Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton Looking Into Illegal Tax Increases in Wichita Falls

Ken Paxton is launching a statewide investigation into illegal tax increases and he directly mentioned Wichita Falls in his statement.

Looks like a new Senate Bill has some Texas cities under scrutiny from the Attorney General. SB 1851 "bars cities who do not strictly follow Texas’s financial statement audit and transparency requirements from raising taxes above the no-new-revenue rate. " Several cities were warned they were not complying with this new Senate Bill and it looks like investigation is underway into 1,000 Texas cities.

Illegal Tax Increase Investigations Underway

“Local officials will not be allowed to ignore the law, cover up their finances, and burden Texans with never-ending tax increases,” said Attorney General Paxton. “Our cities and municipalities must prioritize transparency and minimizing the tax burden of every citizen across the state. While many cities have already complied with these requirements, I’m launching this review to ensure that the law is universally followed, taxpayers are respected, and local government is accountable to all Texans.”

Wichita Falls Directly Mentioned in Ken Paxton's Statement

You can read the full statement from Ken Paxton above. Towards the end, he mentions some of the cities they will be taking a look at. "Attorney General Paxton’s review includes some of the largest cities in the state, including Houston, Galveston, San Antonio, Dallas, Fort Worth, Lubbock, Wichita Falls, McAllen, Beaumont, Amarillo, El Paso, Corpus Christi, Laredo, Texarkana, Brownsville, Waco, and Tyler."

Ken Paxton Asking for Citizens Help in Reporting Their Cities

If you believe your city is not compliant with this new Senate Bill. The Office of Ken Paxton asks that you submit a form with your complaint if you believe your city is not doing one of the following:

1. Section 103.001 of the Local Government Code requires a municipality to have its records and accounts audited annually and to have an annual financial statement prepared based on the audit.
2. Section 103.003 of the Local Government Code requires that the annual financial statement, including the auditor's opinion on the statement, be filed in the office of the municipal secretary or clerk within 180 days after the last day of the municipality's fiscal year.

3. A municipality is in violation of this law may not adopt an ad valorem tax rate that exceeds the municipality's no-new-revenue tax rate:

   (1) for the tax year that begins on or after the date of the attorney general's determination; or
   (2) for a subsequent tax year that begins before the date the municipality has had an annual audit completed and financial statement prepared or filed the financial statement and auditor's opinion on the financial statement with the municipal clerk, as applicable.

If you believe your city is not complying with anything listed above, the form is available here for you to fill out.

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