PROPOSED $3.4 BILLION 2023 CITY BUDGET- ‘…RESIDENTS CAN EXPECT PROPERTY TAX RELIEF’
This week, City Council will consider the proposed $3.4 billion city budget for fiscal year 2023, and the good news is that residents can expect property tax relief.
The city property tax rate for 2023 will be cut by 1.67 cents per $100 valuation, and the city’s homestead exemption is being increased from $5,000 annually to 10 percent of a home’s value. The larger exemption will lower taxes for more than 240,000 San Antonio residents.
Exemptions for disabled homeowners and seniors also are being increased. The disabled exemption will increase from $12,500 to $85,000, and the tax exemption for homeowners 65 or older will increase from $65,000 to $85,000.
Those parts of the budget discussion are relatively noncontroversial, although other portions have generated some vigorous debates.
The majority of public discussion has centered on the proposed$50 million rebate of the CPS Energy revenue passed to the city.Staff proposed using $5 million to assist eligible low-income residential customers and another $45 million for a one-time energy credit to all customers.
Revenue from CPS Energy have exceeded projections this year.The surplus is largely the result of the extreme temperatures and high energy use that San Antonio experienced this summer.
City Manager Erik Walsh first presented the budget to City Council on Aug. 11, and during the past month, the proposal has been discussed and examined at numerous council meetings as well as public meetings around the city.
The fiscal 2023 budget will be the sixth consecutive city budget using an equity framework in an effort to bring infrastructure and services parity across the city.
The budget includes a record $116 million in street maintenance and $21 million for sidewalks. If the plan is approved as expected, the city will spend $13 million more for infrastructure maintenance next year than in fiscal 2022.
And $160 million of the bonds approved by voters this spring in the 2022 bond package will be invested next year. Most of that amount, or $99 million will be used for affordable housing.
In another step forward, the FY 2023 budget sets aside $2 million to enhance 911 dispatch services in mental health cases as well as $5.8 million for the SA Forward Plan to provide community health improvement.
Slightly more than $137 billion will be dedicated to the San Antonio International Airport, which has launched a major expansion. Three new gates are planned for 2023.
The airport development program will be the largest city capital project ever.
And I am happy to report that the proposed 2023 affordable housing budget is $136 million. It includes two new housing navigator positions to help housing stressed San Antonians find acceptable affordable housing. San Antonio’s housing affordability efforts have increased dramatically since City Council approved the recommendations of the Mayor’s Housing Policy Task Force in 2018.
This year’s budget discussions have highlighted some good post-pandemic news. Hotel occupancy tax revenue is expected to top the pre-pandemic 2019 number, and airport revenues are exceeding pre-pandemic revenues as well.
Overall, the proposed budget is a solid plan for 2023. If the key elements move forward on Thursday as proposed, this budget will provide noteworthy financial relief through the property tax rate cut, increased property tax exemptions for seniors and special needs residents and the rebate of the unexpected revenue from CPS Energy.
