Hello, Flower Mound! It’s hard to believe that we’re already in September and only have four more months until 2023. September is always a busy month for the Town, as we finalize the budget for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1.
The proposed budget – which will be voted on and approved this month – currently totals $194,245,707. The proposed, balanced budget also currently holds the property tax rate at $0.4050 per $100 assessed valuation, which is the lowest property tax rate in the Town’s history.
Additionally, Council has already voted to double the homestead exemption from 5 percent to 10 percent in the new fiscal year. A homestead exemption lowers the property value used to calculate property taxes owed. In 2018, Flower Mound passed its first homestead exemption at 2.5 percent, and in 2021, Town Council increased the exemption to 5 percent. Council voted in June 2022 to again double the exemption to help give Flower Mound property owners additional relief. This means after the increased homestead exemption, the owner of a $450,000 home in Flower Mound will pay approximately $1,640 to the Town in 2022 property taxes, about $91 less than what they paid in 2021. Those taxes are used for a variety of quality services, including police, fire, streets, utilities, parks and recreation, and much more. To find your estimated tax payment for the 2022 tax year, visit www.flower-mound.com/mytaxdollars, select the My Tax Dollars calculator, and enter your estimated home value.
Priorities for the 2022-2023 fiscal year focus on maintaining the Town’s financial position, continuing infrastructure maintenance and capital improvements, providing quality municipal facilities and parks, funding a competitive and equitable compensation plan for employees, and planning for the Town’s long-term future.
The proposed budget includes funding for several street capital projects – including, but not limited to, adaptive traffic signal implementation along the Morriss corridor; the widening of Aberdeen Drive; the construction of the Denton Creek Boulevard Bridge over Graham Branch; improvements to Karnes Road; the design of Lakeside Parkway capacity improvements; the reconstruction of Hillside Lane; and panel replacements along Timber Creek Road.
Our parks capital projects include playground replacements at Cortadera, Wilkerson, and Possum Parks; Bakersfield Park lighting improvements; the addition of a pavilion and other amenities at Dixon Park; and the addition of a restroom at Glenwick Park; among others. The proposed budget also includes several water, wastewater, and stormwater projects.
I’m proud that the proposed budget includes funding for a Comprehensive Compensation and Classification Study to review internal equity (pay relationships between positions) and external competitiveness (pay relationships with labor market competitors). As I’m sure you all know, the labor shortage has touched just about every industry and local government is certainly no exception. To ensure we are retaining our skilled and talented workforce and attracting top talent, we felt it was important to complete a compensation study.
I am so proud of our employees, who have worked through challenging conditions over the past two years, have been flexible throughout it all, and have picked up more work as vacancies in their departments popped up. So, as we await the completion of the compensation study, the proposed budget also includes a minimum two percent market increase that varies by position and a three percent merit/step increase for employees.
If you know anyone looking for a job with a great team and awesome work environment, send them to www.flower-mound.com/jobs! And if you know anyone specifically interested in Public Works, now is the time to apply. We recently introduced a $1,500 sign-on bonus for several different positions within our Public Works Department.
Your Town Council will hold a public hearing on the tax rate on Monday, Sept. 19, at which time you are invited to speak. We will also vote on the proposed budget and adopt the tax rate at that meeting. To learn more about the proposed budget, please visit www.flower-mound.com/budget.
Thanks for reading. I’ll see you back here in October. In the meantime, I hope to catch you at some Marauders, Jaguars, and Eagles football games!
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