Susan Combs

Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

Your Money and The Taxing Facts

A Texas, Its Your Money report on who is taxing you and why.

Texans RighT To Know At the Comptrollers office, we have long championed the importance of giving Texans easier access to the information they need to make informed decisions and hold their government accountable. This is the first in a series of reports that will help Texas taxpayers know more about all the ways in which their wallets are affected. Taxpayers deserve to know how much they are paying, whom they are paying and how their tax dollars are being spent. However, because so many different local entities have taxing authority, finding all of that information can be challenging. And the increase of special purpose taxing districts in recent years has only made it more difficult. The Comptrollers office has created a new Web tool to bring greater transparency to local taxation. See whos collecting property taxes and sales taxes in your county, along with the value of those local taxes. We encourage you to visit www.TexasItsYour Money.org for a detailed look at your communitys taxing entities, and to read this report for valuable context on local tax trends.

s the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, I am reminded every day of the responsibilities this office has to every Texas taxpayer. Its right there in the name of the office the Comptroller of Public Accounts is accountable to the public for the state funds this office manages and invests. As the states tax collector, chief accountant, chief revenue estimator, purchaser and treasurer, we take our duties very seriously, with every Texan and every Texans rights in mind. SUSAN COMBS

EVERY TEXANS RIGHTS

You have a RighT to know who is taxing you and for what purpose.
Your hard-earned dollars deserve the light of day, down to the penny.

You have a RighT to know exactly how and where state and local governments spend your money.
Through our Web resources such as Where the Money Goes, weve opened the states books for public inspection, and were encouraging all other levels of Texas government to make transparency their highest priority as well, placing annual budgets, annual financial reports and virtual check registers online.

You have a RighT to expect that government obligations are transparently funded, and that government finances are managed soundly and prudently.
Government should provide its citizens with an honest assessment of the financial challenges it faces.

You have a RighT to know about the debt local officials issue in your name.
All ballots proposing new debt should provide voters with a full disclosure of existing debt.

Follow the Comptrollers

Texas, Its Your Money series of reports at www.TexasItsYourMoney.org

You have a RighT and a ResponsibiliTY to be aware of and engaged in the affairs of your government. Our democracy depends on it.
In short, you need to know, and should be in the know.

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YOU R M O N E Y A N D TH E TA X I N G FAC T S

TEXANS PAY MORE TAXES EVERY YEAR TO LOCAL ENTITIES

Thousands of cities, counties, special purpose districts, school districts and transit authorities in Texas levy property tax or sales tax. Revenues from these taxes are used to fund law enforcement, fire departments, hospitals, schools, libraries, parks, roads, utilities, economic development and many CUMULATIVE LOCAL PROPERTY other locally operated public services. TAX GROWTH Although Texas has no state property tax, Texas 200% law authorizes local governments to assess and collect property taxes. The local property tax is the largest PROPERTY TAX single funding source for community services. The Texas Constitution and other state laws provide caps on local property tax rates. In the case of school districts, rates for maintenance and COMBINED POPULATION operations and debt service are separately capped. AND INFLATION GROWTH* 0% Although there are some exceptions, most districts 2010 1992 must adopt a maintenance and operations rate not exceeding $1.17 per $100 property value and a debt CUMULATIVE LOCAL SALES service rate not exceeding $0.50 per $100. TAX GROWTH The constitutional property tax rate cap for 200% Texas cities, towns and counties is $0.80 per $100 property value. These taxes generate revenue for SALES TAX general, permanent improvement, road and bridge, and jury funds. The Constitution also permits the Legislature to authorize an additional property tax for maintenance of public roads by a county, not to COMBINED POPULATION AND INFLATION GROWTH* exceed $0.15 per $100. The rate caps vary for Texas 0% special purpose districts with property tax authority. 1993 2011 Texas truth-in-taxation laws can limit year-to-year *Property taxes grew by 188 percent from 1992 to 2010, while local sales taxes increased by almost 170 percent. tax rate increases. Compare that to slightly more than 120 percent growth in Any entity wanting to set a tax rate above the combined population and inflation during those years. rollback rate (which caps an increase in revenue) could face an election if a sufficient number of taxpayers choose to protest it. In addition, school districts must hold elections to impose tax rates that exceed rollback rates. Taxes are further limited for property owners who qualify for homestead, over-65 and military-related exemptions. Local taxing entities may impose sales and use tax up to 2 percent. The state sales and use tax rate is 6.25 percent, for a total maximum combined rate of 8.25 percent. Sales and use tax, commonly referred to as sales tax, is primarily collected by businesses and submitted to the Comptrollers office, and the local portion is then remitted to local governments.

TYPES OF LOCAL TAXING ENTITIES

CITIES Incorporated cities in Texas, including municipalities, towns and villages, may impose a property tax and a sales and use tax. COUNTIES Texas counties may impose a property tax. To impose a sales and use tax, the county property tax rate must be reduced. SCHOOL DISTRICTS Every public school district in Texas levies a property tax on taxable property within its boundaries to generate the locally funded portion of its operating revenue and debt service. TRANSIT AUTHORITIES Transit authorities in Texas may impose a sales and use tax. Transit authorities include jurisdictions such as metropolitan transit authorities, city transit departments, county transit authorities and advanced transportation districts. SPECIAL PURPOSE DISTRICTS Special purpose districts are taxing entities created to generate revenue for specific reasons, including utilities, crime control, emergency services or libraries. Depending on the purpose, these districts may impose a property tax and/or a sales and use tax. (There are additional user fee-funded special purpose districts with no taxing authority that are not included in this report.) A comprehensive explanation of special purpose districts, including tables that show establishing authority, allowable purposes and financing mechanism, was published by the Texas Senate Research Center in 2008. Download a PDF of the 48-page Invisible Government: Special Purpose Districts in Texas from the Senate Research Center website at
www.senate.state.tx.us/src/Pub. htm#spotlight.

Know who You aRe paYing

To help Texans get a closer look at the local taxing entities in their area, and the revenues collected by them, the Comptrollers office has expanded the Texas Transparency website to include a new section on local taxation. Available at TexasTransparency.org/yourmoney/localtax/, this new Web resource includes interactive maps that provide a close-up view of the entities that assess property tax and collect sales tax in each Texas county. In addition to map resources, the new online transparency section includes links to existing Comptroller tools and resources with detailed information on property and sales taxes, including sales tax rates by street address. This report supplements the online transparency section as a reference highlighting the patterns in local government taxation.

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S U S A N C O M B S : TE X AS COMP TROLLER OF PUBLIC ACCOU N TS

PROPERTY TAXES GROW FASTER THAN INFLATION, POPULATION

MosT CoMMon pRopeRTY Tax speCial puRpose disTRiCTs bY T Ype (2010)*
Municipal Utility District Emergency Services District Hospital District Water Control & Improvement District Water District College District
637

ccess to information on local taxing entities and tax revenues can help voters make informed decisions when a local government proposes adding a tax, increasing a tax rate or issuing debt that taxpayers will be responsible for repaying.

Many local governments collect both property tax and sales tax, while others levy one or the other. Local taxing entities assess and collect property tax based on rates and property values that change each calendar year.

Property tax levies are used to fund both the day-to-day operational costs of government and service debt. In this report, the number of property taxing entities and the value of property tax assessments are shown by calendar year.

271 129

MORE LOCAL GOVERNMENTS LEVY PROPERTY TAXES EVERY YEAR*

SPECIAL PURPOSE DISTRICT CITY COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT

109 64 64

1992 Total 3,426

2001 Total 3,604

2010 Total 4,017

971 1,158 1,043 254 1,288

1,027 254 1,035 1,675

1,064 254 1,024

TO THE POINT

Source: Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

As can be seen in the pie charts, the number of Texas cities, counties and school districts that levy
property tax has changed little in the past two decades. In contrast, the number of special purpose districts that levy property tax has increased by more than 45 percent since 1992. The number of school districts has fallen as districts have been consolidated.

There were more

than 500 special purpose districts created between 1992 and 2010, accounting for the vast majority of new property taxing entities.

GROWTH OF SPECIAL PURPOSE DISTRICTS* 1,675 1,288

Special purpose districts have accounted for 87 percent of the growth in local entities levying property tax since 1992, comprising 35.7 percent of these entities in 2001 and 41.7 percent in 2010.

1,158

1992

2 001

2 010

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YOU R M O N E Y A N D TH E TA X I N G FAC T S

*Data is reported to the Comptrollers office by local appraisal districts. Source: Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

CUMULATIVE PERCENTAGE GROWTH IN LOCAL PROPERTY TAX LEVIES

300%
SPECIAL PURPOSE DISTRICT

250

263% 229% 192% 164% 122%

COUNTY CITY

200

SCHOOL DISTRICT COMBINED POPULATION AND INFLATION GROWTH* INF LATION (U.S.) POPULATION (TEXAS)

150

100

50

55% 42%

*Property taxes grew from 1992 to 2010 much more rapidly than the 122 percent growth in combined population and inflation during those calendar years. Source: Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

0
1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

whaT TRiggeRs Tax levY gRowTh?

Higher property values and the increased

number of entities particularly special purpose districts collecting tax are contributing factors to the significant growth in local property tax levies. The growth of school district levies slowed in 2006, when the Texas Legislature increased state funding and lowered the maximum local tax rate to reduce the tax burden on property owners. The increase in city and county levies from 1992 to 2010 reflects a statewide increase in the number

and value of properties in Texas. However, the addition of more than 500 special purpose districts, combined with the increase in Texas property values, contributed to that sector leading others in the growth of property tax levies. Although SPDs are not found in every Texas county, these districts typically levy taxes on valuable development property to pay for infrastructure or to fund services in unincorporated or developing areas. Municipal utility districts (MUDs), for example, may exist in areas where city services are not available.

PROPERTY OWNERS HAVE A RIGHT TO TRANSPARENT TAX BILLS

property taxes, which fund much of the local government operations and debt service in Texas. At a minimum, every property owner pays county and school district taxes. In most cases, a city or special purpose district such as utility, water, emergency services, community college and hospital districts levies property taxes, too.

Property ownership in Texas means paying

By state law, tax assessor/collectors send property tax bills to every property owner on or shortly after Oct. 1, which helps maintain transparency for local taxpayers. Although a county tax assessor/collector may send one bill that includes every tax rate levy, each entity can operate its own tax office and taxpayers may have to combine more than one statement to understand their total tax liability.

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S U S A N C O M B S : TE X AS COMP TROLLER OF PUBLIC ACCOU N TS

how MuCh Tax is assessed? Texas local property tax is levied on taxable real and personal property, including land, residences, commercial real estate, business personal property, interests in producing minerals, industrial complexes and other property defined in law. The population of Texas counties varies dramatically, with some counties having millions of residents and others having several hundred or, in the case of Loving County, fewer than 100. In sparsely populated counties, the value of nonresidential taxable property (such as the value of producing oil and gas interests and pipelines) may vastly exceed the value of residential property; thus, property tax levies per capita are disproportionately higher in sparsely populated counties than in counties with a more typical residential/non-residential balance of taxable property.

PER CAPITA LOCAL PROPERTY TAX LEVIES BY COUNTY

INTERACT ONLINE>> Go to Texas

Transparency.org/ yourmoney/ localtax/levies.php

for interactive versions of these maps where you can click to see more details on the property tax levies in each county.

$0-$999 $1,000-$1,999 $2,000-$3,999 $4,000-$11,999 $12,000 and above

Source: Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

LOCAL PROPERTY TAX LEVIES 2010

Total = $40.28 Billion

The Texas population has grown by more than 40 percent since 1992. In contrast, local property tax levies jumped by 188 percent between calendar years 1992 and 2010, to $40.28 billion.

COUNTY

$6.57B $21.56B

SCHOOL DISTRICT SPECIAL PURPOSE DISTRICT CITY

$6.76B $5.39B

(Amounts in Billions)
Numbers may not sum due to rounding.

Source: Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

Who Levies the tax? Property taxes are based on the rate of taxation set by local entities in Texas and assessed on property according to values set by county appraisal districts. These values and tax rates are reported to the Comptrollers Property Tax Assistance Division; however, actual property tax collections by local entities are not reported to the Comptroller. The maps in this report provide a general guide to the total number of local property taxing entities in each county and the per capita property tax levy in 2010. Generally speaking, the more densely populated Texas counties have the most taxing entities.

NUMBER OF LOCAL PROPERTY TAX ENTITIES BY COUNTY

INTERACT ONLINE>> Go to Texas
Transparency.org/ yourmoney/localtax/ entities.php

for interactive versions of these maps where you can click to see more details on the types of taxing entities in each county.

TO THE POINT
1-15 16-30 31-60 61-100

Local property taxing entities have increased in number over time to fund infrastructure and taxpayer services. The biggest increase in property taxing entities in the past two decades has been

101 and above

NOTE: Because of boundary variations, all taxing entities in a county may not apply to each taxpayer. Contact your local appraisal district or tax assessor/collector for your applicable property taxing entities. Find a directory in the local Property Tax section of www.window.state.tx.us/ taxinfo/proptax/contact.html. Source: Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

special purpose districts.

There are more than 40 different types of special purpose districts in Texas, including but not limited to emergency services, hospital, library and utility districts.

PROPERTY TAX TRUTH-IN-TAXATION www.window.state.tx.us/taxinfo/ proptax/tnt/

More than 4,000 separate taxing jurisdictions impose property tax to fund their operations. Learn more about the rules that exist for local taxing entities authorized to assess property tax in the Comptrollers Truth-in-Taxation guides.

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S U S A N C O M B S : TE X AS COMP TROLLER OF PUBLIC ACCOU N TS

TO THE POINT

SALES TAX COLLECTIONS ARE RISING FASTER THAN INFLATION

tax, some local taxing entities impose sales and use tax on top of the states 6.25 percent tax. Local sales tax is limited to 2 percent for all entities combined. Municipalities and counties levying sales tax may use the revenue for general operations thus reducing their

In addition to levying property

Starting in 1991,
5 districts began to levy sales taxes. By 2011, there were 193 SPDs levying sales taxes.

dependence on property taxes, or for economic development purposes subject to certain restrictions. Excess municipal sales taxes also may be applied to debt service. Depending on the type of entity, special purpose district sales tax collections may be used for operations or debt service.

The sales tax entities map (page 11) shows the number of entities at the end of calendar 2011; the sales tax revenues shows the values of revenues distributed to local entities by the Comptrollers office during fiscal 2011, the 12-month period ending Aug. 31, 2011.

LOCAL GOVERNMENTS THAT LEVY SALES TAX

CITY COUNTY SPECIAL PURPOSE DISTRICT TRANSIT

MosT CoMMon sales Tax speCial puRpose disTRiCTs bY T Ype

Crime Control District Emergency Services District Municipal Development District Library District Improvement District 52

FISCAL 1993 Total 1,197

FISCAL 2002 Total 1,325

FISCAL 2011 Total 1,470

123 1,071 109 9 8 1,117 121 79 8 1,144 193 10

52

20 15 12
Source: Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

The number of Texas cities, counties and transit

authorities that levy sales tax has not increased much in the past two decades. In contrast, special purpose districts that levy sales tax have increased by more than 1,900 percent since 1993.

Special purpose districts have accounted for 67 percent of the growth in local entities levying sales tax since 1993, comprising 6 percent of these entities in 2002 and 13.1 percent in 2011.

who geTs YouR sales Tax?

Most receipts just note total sales tax, but if the local sales taxes were broken out by entity to show taxpayers where their money is going, it could look like this:
8

CHAMBERS CLOTHING INC.

TEXAS 15344 LARIAT WAY, SAN ANGELO, $15.79 Shirt $125.99 Boots $34.50 Jeans

WESTERN CLOTHING INC.

2144 HARRIS STREET, BAYTOWN, TEXAS Collared shirts Pants Socks $29.30 $41.99 $4.50

Subtotal SALES TAX

Bayt Crime Ctrl Bayt Fire/EMS Baytown Mun Dev City of Baytown State 0.125% 0.125% 0.50% 1.25% 6.25%

$75.79
$0.09 $0.09 $0.38 $0.95

ASHION 441 M AI S INC. N STREET , LARED O, TEX A T-shirts S Dress $29.30 Shoes $41.99 $24.60 Subtota l SALES Laredo City Tran sit Webb Co unty City of Laredo State Total ta x TAX
0.25% 0.50% 1.25% 6.25%

E LE G AN

TF

Subtotal SALES TAX

Tom Green County City of San Angelo State 0.50% 1.50% 6.25%

$176.28
$0.88 $2.64 $11.02

$95.89
$0.24 $0.48 $1.20 $5.99

Total tax

8.25% $14.54

$4.74

YOU PAY $190.82

Total tax

8.25%

$6.25

YOU PAY $82.04

25% $7. 91 YOU PAY $103.80

8.

YOU R M O N E Y A N D TH E TA X I N G FAC T S

NOTE: These are fictitious receipts to demonstrate how local sales tax would be allocated.

CUMULATIVE PERCENTAGE GROWTH IN LOCAL SALES TAX COLLECTIONS

1,800% 1,500

300%

FISCAL 2011: 1,723% (see insert for complete Special Purpose District graph)

1,200 900 600 300 0 1993 1997 2002 2006 2011

250

SPECIAL PURPOSE DISTRICT CITY

200

182% 142% 135% 121% 113%

COUNTY STATE SALES

150

COMBINED POPULATION AND INFLATION GROWTH* TRANSIT INFLATION (U.S.)

100

50

56% 44%

POPULATION (TEXAS)

0
FISCAL 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

Source: Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

*Most local sales tax collections increased much more rapidly than the 121 percent growth in combined population and inflation during those fiscal years.

Local sales tax collections have increased more than the rate of inflation, helped in part by the strong economy and growing population, as well as the increased number of entities particularly

special purpose districts collecting tax. SPD sales tax collections grew by more than 1,700 percent between 1993 and 2011 as the number of SPDs increased from 9 to 193.

TO THE POINT

YOUR RIGHT TO TRANSPARENT SALES TAX

and services comes with a sales and use tax of up to 8.25 percent. In some areas, just 6.25 percent is levied, the state sales tax. However, 94 percent of cities and 48 percent of counties levy a local sales tax, in addition to other special purpose districts, including libraries, emergency services and transit authorities. State law dictates that the combined local rate must not exceed 2 percent, so if the total tax is already 8.25 percent, no more taxing entities can add to it.

Unless exempted, the cost of buying goods

Nearly all sales taxes are remitted by business owners directly to the state Comptrollers office and then distributed. Because the tax varies by location depending on the taxing entities, jurisdiction, and sales tax receipts arent itemized by local entity, so it isnt obvious who is getting a share of that local tax up to two cents on every dollar you spend. However, the Comptrollers online sales tax locator tool allows business owners and taxpayers to enter an address and find out how much sales tax is levied.

Texas taxing
entities sales tax revenues have increased by much more than the effects of inflation and population.

whY do soMe aReas ColleCT so MuCh Tax? Sales tax revenues are highest in Texas urban areas that impose all or part of the two cents allowed for local sales tax. Counties with the highest sales tax revenues per capita typically contain isolated urban communities that attract the majority of sales tax revenue from a wide area. As non-residents spend money in the community, sales tax collections are disproportionate to the local population. For example, Ochiltree County has one city, Perryton, with 85 percent of the countys 10,200 population, which generates more than $4 million from its 2 percent sales tax and lies 60 miles from the next densely populated area, Pampa, which has 17,000 residents.

PER CAPITA LOCAL SALES TAX REVENUES BY COUNTY

INTERACT ONLINE>> Go to Texas

Transparency.org/ yourmoney/localtax/ levies.php

$0-$49 $50-$99 $100-$199 $200-$399 $400 and above

for interactive versions of these maps where you can click to see more details on the sales tax revenues in each county.

Source: Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

LOCAL SALES TAX REVENUES FISCAL 2011

Total = $5.97 Billion

10

The Texas population has grown by more than 40 percent since 1992. In contrast, local sales tax collections increased by 160 percent between fiscal years 1993 and 2011, to $5.97 billion. The state sales tax of 6.25 percent generated another $21.48 billion in fiscal 2011.

$0.37B $4.01B $1.34B $0.26B

CITY COUNTY TRANSIT SPECIAL PURPOSE DISTRICT

(Amounts in Billions)
Numbers may not sum due to rounding.

Source: Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

who levies The Tax? Local sales tax revenues are paid by consumers on goods and services (along with state sales tax), and are remitted monthly by businesses to the Comptrollers office, which distributes all collections in a monthly lump sum to each local sales tax entity. The maps in this report provide a general guide to the total number of local taxing entities in each county and the per capita tax revenue. Generally speaking, the more densely populated Texas counties have the most taxing entities.
Local sales and use taxing entities have increased in number over time to fund infrastructure and taxpayer services. The biggest

NUMBER OF LOCAL SALES TAX ENTITIES BY COUNTY

INTERACT ONLINE>> Go to Texas

Transparency.org/ yourmoney/localtax/ entities.php

for interactive versions of these maps where you can click to see more details on the types of taxing entities in each county.

0-5 6-10 11-20 21-50 51 and above

NOTE: Because of boundary variations, all taxing entities in a county may not apply to each taxpayer. Source: Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

increase in sales taxing entities in the past two decades has been special purpose districts,

which were first authorized by the Legislature in 1989.

RELEVANT GOVERNMENT STATUTES Taxpayers have several legal tools to help them hold local taxing authorities accountable for how they use tax revenue: Local taxing authorities have statutory Texas tax laws are codified in the Texas Tax In 1973, the Texas Legislature passed TPIA to provide public access to complete provisions requiring specific notices to be
Taxpayers may contest the assessment of taxes typically by processes specifically delineated in statute.

Code. For a comprehensive list of links to specific statutes governing the various local and state taxes, visit the Comptrollers website at www.window.state.tx.us/taxinfo/rulendx/.

information about the affairs of government and the official acts of public officials and employees. Under the TPIA, a local taxing authority must promptly produce any documents created or required to be held by the entity when requested.

provided to the public when adopting a budget and/or setting tax rates.

Texas Education Code, Chapter 44 requires school board presidents to publish a news-

assessment, Property tax valuation and41, 41A and 42. The TPIA also exempts certain categories Texas Water Code, Chapter 49 requires Texas Tax Code, Chapters of information from disclosure. A govern- most water districts in the state to publish Sales tax assessment and audit process, mental body must request an Attorney in a local newspaper a notice of any Texas Tax Code Chapter 111.

paper notice of the school board meeting at which the districts proposed budget and proposed tax rate will be considered.

The Tax Code may be found at www.

statutes.legis.state.tx.us/.

Local taxing authorities are required to make all documents of the entity available to the public. Texas Public Information Act (TPIA) (Tx. Govt Code, Chapter 552):

body fails to request If the governmentalthe Attorney General, an exemption from

Generals opinion to claim that particular information falls within an exemption, when the issue has not been previously determined.

26 Texas Tax Code, Chapter for addresses notices and calculations effective and and rollback tax rates for all other taxing authorities.

board meeting at which a tax rate will be considered.

the information is presumed to be public.

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S U S A N C O M B S : TE X AS COMP TROLLER OF PUBLIC ACCOU N TS

TEXAS TRANSPARENCY

OPEN GOVERNMENT IS ACCOUNTABLE GOVERNMENT: A CLEAR LOOK AT YOUR TAX DOLLARS AT WORK IN TEXAS

TRANSPARENCY RECOMMENDATIONS Since many local taxing entities already publish their rates and levy information online, these recommendations aim to ensure that
every Texas taxpayer has access to open government.
1 If a formal and regular review process is
not already in place for a taxing entity, seek measures to implement a process to examine whether the taxing entity should be continued. Such a review could include a process similar to that used by the Texas Sunset Advisory Commission. taxing entities and districts to report their revenues and expenditures including administrative, legal and other costs if they are not currently doing so. For those entities that do not publish the information, require them to disclose annually to affected taxpayers, displayed prominently on a public website. this data is consolidated into one statewide electronic resource for efficient access and review by the public, consider requiring the tax assessor-collectors or chief appraisers of appraisal districts to report the tax rate information to the Comptrollers office and requiring the Comptroller to publish all local tax rate information (including local property and sales tax rates) on one public website and to update the site at least annually.

2 Taxes and levies collected for a particular

purpose should be applied to that specific purpose. To ensure transparency, require

3 Many county tax assessor-collectors already

collect and publish tax rate information for all taxing entities in their counties. To ensure

EXERCISING YOUR POWER AS A TAXPAYER

Get involved. Attend hearings and meetings of taxing
entities that affect you. Learn the faces and know the reasons and arguments behind tax decisions. Vote. Make your voice heard.
puT YouRself in The Know

Know your rights under the law. You are entitled to a series of protections and remedies under Texas law if you disagree with the value assigned to your property, or the property tax levy due.
Understand Your OPTIONS

The Comptrollers report series Texas, Its Your Money will look at broader issues that impact Texas taxpayers every day. Go to
www.TexasItsYourMoney.org .

Find out what action you can take to protest your property valuation. See the Comptrollers Property Taxpayer Remedies at www.window.state.tx.us/taxinfo/proptax/remedy12/.
Know what is TAXABLE

Texas open meetings laws require all local governments to post their meeting agendas at least 72 hours before the meeting begins. Many post notices online, others post on the notice boards at city hall or in the county courthouse hallway. The Texas Comptrollers Leadership Circle website is a good place to start looking for local government websites. Go to www.TexasTransparency.org/local/
leadership.php.

To see the rules that guide businesses about what sales taxes they must levy, visit the Comptrollers tax Frequently Asked Questions at www.window.state.tx.us/taxinfo/sales/questions.html .

If something youre interested in is on the agenda, it has to be discussed publicly with a few exceptions. Learn more about Texas open meeting law in this helpful Texas Association of Counties guide http//:www.county.org/resources/legal/pdf/OpenMeetingsAct.
pdf [PDF, 300k] .

Know where your tax dollars go. Find out how transparent the governments that tax you are with their financial information.
Become informed about the wide range of LOCAL TAXES

Learn the basics of taxation. You dont have to know enough to become an accountant, but its good to have a general understanding of how our state and local tax systems work.
Understand Texas Local PROPERTY TAXES

This report is the first in a series that examines the issues that impact Texas taxpayers every day. For more in-depth information, including interactive maps that provide a close-up view of the entities that assess property tax and collect sales tax revenues in each Texas county, as well as Comptroller tools and resources, visit www.TexasTransparency.org/yourmoney/localtax/.
NOT ONLINE?

The Texas Comptrollers office offers extensive information on Texas local property tax at www.window.state.tx.us/taxinfo/proptax/.
Know Who Gets Your sales Taxes

To learn the appropriate state and local sales tax rate for any address in Texas, see our online Tax Rate Locator at https://ourcpa. cpa.state.tx.us/atj/addresslookup.jsp .

Sales tax rate information may be obtained from the Comptrollers office verbally by phone. Call toll-free 1-800-252-5555. In Austin call 512-463-4600. For property tax rates and entities information, contact your appraisal district.

w w w

T e x a s I t s Yo u r M o n e y o r g

Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts Data Services Division P.O. Box 13528 Austin, Texas 78711-3528 Publication# 96-1713 Printed August 2012