As we head into September, the Town of Flower Mound is nearing the end of one of our most important responsibilities each year – adopting a budget that allows us to provide the services our residents expect while remaining responsible stewards of taxpayer dollars.
The proposed Fiscal Year 2026-2027 budget, which will take effect on Oct. 1 following its adoption, totals approximately $474 million across all Town funds. While that is a large number, it is important to understand that the total budget includes much more than the day-to-day operations. It also includes utilities, debt service, capital projects, special revenue funds, and other dedicated funds, in addition to the General Fund that supports many of the services residents interact with every day.
The proposed budget will maintain the current tax rate of $0.387277 per $100 of assessed home property valuation, which is one of the lowest property tax rates in Denton County. We will still continue providing the 20% homestead exemption, which is the maximum permitted under state law, as well as the $150,000 exemption for residents age 65 and older and those with qualifying disabilities.
Getting to this point requires months of work. Like families and businesses, the Town is dealing with higher costs across the board. The Town’s personnel, equipment, contract, construction, and general operation costs have increased. At the same time, our departments were asked to look at their expenditures, identify efficiencies, and prioritize existing services. As a result, the proposed budget contains very limited expansion of the General Fund services while continuing to support the core services our residents depend on.
But our local budget does not exist in a vacuum.
Increasingly, decisions made by the Texas legislature directly affect the financial tools available to cities like Flower Mound and our neighbors. Under current state law, municipalities are generally limited in how much property tax revenue can be used for maintenance and operations without triggering voter approval. During the 2025 legislative sessions, lawmakers considered proposals that would have tightened those limits even further, including reducing the voter approval threshold from 3.5% to 2.5%.
That may sound like a small difference, but for our community, the impact can be significant. The cost of providing municipal services does not necessarily increase at the same rate as the revenue available to pay for them. Police and Fire salaries, vehicles and equipment, road construction, technology, insurance, utilities and contracts are all affected by inflation and market conditions. A state-imposed revenue limit does not make those costs disappear.
When revenues cannot keep pace with the cost of maintaining services, local governments ultimately have fewer choices. We can delay projects, reduce services or delay them, leave positions unfilled, draw from reserve funds when appropriate, or ask voters to approve additional revenue. None of those decisions should be taken lightly.
This is about LOCAL CONTROL.
I believe the residents who live in a community—and the local officials they elect—should retain a voice in determining how their community addresses its needs and priorities.
Property taxes are only part of the equation. In recent legislative sessions, lawmakers have considered measures affecting municipal authority over land use, development, housing, infrastructure and other issues traditionally addressed at the local level. Some proposals may have merit and deserve thoughtful discussion. Others can create significant consequences to communities.
The next legislative session of the Texas Legislature begins in January 2027, but the work leading up to it is already underway. Priorities are being set and conversations in Austin that are taking place before bills are filed are just as important as the votes that eventually occur at the Capital. Staff, Council, and myself are preparing to attend the interim meetings prior to the legislative sessions to leverage some influence on the bills that are being considered. I encourage Flower Mound residents to become involved as well.
As mayor, one of my responsibilities is to advocate and communicate the potential impact of legislation on our residents. But our community’s voice is much stronger when elected officials and residents speak together. Flower Mound should have a strong voice in decisions that affect our future – and that voice begins with all of us.
