Taxes to increase despite keeping same rate

NEDERLAND — Nederland City Council adopted a new budget and tax rate for the 2015-16 fiscal year Monday night, allowing city staff to conclude a four-month planning process with two weeks to spare before the new fiscal year begins Oct. 1.

City Council adopted the budget and tax rate proposed by city staff this summer, with no changes made following two public hearings in August with “no public input received.”

Beginning Oct. 1, the Nederland tax rate will be $0.591853 per $100 valuation — the same rate the city has had since the 2012-13 fiscal year — which Nederland City Manager Chris Duque said equates to an approximate 2.48 percent tax increase across the community.

Duque said by keeping the tax rate at $0.591853, the city will receive an additional $178,167.30 in property tax revenue due to the new property valuations from the Jefferson County Appraisal District.

The city’s overall tax rate is a combination of two separate rates — a Maintenance and Operation rate of $0.385689 per $100 valuation and an Interest and Sinking rate of $0.206164 per $100 valuation.

“Nederland — again — has the lowest M&O tax rate, the lowest I&S tax rate, and the lowest overall tax rate of all the full-service cities in Jefferson County,” Duque said Monday night.

The adopted tax rate is more than the city’s effective tax rate — the rate needed to raise the same amount of property tax revenue as the previous year — of $0.577548, but still below the city’s rollback tax rate — the highest rate the city may adopt before voters can petition for an election to limit the rate — of $0.598601.

The 2015-16 budget for all funds totals $21,359,229 in expenditures and $21,586,479 in projected revenues — leaving an extra $227,250 to save in the city fund balance.

The general fund, which covers all activities associated with primary governmental functions, is balanced at $9,984,860 in expenditures and projected revenue.

Duque said the water and sewer fund revenue is expected to increase about 0.29 percent from the 2014-15 fiscal year to $4,483,800.

Beginning Oct. 1, residents will pay an extra $0.01 per month toward the water and sewer line maintenance fee — an increase Duque said is necessary to match increasing operation and maintenance costs, specifically the 10-year warranty on the automated water meters expiring.

Twitter: @crhenderson90