Resident at Benbrook meeting urges scrutiny of Tarrant Appraisal District valuations

During the public-comment period on Oct. 1, a resident who said he is running for Tarrant Appraisal District Place 2 urged the council and neighbors to scrutinize recent appraisal data and asked for greater public understanding of how appraisals affect tax burdens.

He told council that while the city did not formally increase its tax rate, the effective tax burden had risen year-over-year by about 3.84 percent. "While you didn't increase the property tax rate, it did increase year on year 3.84%," the commenter said, and he described a county appraisal table showing that properties at the lower end of the market were appraised at 106% of market while higher-value properties were appraised at 71% of market.

The commenter characterized that discrepancy as a potential constitutional problem for the Tarrant Appraisal District and said he was circulating materials to educate constituents ahead of his campaign for the appraisal board. Council acknowledged receipt of the materials and did not take formal action during the meeting.