Proposed City Budget Includes Tax & Spending Cuts, Fee Increases

Graphic by The Amarillo Pioneer based on selection of pages form City of Amarillo budget proposal

With city council budget workshops set to begin Tuesday morning, the City of Amarillo has published a proposed budget that calls for tax and spending cuts as well as fee increases.

The proposal will serve as the foundation from which the council will build the new budget, which will guide spending for the city’s upcoming fiscal year, which begins October 1st. This will be the first new budget created by the newly elected council following local elections held in May and runoff elections held last month.

The budget proposal calls for a property tax rate of $0.36800, a decrease from the current rate of $0.40626. If passed, the rate would be the lowest since the 2017-18 fiscal year. It would also mark the second rate decrease in a row. The proposal also notes that the rate would still raise more tax revenue due to increases in property appraisals and new property added to the tax roll.

The budget proposal also calls for some spending cuts. The overall budget is $467.4 million, which is a decrease from the current budget, which is $490.8 million. Though the proposal is smaller than the current budget, it is still larger than the 2021-22 fiscal year budget, which was $419.5 million.

The largest cuts in dollar amounts are to capital improvement projects, debt service, and special revenue operating. Combined, these three areas will see $47.6 million in cuts. Smaller cuts are also planned for insurance operating and drainage utility operating categories.

While some areas of the proposal call for cuts, the proposal also calls for increases in other areas. The largest increase is water & sewer operating, which, under the proposal, would see an additional $10.8 million, bringing the total for the category to $69.4 million. Increases are also proposed for general fund operating, fleet services operating, airport operating, information technology operating, and capital improvement transfers.

Several fee increases are proposed. The budget calls for a 5% increase to commercial solid waste collection, landfill tipping, sewer, water, and drainage fees, a 14.53% increase to residential solid waste collection fees, a $2 increase to golf green fares, a $3 increase to tennis center fees and zoo admission rates, a $10 increase to most golf annual passes, and a $20 increase to mini golf annual passes.

Budget workshops are set to begin at 8:00 am on Tuesday, July 25th in the Amarillo Civic Center Complex Hospitality room. Workshops are currently scheduled to take place on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. The full 852-page proposed budget can be downloaded at this link.