Paxton freezes Howardwick’s tax power

The City of Howardwick is being blocked from raising property taxes this year after Texas Attorney General Ken Paxon claimed the city is not in compliance with Senate Bill 1851.

Paxton’s office announced on May 14 it was sending letters to Howardwick and 129 other cities notifying them that they are prohibited from raising ad valorem taxes above the no-new-revenue tax rate after Paxton investigated more than 1,000 Texas cities.

Howardwick City Secretary Sandy Childress says the city had already complied with the law by furnishing its annual audits and was surprised and frustrated by Paxton’s action.

“I have been contacting the attorney general’s office every day to find out why they did this and what we have to do become compliant, and they have not responded at all,” Childress said.

During the 2025 legislative session, SB 1851 was passed and then enacted into law. This law bars cities from raising property taxes above the no-new-revenue rate if they do not meet Texas’s financial statement audit and transparency requirements. Now, Paxton has notified 130 cities that they are subject to the enforcement provisions and penalties established under SB 1851 and may not adopt property tax increases above the no-new-revenue rate.

The Attorney General’s office says it will continue to take additional action and make further determinations as more cities are found to be out-of-compliance with audit requirements.

“I will not allow cities to unlawfully raise taxes on hardworking Texans. That is why I took aggressive action against over 130 Texas cities to hold them accountable and ensure they comply with state law,” Paxton said in a press release. “Cities cannot fail to abide by state audit requirements without consequences. My office will continue to aggressively enforce Texas law to protect taxpayers across the state.”

Childress still says she hasn’t been told what the city did wrong or how to fix it, and she may be in for a long wait. According to the Texas Tribune, the City of Odessa received a similar letter late last year. As of May 7, the Tribune reported, “In the seven months since issuing the first order, Paxton has not responded to the city [of Odessa] – not to documents nor letters.”

Childress said Howardwick doesn’t typically raise taxes but she doesn’t like the AG’s action.

“We don’t even have the option to raise taxes now if we needed to,” she said. “They should let us take care of our own business.”