The City Council Thursday approved an annual budget of about $165 million that calls for nearly 3.5% less in spending and keeps the Fiscal Year 2026-27 tax rate the same as last year.
While the adopted 58.5-cent rate per $100 valuation is the same as FY 2025-26, Chief Financial Officer Robert Powers said it is effectively an $88 reduction on average for homeowners.
Home values in Taylor decreased about 5%, from around $294,000 to $279,100, which lowers the average tax bill given no change in rates.
That news was top of mind during the Sept. 10 council session, which also saw police body cameras approved, proposals for new city buildings and discussion behind closed doors about another proposed data center while critics of the project gathered outside City Hall.
During budget discussions, members on the dais learned the new budget reduces municipal spending by about $6 million.
“(Keeping the budget low) was very much a team effort for several months,” said Councilman Greg Redden. “Because of some of the stuff that the departments took out, we were able to give our employees a raise. Even a 2% bump helps.”
Taylor’s property tax base increased from $4.7 billion to $5.3 billion.
Due to the increase in property tax rolls, the adopted rate will raise total property tax revenue by almost 13%. More than $3 million of the property-tax revenue raised will come from new property added to the tax roll this year.
In total, the city will receive $898,106 more in property tax revenue than last year.
The budget includes funding for three firefighter positions added in mid-2026, $1.2 million for vehicles and heavy equipment, and $780,000 for miscellaneous expenditures, including shade structures for the Taylor Animal Shelter.
It also includes a 2% cost-of-living increase for employees and an 8% increase in health insurance premiums.
Savings came from decreases to the general fund and capital projects fund, while the budgets for the utility fund, airport fund and utility capital funds saw increases.
The $165.66 million budget goes into effect Oct. 1.
Council approves camera contract
In related business, Police Chief Joseph Chacon’s request for additional fleet and body-worn cameras was approved by council members. The cameras are for video and audio capture only and do not include the automatic license plate reader function, such as the type popularized by Flock Safety.
The city is in the final year of a five-year contract with Axon for body-worn cameras, and in the first year of a five-year contract for Axon fleet cameras. The body-worn camera contract includes storage of video and photographic evidence online through Axon-owned Evidence.com.
The council approved a 10-year agreement for the body-worn cameras at a total contract amount of $549,901. Also approved, a 4-year contract for four new fleet cameras. The new annual cost for all fleet cameras is $49,436.
The issue was set for consideration at the Aug. 27 meeting but was tabled. At that time, the agenda item included a request to activate automatic license plate reader software in the patrol cars.
On Sept. 10, there was no request for ALPR resources. Several cities in Central Texas are canceling their contracts with Flock over allegations the surveillance and data-collection systems have been misused.
New city buildings proposed
The city’s elected leaders adopted a Facilities Master Plan identifying the condition and suitability of all city buildings and creating a framework for constructing future structures. The recommendations range from selling some properties to renovating, expanding or replacing others.
The plan was produced by HDR Engineering along with input from the council and city staffers. The recommended yearly budget is $63 million.
The Taylor Public Library, the Parks and Recreation Department administration building and the animal shelter were among those slated for renovation, expansion or retrofitting. The Fire Department training facility, Fire Station 3 and police vehicular evidence storage were on the list for demolition and/or new construction.
The city is also in the process of building a combined Justice Center and City Hall complex for $52 million at 300 E. Second St.
Data center opposition gains supporters
While the public hearing for rezoning Big Watt Digital and PH Digital Data Center Development was withdrawn from the Sept. 10 agenda now that developers have rescinded their request for annexation and employment center zoning, the council still consulted with the city attorney regarding the project in closed executive session.
No action was taken on the matter.
Also known as Project Mustang, the proposed data center and gas power plant would be built on 665 acres in the city’s extraterritorial jurisdiction.
Despite the lack of a public hearing, Halt Taylor Data Center Coalition rallied outside City Hall before the council meeting to support the creation of stronger city ordinances governing data centers.
Up to four data centers are in the planning stages for the Taylor area.
Chris Jimenez, a Williamson County resident and Democratic candidate for Texas House District 52, came to advocate for the community, saying he shared the opponents’ belief that data centers are a threat to Texas’ resources and way of life.
“We have people working within these data center companies that are sounding the alarm, yet our city councils around the county are not necessarily paying attention. So, I’m here to raise awareness of what’s going on,” Jimenez said.
MediaJustice, a national organization that supports community-led efforts to oppose harmful policies related to technology and large corporations, provided posters for the rally based on its BroBots Vs. The People educational series.
Kamil Cook with the Texas office of Public Citizen told rallygoers that coming together at events and meetings serves a critical purpose.
“We’re doing it because we’re trying to protect each other. Power comes from each of us standing up together, having courage and saying we don’t want this to happen,” Cook said.
Data centers pump large amounts of revenue into local coffers to fund school districts and infrastructure projects, and can even lower property-tax rates, supporters
say. Opponents argue the large facilities should not be built near residences or farming communities.
Gov. Greg Abbott has declared a moratorium on data centers pending energy audits by state regulatory agencies and has also objected to local entities giving tax breaks to digital facilities.
