Chapter 4
Focus on County Taxes
Total property values in Texas counties increased by 11.9 percent, from almost 1.4 trillion to over $1.5 trillion ( Table 17). The overall tax levy also increased by 11.9 percent, from $4.7 billion to $5.3 billion.
Single-family residences continue to be the primary source of county property values, accounting for 49 percent of all county value in 2006. This is slightly lower than in 2005 when the share was 49.5 percent. Intangible personal property value fell from $10.4 million in 2005 to $3.9 million in 2006. Oil, gas and minerals saw the highest percent increase in value, from $67.7 billion in 2005 to $93.1 billion in 2006.
TABLE 17: County Appraised Values and Tax Levy Statewide - 2005 and 2006
Property Categories
| Type of Category |
2005 Appraised Value |
Percent of Value |
2006 Appraised Value |
Percent of Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A. Single-family Residential | $ 681,580,007,474 | 49.5% | $ 755,641,437,387 | 49.0% |
| B. Multifamily Residential | 61,483,517,731 | 4.5% | 67,830,188,759 | 4.4% |
| C. Vacant Lots | 30,565,373,934 | 2.2% | 33,889,973,273 | 2.2% |
| D. Rural Real | 59,361,096,799 | 4.3% | 65,031,318,057 | 4.2% |
| F1. Commercial Real | 192,674,392,791 | 14.0% | 215,487,115,483 | 14.0% |
| F2. Industrial Real | 66,260,289,291 | 4.8% | 76,292,207,436 | 5.0% |
| G. Oil, Gas and Minerals | 67,748,530,599 | 4.9% | 93,174,563,278 | 6.0% |
| H. Vehicles | 190,908,857 | 0.0% | 198,937,911 | 0.0% |
| J. Utilities | 39,244,429,967 | 2.9% | 41,375,752,653 | 2.7% |
| L1. Commercial Personal | 97,325,738,545 | 7.1% | 103,187,870,106 | 6.7% |
| L2. Industrial Personal | 64,361,311,744 | 4.7% | 71,625,665,422 | 4.6% |
| M. Other Personal | 5,570,541,083 | 0.4% | 5,654,235,148 | 0.4% |
| N. Intangible Personal | 10,400,046 | 0.0% | 3,998,786 | 0.0% |
| O. Real Property, Inventory | 6,117,073,022 | 0.4% | 7,427,628,390 | 0.5% |
| S. Special Property | 4,090,468,684 | 0.3% | 4,362,492,308 | 0.3% |
| Total Values | $ 1,376,584,080,567 | 100.0% | $1,541,183,384,397 | 100.0% |
Deductions
| Type of Category |
2005 Appraised Value |
Percent of Value |
2006 Appraised Value |
Percent of Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deductions - Farm to Market | $ 26,388,361,709 | 2.0% | $ 30,837,783,489 | 2.0% |
| Deductions - General Fund | 148,047,898,657 | 10.8% | 161,635,348,536 | 10.4% |
County Levy
| Type of Category |
2005 Appraised Value |
Percent of Value |
2006 Appraised Value |
Percent of Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Fund Levy | $ 4,574,792,670 | 95.9% | $ 5,104,367,820 | 95.6% |
| Farm to Market & Flood Control Levy | 134,650,513 | 2.8% | 158,553,058 | 3.0% |
| Road and Bridge Levy | 63,209,025 | 1.3% | 76,692,664 | 1.4% |
| Total County Levy | $4,772,652,208 | 100.0% | $5,339,613,542 | 100.0% |
The percent of deductions represents the percent of total appraised value.
Source: Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, Property Tax Division.
County Deductions
State law requires counties to grant a $3,000 homestead exemption for the farm-to-market roads and flood control tax. In 2006, this exemption totaled $3.2 billion.
The amount of exemption may be greater for homeowners aged 65 or older or disabled. One hundred ninety-three counties granted the local option exemption to over-65 or disabled persons, which accounted for a loss of $48.8 billion in value. For 2006, 112 counties granted local-option percentage homestead exemptions ranging from 1 to 20 percent. This accounted for a loss of $62.9 billion in value.
County Tax Rates
Each county may levy as many as three individual tax rates for funds dedicated to specific purposes as provided by the Texas Constitution. Those three funds include farm-to-market roads and flood control, general fund and a special road and bridge fund.
All 254 Texas counties impose a tax for the general fund. In 2006, that levy totaled $5.1 billion. For the 2006 tax year, 118 counties reported levying the farm-to-market roads and flood control taxes, raising $158.5 million. Sixty-eight counties levied the special road and bridge tax, raising $76.7 million.
Counties Local Self Report Data - 2006
Table 18 summarizes county property values, exemptions, deductions and tax levies statewide. Property Tax Code Section 5.09 requires the Comptroller's annual report to include for each county the total appraised value of property by class, total taxable value and tax rate.
For each county, Table 18 lists total appraised value in 15 property categories, as defined in Chapter 2. Appraised value represents the market value of property on Jan. 1, 2006. Qualified agricultural and timberlands receive productivity appraisal. Taxable value means the appraised value minus partial exemptions and other possible deductions.
Many counties report little or no 2006 value in Category H, Tangible Personal Property: Nonbusiness Vehicles. Personal property not used to produce income, such as personal vehicles, is exempt from taxation unless a school district takes official action to tax it. Category M, Mobile Homes and Other Tangible Personal Property, represents the property value of other personal property such as manufactured homes. Although Category N, Intangible Personal Property, appears in this appendix, there is little or no intangible personal property value to tax.
Category S, Special Inventory, includes certain property inventory of businesses that provide items for sale to the public. State law requires these appraisal districts to appraise inventory items based on businesses' total annual sales in the prior tax year. There are four types of Category S properties: dealer's motor vehicle inventory, dealer's heavy equipment inventory, dealer's vessel and outboard motor inventory and retail manufactured housing inventory.
Total value in each category is the appraised value before exemptions.
TABLE 18: 2006 County Appraised Values by Category, Deductions, Taxable Value and Tax Levy (PDF, 2.58 MB)
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Permanent University Fund Lands
The Permanent University Fund (PUF) provides money for the maintenance and support of the University of Texas, Texas A&M University and most of their branch campuses. The fund owns more than 2 million acres in 22 Texas counties. Under the provisions of Texas Constitution Article VII, Section 16(a), the state pays county taxes on the land.
In 2006, the taxable value of PUF land and minerals was $412,333,938. The state paid $1,806,380 in county taxes on that land. Table 19 provides an alphabetical list, by county, of the value of PUF-owned land.
TABLE 19: University of Texas - Permanent University Fund Land 2006 Values
| County | Acres |
Number of Parcels |
Surface Market Value |
Ag Use Value |
Non Ag Use Value |
Surface Taxable Value |
Royalty Taxable Value |
Total Taxable Value |
Total Tax Paid |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andrews | 293,029.500 | 466 | $ 18,684,420 | $ 1,739,940 | $ 10,790 | $ 1,750,730 | $ 133,992,681 | $ 135,743,411 | $ 532,360.28 |
| Callahan | 0.000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Cooke | 166.500 | 2 | 100,550 | 11,800 | 0 | 11,800 | 57,060 | 68,860 | 335.23 |
| Crane | 65,244.800 | 104 | 2,707,140 | 350,060 | 0 | 350,060 | 84,970,740 | 85,320,800 | 332,239.43 |
| Crockett | 367,198.020 | 592 | 40,393,160 | 5,874,400 | 4,760 | 5,879,160 | 24,986,200 | 30,865,360 | 132,321.99 |
| Culberson | 46,006.658 | 72 | 2,302,930 | 305,780 | 5,040 | 310,820 | 0 | 310,820 | 2,434.05 |
| Dawson | 163.500 | 2 | 11,440 | 1,800 | 0 | 1,800 | 0 | 1,800 | 10.63 |
| Ector | 6,142.280 | 21 | 491,562 | 54,600 | 6,050 | 60,650 | 11,573,797 | 11,634,447 | 48,376.06 |
| El Paso | 11,322.131 | 35 | 1,928,664 | 29,757 | 830,508 | 860,265 | 0 | 860,265 | 3,366.99 |
| Gaines | 2,805.500 | 9 | 244,430 | 42,960 | 0 | 42,960 | 0 | 42,960 | 111.61 |
| Hudspeth | 493,405.000 | 708 | 24,670,250 | 2,284,683 | 0 | 2,284,683 | 0 | 2,284,683 | 14,871.51 |
| Irion | 25,353.800 | 53 | 5,070,670 | 606,030 | 0 | 606,030 | 422,540 | 1,028,570 | 4,668.44 |
| Lamar | 513.300 | 6 | 233,900 | 44,840 | 0 | 44,840 | 0 | 44,840 | 198.59 |
| Loving | 25,881.600 | 49 | 879,870 | 75,140 | 0 | 75,140 | 9,820,250 | 9,895,390 | 37,414.38 |
| Martin | 16,687.200 | 35 | 1,810,510 | 212,430 | 700 | 213,130 | 3,728,250 | 3,941,380 | 13,782.35 |
| Pecos | 188,316.108 | 319 | 12,034,140 | 1,677,700 | 80 | 1,677,780 | 6,826,390 | 8,504,170 | 46,773.67 |
| Reagan | 218,105.850 | 374 | 36,154,200 | 2,911,150 | 1,474,610 | 4,385,760 | 28,871,450 | 33,257,210 | 133,247.40 |
| Schleicher | 61,835.000 | 105 | 18,581,900 | 2,051,430 | 0 | 2,051,430 | 3,649,200 | 5,700,630 | 37,927.54 |
| Terrell | 61,884.000 | 96 | 9,282,600 | 668,352 | 0 | 668,352 | 6,618,100 | 7,286,452 | 20,387.29 |
| Upton | 86,429.500 | 141 | 9,018,400 | 293,800 | 0 | 293,800 | 14,771,700 | 15,065,500 | 46,718.21 |
| Ward | 80,639.356 | 158 | 4,518,050 | 386,000 | 1,975,550 | 2,361,550 | 44,736,810 | 47,098,360 | 308,399.56 |
| Winkler | 49,036.700 | 88 | 1,388,240 | 141,120 | 0 | 141,120 | 13,236,910 | 13,378,030 | 90,435.08 |
| TOTALS | 2,100,166.303 | 3,435 | $190,507,026 | $19,763,772 | $4,308,088 | $24,071,860 | $388,262,078 | $412,333,938 | $1,806,380.29 |
The total tax paid for Andrews, Culberson, Dawson, Martin, Pecos, Reagan and Schleicher counties represents the amount paid after taking an early payment discount offered by the county.
Source: Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, Property Tax Division