According to the debt payment schedules for Maverick County for the 2016-1017 fiscal year, the county currently owes approximately $40.5 million in bond debt, some of which would be paid of until the year 2034. The $8.5 million would be added to that debt, which concerns the group of tax payers.
“The question is really, how are we going to pay, and who is going to have to pay? The people,” said one taxpayer, who added that taking out loans for things like road repairs and new vehicles would put the county in an endless cycle of debt. “The expenses they’re spending are ones that will fix the problem right now, but they’re going to have to do it again. It’s not going to produce revenue. That’s why you should have the money set aside in the budget.”
The Maverick County $8.5 million cerficates of obligation election, stemming from a petition from residents, will be decided on May 6.
The County Elections Department has announced that early voting will take place from April 24 through May 1, 2017, and will be taking place at the Maverick County Commissioners courtroom located at 500 Quarry Street, from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
A temporary injunction filed against County Judge David Saucedo, the Maverick County Commissioners, and Maverick County Elections Administrator T. Roy Schmerber for going beyond their legal power of authority, in reference to the invalidation of the tax rate rollback petition, filed by one of the group of concerned taxpayers’ most vocal members, Ethelvina Felan, was denied by Judge W.C. Kirkendall
However, Felán and fellow taxpayer Roxana Maldonado- Guerra have been addressing county officials through letters on the tax rate issue.
Most recently Maldonado-Guerra sent a letter to commissioners court asking what exactly happened during the six hour executive session after which commissioners admitted that there was a mistake in the tax rate that needed to be corrected.
“Are we supposed to believe that Ms. Villareal and Ms. Watkins explained their error, then told Commissioners Court it needed to rescind .586535 but not replace it with .456839 using line 48 (Rollback Tax Rate adjusted for sales tax .586535-.129696) of the Tax Assessor Collector’s corrected tax rate worksheet dated September 16? Either Commissioners Court was stumped after 6 hours trying to calculate .586535 -.129696 even with help from Ms. Villareal and Ms. Watkins, or Commissioners Court’s delay in adopting the .456839 Rollback Tax Rate adjusted for sales tax (as shown in the Tax Assessor Collector’s September 16 tax rate worksheet and as done every prior year) was a shameless political attempt to keep the massive Maintenance & Operations spending increases promised in the 2017 Budget despite knowing the revenues to fulfill these promises no longer existed. Instead of answering, the response since September 2016 has been that Commissioners Court’s actions on the tax rate issue were legal,” wrote Maldonado-Guerra.
Maldonado-Guerra also had questions about the county’s legal counsel.
“Legal counsel Woody Wilson has shown he will do and tell Commissioners Court whatever it wants if he is paid, demonstrated by his willingness to help delay taxpayers’ access to the Tax Assessor Collector’s September 16 corrected tax rate worksheet to prevent taxpayers from filing an injunction back in October 2016. Taxpayer funds are being used to pay for Mr. Wilson to help Commissioners Court carry out its own political agenda even if it is to work against taxpayers, so how much are we paying Mr. Wilson?”