WASHINGTON CO. PROPERTY TAX BILLS DELAYED UNTIL AFTER ELECTION
The Washington County Appraisal District has announced that the mailing of 2025 property tax bills will be pushed back from October until after the November 4th election.
In a release, the appraisal district says the decision to delay is due to several property tax-related items being on the November ballot, including adjustments to the homestead, over 65 and disabled person exemptions, as well as the Brenham ISD proposition to increase the maintenance and operations (M&O) tax rate.
The appraisal district says if any of the measures do not pass, issuing refunds or corrected bills for early payments would be costly and time-consuming.
According to Chief Appraiser Dyann White, the appraisal district could have to print over 25,000 refund checks or corrected bills if the ballot measures fail. Additionally, she said many of the payments come from mortgage companies, so there would be a risk of causing issues with escrow accounts, which could take months to resolve and cost taxpayers more in the long run.
Because of the delayed mailing, the October 3 percent discount will not apply this year. Instead, discounts will follow an adjusted schedule of 2 percent in November and 1 percent in December. For a $200,000 property, the difference between a 3 percent and 2 percent discount is approximately $9, while the difference for a $400,000 property is about $17.
Tax bills will be mailed shortly after the November 4th election, once official results are certified. Property owners will receive their bills as usual, and payment deadlines remain unchanged.
Anyone with questions can contact the appraisal district at 979-277-3740 or visit www.washingtoncad.org.