HSB Council talks tax rate, reappoints Judge Madison

By Phil Reynolds

The Highlander

Horseshoe Bay city council members took the near-final steps toward setting a tax rate and budget for the coming year at their Aug. 30 meeting, but neither number is yet set in stone.

The city’s proposed tax rate is 26 cents per $100 valuation, a penny higher than the current rate. But that number is merely the highest the council can set; council members can approve a lower rate but not a higher one, Finance Director Larry Anderson explained.

The city’s effective tax rate – the rate that would raise the same amount of tax revenue as last year – is 23.734 cents per $100 valuation. Asked why an estimated 80 news homes being built wouldn’t lower the tax rate, Anderson explained that the construction wouldn’t be included in the city’s tax base until next year.

The second city hearing on the tax rate will be in the city council chamber on Tuesday, Sept. 6, but it will be at 9 a.m. instead of the council’s regular 3 p.m. meeting.

The tax rate is due to be adopted at the regular council meeting Tuesday, Sept. 20 at 3 p.m.

The city’s proposed budget also will be adopted at the Sept. 20 meeting.

Municipal Judge chosen

Horseshoe Bay city council members got an unusual opportunity for an inside look at the municipal judge's office Tuesday when they chose between two candidates for the job. More than one member of the council remarked that it's the first time they'd had competing candidates and looked that closely at the judge's job.

In the end, the council reappointed sitting Judge Kevin Madison, who has been in the office since 2005. He was challenged by Horseshoe Bay resident Richard Owens, who said a resident would serve the needs of the community better.

"Local courts play a larger role than most people realize," he said, noting that a bad experience with police or the courts can tarnish a community's reputation. 

He said the court needs to meet more often than once a month and called the 5 p.m. hearings "inconvenient and inefficient." 

Owens, who said he had served as justice of the peace in Llano county previously, said he has broad legal experience and has been legal counsel to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and has been a U.S. Attorney.

But Madison countered that the Horseshoe Bay court meets only the second Wednesday of each month "because that's all it needs to meet," and promised to expand the court's hours if that's needed. He cited awards and honors he's won while sitting at the bench in Horseshoe Bay and three other cities, and said he's a former deputy sheriff and chief of police as well as a volunteer firefighter and emergency medical technician.

Madison's presentation was followed by several city staff members who work with him, including police and code enforcement. All praised his willingness to work with the city's team and his deep knowledge of Texas municipal court procedure.

Council voted unanimously to reappoint Madison; he said the municipal judge's salary is $1,500 per month.