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new homes will provide approximately $190,000 in property tax revenues. Although a positive picture, this revenue merely serves to replace previous revenues, which were obtained from fees and permits during home construction. 6. For the City's FY2005-6 General Fund Budget, property taxes provided $1.154,960 in revenues • This property tax revenue represents about 32% of total revenues; sales taxes provide an additional 37%; and the remaining 31 % of total revenues are collected from fines, fees and other sources. • Total revenues including property taxes allowed the City to fund basic services such as: Fire Service $171,000 Police Dept $ 946,000 EMS $175,000 911 Dispatch $ 240~000 Parks/Lakes $248,000 Court $ 113,000 General Govt $690,000 Public Works $ 638,000 (excludes $4.2M Inspections $174,000 Post Office $ 52,000 Street Project) • If a tax freeze is imposed and property taaces are not increased, which of these services should be reduced? 7. How manv residents would benefit from the tax freeze? • Freezing City of Windcrest taxes means age 65/disabled residents continue to pay the same amount of dollars they are paying now, even if the City tax rate andlor your home appraised valuation increases. • Windcrest has one of the highest median ages at 56 years of any city in Texas. Windcrest, therefore, will be affected by a tax freeze more than most Texas cities. • 53% of Windcrest households (1091 out of 2054) are occupied by an individual over 65 years old or disabled. Thus, any additional new revenues from a property ta.x rate increase or a home's increase in appraised valuation would provide less than half of what would normally be generated. • Residents who are not 65 years old or disabled are the remaining 47% of households; this group alone would bear the brunt of any needed increase in City property tax revenues. • Will there be an impact on younger families moving into Windcrest? Whv has the Citv's propertv tax rate increased from 22 cents (Year 2001) to 41 cents (Year 2005)? • The 6-cent increase from 2001-2003 was for employee salaries, police vehicles, park improvements, Public Works equipment, new Fire Engine fund, and City Hall repairs. • In 2004, of the 5-cent increase, 4 cents were specifically dedicated to street repairs. • In 2005, the 8-cent increase was exclusively for street repairs for the 7-Year Interest & Sinking Fund and this increase will end after 7 years. ~ Thus since 2001, only 7 cents of the 19-cent tax increase have been used for general services and 12 cents are exclusively for street repairs. 9. Alternative tax relief. As an alternative to the possible tax freeze, the City Council on December 19, 2005 passed Resolution No. 262 "A Resolution in support of the adoption of a residential homestead exemption in the amount of $15,000 for the homesteads of persons who are under a disability or sixty- five (65) years of age or older if the voters at an election decline to adopt a tax limitation as authorized in Section 1-b(h) of the Texas Constitution." 10. Other points to consider: • What changes will the Texas Legislature adopt for "school financing" and what will be its impact on property taxes? Since the NEISD tax bill is approximately 62% of the total tax bill, any savings received could help offset future City property tax increases. • Approval of a property tax freeze by Windcrest residents can not be rescinded except by an amendment to the Texas Constitution; thus a freeze is irreversible no matter what changes might occur within the City of Windcrest. - oDOa2g