City Council B Session

City of San Antonio

Meeting Minutes

City Council B Session

State of Texas

County of Bexar

City Hall Complex

105 Main Plaza

San Antonio, Texas 78205

FINAL

2:00 PM Municipal Plaza BuildingWednesday, February 14, 2018

The City Council of San Antonio will convene in the “B” Room of the Municipal Plaza Building.

City Clerk Leticia Vacek took the Roll Call noting the following Councilmembers present:

11 - Mayor Nirenberg, Treviño, Shaw, Viagran, Saldaña, Gonzales,

Brockhouse, Sandoval, Pelaez, Courage, and Perry

PRESENT:

Briefing by Bexar Appraisal District Chief Appraiser Michael Amezquita on the

appraisal process and property tax relief options available to homesteads in Texas

cities. [Ben Gorzell, Chief Financial Officer; Troy Elliott, Deputy Chief Financial

Officer]

1.

Councilmember Treviño stated that he served as Vice-Chair on the Bexar County Appraisal

District (BCAD). He noted that BCAD was committed to transparency and wanted to

communicate programs and processes to the public. He stated that the deadline for property

value protests was May 15, 2018.

Michael Amezquita provided an overview of the annual property tax assessment timeline and

the legal requirements setting same. He noted that the Texas Constitution required taxation

to be equal and uniform and property to be taxed based on current market value. He stated

that property owners had a right to notices of increase in appraised property value and Bexar

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February 14, 2018City Council B Session Meeting Minutes

County mailed notices when values increased over $1,000. He noted that property was

appraised at market value on January 1st of each year but preliminary investigations were

underway to allow appraisal re-evaluations in situations of emergency or natural disaster.

Mr. Amezquita provided an overview of shifting costs from the state to local school districts,

cities, and counties. He noted that the majority of funding for schools was collected through

local property taxes. He stated that Texas did not have a legal requirement for sales

disclosure and commercial properties utilized the “Equal and Uniform” provision of State

Law to reduce values below market value. He noted significant increases in commercial

property litigation and resulting losses to BCAD. He stated that the city could adopt a Local

Homestead Exemption or reduce the property tax rate to provide tax relief to homeowners.