Hello, Flower Mound! It’s hard to believe that we’re already in September, which is always a busy month for the Town as we finalize the 2023-2024 budget that goes into effect on Oct. 1.
The proposed budget – which will be voted on and approved this month – currently totals $208,146,523. And I’m very excited to announce that the proposed, balanced budget lowers the Town’s property tax rate from $0.4050 – which was the lowest in the Town’s history – to $0.3873. A new low!
Additionally, Council has already voted to increase the homestead exemption from 10 percent to 12.5 percent in the new fiscal year. On top of that, Council increased the over-65/disabled homestead tax exemption to $150,000 (from $100,000) of appraised value. So what does all this mean? A homestead exemption lowers the property value used to calculate property taxes owed. It has been a priority of Town Council’s for many years to increase homestead exemptions, essentially lowering taxes. 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 2022 to again double the exemption to 10 percent, and of course, in June of this year, voted to raise it to 12.5 percent 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 $1,525 to the Town in 2024 property taxes, about $115 less than what they paid in 2023. 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 2023 tax year, visit www.flower-mound.com/mytaxdollars, select the My Tax Dollars calculator, and enter your estimated home value.
Priorities for the 2023-24 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, Lakeside Parkway capacity improvements and panel replacements; Bordeaux Way reconstruction; Timber Valley Drive and Fairfield Lane reconstruction; and street light improvements. Our parks capital projects include a playground replacement at Jake’s Hilltop Park; improvements at Bakersfield Park, Spring Lake Park, and Spring Meadow Park; addition of an electronic reader board sign at Gerault Park; and an expansion and renovation study for the Community Activity Center; among others. The proposed budget also includes several water, wastewater, and stormwater projects.
In Fiscal Year 2023, the Town conducted a comprehensive compensation and classification study to review internal equity (pay relationships between positions) and external competitiveness (pay relationships with labor market competitors). I’m proud that we were able to implement the results of the study in July 2023, but we have to stay on top of the market and continue to adjust salaries when needed. The Town strives to maintain salary ranges at or above the 65th percentile when compared to our benchmark cities to ensure we are retaining our skilled and talented workforce and attracting top talent. The proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year continues the work we started in 2023 by providing a three percent merit or step increase for all eligible employees.
Your Town Council will hold a public hearing on the tax rate on Monday, Sept. 18, at which time you are invited to speak about the budget. 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!
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