room-only crowd were happy to see city officials cut several “wish list” items from the budget, they balked at officials voting on a budget the public had not seen.
Citizens also continued to advocate for no tax increase.
“You haven’t done your job as leaders,” said former Whitesboro alderman Colby Meals, criticizing several aspects of the budget, tax rate, and the city’s decision to hold the final public hearing and vote just before the September 30 approval deadline.
He pointed out that removing expenses like remodeling city hall would make a tax increase unnecessary.
“This budget needs serious work,” Meals said. “But you’re out of time and you have no choice.”
“Increasing property taxes should not be the first choice,” Meals added, noting that low-income non-homeowners are hardest hit by the increases.
He suggested that dissolving the city’s economic development corporation and returning the money to the taxpayers would “more than cover” the “ridiculous tax increase.”
Shelley Luther, the Republican candidate for Texas House District 62, which includes all of Grayson County, spoke to Whitesboro council members during the meeting.
Luther cautioned that if small cities abuse the tax increase exception intended for emergency purchases, lawmakers will remove it.
She urged the city officials to listen to their constituents and adopt the no-new-revenue rate.
“We can do that,” responded Mayor David Blaylock.
Aldermen Ronnie Fielder, Stacey Miles, Mike Pack, and Carla Woolsey voted in favor of the NNR rate, making the vote unanimous. Alderman Su Welch was absent, and the mayor only votes to break a tie.
The vote also directed City Administrator Julie Arrington to revise the budget, which was approved by law just before the tax rate vote, so it balances based on the no-new-revenue rate.
Council members received a round of applause following their vote.
“This was such a great win for Whitesboro citizens and ALL of Grayson County,” said Joy Roberts, a local grassroots activist with Grayson County Conservatives.
“Encouraging when the people say no to new taxes and win!” her husband Brian Roberts added. “It shouldn’t be this hard. It was a packed house tonight in Whitesboro. The good people came out, made their appeals, and the city officials changed course.”
City officials noted that prior budget hearings were not well attended and encouraged more citizens to attend future meetings and make their voices heard.
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