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September 12, 2008

As costs rise, is county sales tax coming?

Commissioners Court would have to create special taxing district if it were to take action

By Rich Flowers News Editor

As Henderson County puts the final brush strokes on its 2009 budget, once again the bulk of the revenue will come from property taxes.

Although nothing will change this year, commissioners have discussed the growing costs of operating the county and the possibility of seeking additional revenue sources.

At a public hearing on the tax rate Tuesday, an area resident, Alan Coker, asked why Henderson County had not adopted a sales tax.

Coker said that while Henderson County is considering a rate of 47.6 cents per $100 valuation, Smith County has a rate of just under 30 cents.

About half of the counties in the state supplement their available resources with a countywide sales tax.

Pct. 4 Commissioner Jerry West said he would not oppose a county sales tax to offset some of the property tax.

“The problem is Athens and Gun Barrel City are at 8.25 percent, which is the maximum the state allows,” West said.

R.J. Silva of the State Comptroller’s Office said the county would have to create a special taxing district excluding the municipalities that are at the maximum and then hold an election in order to collect the tax.

Anderson, Smith and Navarro counties are among the 123 counties that collect a sales tax. Kaufman and Van Zandt counties, like Henderson County, are among the 122 that do not.

Anderson County had a sales tax allocation of $2,447,719.53 in 2007. Navarro County took in $1,774,440.71 and Smith County $15,008,745.23. Even with the sales tax, Navarro County recently approved a property tax rate of 58.28 cents per $100 valuation.

Henderson County Pct. 1 Commissioner Joe Hall said escalating prices of fuel and road material are causing the county to feel the crunch. Alternative sources of funding road repairs are bonds and certificates of obligation.

“I think the sales tax is just another way to raise revenue,” Hall said. “I don’t have an opinion on that one way or another. I do have an opinion on the fact that we have to do one thing or another as a way to raise more revenue for road repair because our budget is not keeping up with the explosion of the cost of material.”

Hall said he does not believe commissioners would favor a substantial increase in the property tax rate in the near future to supplement the road and bridge budget.

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