The Hockley County Commissioners’ Court met on Monday for a regular meeting where they approved requests from entities throughout the county, heard a presentation from the county tax assessor and held a budget workshop.
The court approved regular meeting minutes for the prior meeting held on July 20, as well approving all monthly bills and claims submitted to the court through July 27.
County Tax Assessor-Collector Misty Taylor gave a presentation, submitting the appraisal roll for the taxing unit, which showed the total appraised, assessed and taxable values of all property, along with the total taxable value of new property.
The document showed a decrease in rolling stock, which is a portion of the total market value of railroad rolling stock that is taxable by each county in which the railroad operates.
Several commissioners wanted to know why the stock went down, wondering if the decline was based on miles of track used or the number of railroad cars parked on the tracks, and Taylor promised to get them that information.
Taylor presented this year’s certification of anticipated collection rate for property taxes, noting that her office anticipated collecting 99% of the total owed to the county.
In other business, the court approved the Vehicle Lease Agreement for the Hockley County Juvenile Board, which is renewed each year. The agreement grants the Juvenile Board vehicle leases from the county.
Commissioners also approved the Hilcorp road crossing on Justin Road located in Precinct 2, before continuing into their budget workshop.
The court noted that the county was earning good interest, but with the decrease in rolling stock, they would need to raise the maintenance and operation tax rate to approximately 0.46330%. The court indicated that with this rate, they would be able to keep the tax rate below the voter approval rate. The court did not adopt a proposed tax rate, but will consider adopting a proposed tax rate at their next meeting.