HENDERSON COUNTY–Henderson County Commissioners’ Court voted July 23 to approve property tax collection contracts between Henderson County and several taxing authorities across the county.
“The county is required to assist entities in their tax collection efforts,” County Judge Wade McKinney said. The judge remarked that in years past, school districts had their own tax offices. “Over the years, that responsibility has been transferred to the county. That’s why this list continues to grow and grow and grow. We do this every year, that’s why our tax statement, it says ‘Henderson County’ across the top, we get blamed for many of the other taxes that are levied, even though ours is a small portion.”
Those entities under contract include the Athens, Brownsboro, Cross Roads, Eustace, Frankston, LaPoynor, Malakoff, Murchison and Trinidad independent school districts; the cities of Athens, Brownsboro, Caney City, Chandler, Enchanted Oaks, Eustace, Frankston, Log Cabin, Malakoff, Payne Springs, Seven Points, Star Harbor, Tool and Trinidad; as well as the Athens Municipal Water Authority, Henderson County Levee District 3, Lake View Management and Development District, Trinity Valley Community College and Emergency Services Districts (ESDs) 1-8 and 10-12.
The City of Gun Barrel doesn’t have an ad valorem tax, remarked the county tax office’s chief deputy, Barbara Lovelady.
In other business, the court:
• Approved accepting the financial statement and filing affidavit report from ESD 7.
• Approved minutes from regular commissioners’ court meetings held July 2 and 9.
• Approved payroll distributions and June accounts cash sheets.
• Approved a right-of-way permit for Charter Spectrum to install fiber-optic cable and associated utilities along County Roads 3302, 3310 and 3407, located in Precinct 3.
• Approved budget amendments.
• Approved paying fiscal year 2024 bills of $439,357.30.
• Approved replatting a 40-acre tract known as the Reed Addition that had already been split up and had all landowners sign off on legalities afterward (according to Precinct 2 Commissioner Scott Tuley) and which includes a frontage variance from the county’s subdivision regulations.
• Approved a final replat in the Forest Grove subdivision splitting a two-acre tract into two separate parcels, located in Precinct 3.
• Approved proposals for bid requests for the American Rescue Plan Act federally funded renovation of the existing Senior Citizens Building at the County Regional Fair Park in Athens.
• Discussed without action not receiving bids in a rebid for road materials including Portland cement, cement kiln dust (CKD) and riprap iron ore.