Property Tax Justice

This is Not Life or Death

Most taxpayers understand that they cannot avoid property taxes entirely. They know local taxes are needed to help run our schools, pay for our police and keep the roads passable. The majority of the total budget for Austin ISD and most other taxing jurisdictions is the annual property tax levy.

Unlike other forms of taxation, the property tax takes its bite all at once and in a manner that draws attention to the actual tax amount. This is something of a shame because local taxes are used, in my opinion, far more effectively than the much greater tax amounts Austinite's send to the federal and state government through smaller, less visible, bites.

The public nature of property tax administration has resulted in more legislative attention being focused on the issue than virtually any other topic over the last twenty years. Property taxpayers benefit from the many rights afforded them under Texas' Property Tax Code and the willingness of our local tax officials to respect those rights. Today, in Austin, our property tax system is the most direct, most receptive interaction a citizen can reasonably expect to have with government.

Much of the credit for creating a taxpayer-friendly arena for discussion of property taxes goes to former Travis Appraisal Review Board chairman Walter G. Smithe and to current chairman Malcolm Milburn. They developed new procedures, enacted new policies and trained other board members to such an extent that many tax professionals consider the Travis ARB to be, overall, the most knowledgeable in the state.

Austin residents should remember this when opening their tax year 2000 Notice of Appraised Value from Travis CAD. This is not the end of the world, not the last word on the tax appraisal, or on the tax amount you will eventually pay next January. Your right to contest the proposed valuation is well understood. Both TCAD staff and the Appraisal Review Board have proven in recent years to be interested in "fairness" in taxation, it is up to you to bring inequities to their attention and gently ask for relief.

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