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COLUMBUS — Colorado County Commissioners Court will conduct public hearings for its proposed budget and tax rate at the start of Commissioners Court, Monday, Sept. 8, at 9 a.m. in the County Courtroom 106 at the Colorado County Courthouse, 400 Spring St., Columbus.
Tax rate
The court decided to propose the voter- approval tax rate of $0.466417 per $100 of property value for the upcoming fiscal year, a decrease of 0.32% from last year’s rate of $0.464918. The voter-approval tax rate is the highest tax rate a taxing entity can adopt without holding an election.
The current median-valued homestead is $167,474. The 2025-2026 taxes are $778.81 based on this value. The proposed rate for 2026-2027 would result in taxes of $781.12.
The proposed budget will raise more total property taxes than last year’s budget by $1,320.451 or 7.39%, and of that amount $649,336 is tax revenue to be raised from new property added to the tax roll this year.
The county estimates that $19.6 million in property tax value will be assessed, but only $19.2 million will be collected.
Budget
The proposed budget is split between the general fund, roads and bridges, special funds and debt service.
The general fund budget of $23.2 million is estimated to have a $2.25 million deficit. The county planned for a $2.1 million deficit for 2025-2026 but will end the fiscal year with a surplus of $4.0 million instead.
The road and bridge budget of $5.5 million is estimated to have a $786,435 surplus. The county planned for a $493,935 surplus for 20252026 but will end the fiscal year with a surplus of $2.3 million instead.
The special funds budget of $633,691 is estimated to have a $96,072 deficit. The county planned for a $59,663 deficit for 2025-2026 but will end the fiscal year with a surplus of $143,065 instead.
The county’s total new outstanding bond debt for its 2019 bond for the courthouse renovations and annex construction will be $1,735,000 at the start of 2027. The county intends to pay off around $633,691 this fiscal year to reduce the balance to approximately $1,140,000 by Sept. 2027. The county is estimated to pay off the balance in full by Sept. 2031.
The public is able to view the proposed budget at the county clerk’s office at the Colorado County Annex, 318 Spring St., Columbus, or on the county’s website at co.colorado. tx.us/.
