Brittany Kelley
KYLE — The Hays Central Appraisal District is looking to purchase land to build a new facility in order to continue serving residents adequately.
“It’s definitely not a want; it is a need,” began Laura Raven, chief appraiser. “Bottom line, it’s [to] better serve the property owners, so that we can not just attend to their needs here in the office, but also by the continued production of a timely and accurate appraisal roll for all the taxing units, which then, gets the property owners their tax bills on time and in an accurate way. We have outgrown our space.”
The current structure, located at 21001 IH-35 in Kyle, was built in 1994, when the county was at a population of approximately 71,000, said Raven, and only needed 20 employees. Now, there are 49 budgeted employees, with an estimated population of 310,000, resulting in the CAD running out of space for both staff and the Appraisal Review Board (ARB).
The ARB provides property owners the ability to protest the appraised value of their land or determination of an exemption. This year alone, there have been more than 55,000 protests, each of which is handled by staff that pull, code and send the materials required for them. According to a letter sent by Hays CAD, this is an increase from the 22,000 protests in 2019.
Raven also stated that, while there are 49 employees, there are only 45 parking spaces.
With the hope to create a new facility in Kyle that can fit its staff, along with the ability to expand to 80 employees, Hays CAD conducted a feasibility study and created design plans for a more than 20,000 square-foot building, with an estimated total cost of $15 million across 25 years.
This cost will be funded through the various taxing entities in the county, if approved. Raven explained that each entity in the county that collects taxes is responsible for a percentage allocation that funds Hays CAD. The percentages change each year and are determined through a calculated rate and value, which results in a levy that is then compared to the total levy of all taxing entities.
For example, the city of Kyle is responsible for 4.34642% for the 2026 budget year. Therefore, Kyle would pay an estimated $47,735, which is 4.34642% of the $1.1 million bill for the first year, beginning in 2027. This number may change, since the allocation percentage is recalculated each year.
The tax code states that Hays CAD must receive approval from three-fourths of the entities entitled to vote on the appointment, in order to move forward with the project. The chief appraiser noted that, although there are more than 60 taxing entities that take part in the levy, there are only 20 voting entities including municipalities and school districts.
The approval is not connected to the allocation percentage of tax levy, said Raven; it is reached by receiving approval from 15 out of the 20 of voting taxing entities, which include: city of Austin; Austin Community College; Blanco ISD; city of Buda; Comal ISD; city of Dripping Springs; Dripping Springs ISD; Hays CISD; city of Hays; Hays County; Johnson City ISD; city of Kyle; city of Mountain City; city of Niederwald; city of San Marcos; San Marcos CISD; city of Uhland; Village of Bear Creek; Wimberley ISD; and city of Woodcreek.
She also explained that the letters to each entity are being sent out periodically to coincide with their public meetings, while offering time to decide. A unit must deny or approve the request, though a lack of action within the required 30 days is still considered an approval, said Raven.
The last 30-day limit for an approval or denial is Sept. 2, she said; however, if the district receives either enough approvals or denials, a decision could be made sooner.
As of July 10, the chief appraiser stated that the district has received one approval and two denials, which were from Kyle City Council and the Hays County Commissioners Court. After discussing the request in their respective meetings, both bodies determined that there was not enough information in the request and voted unanimously to deny the resolution, but added that Hays CAD should bring it back at a later date with more information for potential approval.
Raven stated that if the required amount of approvals are received, next steps would include looking for a company to create a construction timeline. If Hays CAD is ultimately denied by the voting tax entities, the plans will go back to the board of directors to determine next steps.
