KILLEEN, Texas (KXXV) — Killeen is raising taxes while making cuts to fund city services for the coming year, as leaders work through a budget that lost more than $16 million from tax exemptions alone.
City Council voted to approve a tax rate one point below the voter-approved rate to fund basic services.
City Manager Kent Cagle said the city keeps its spending focused on core services.
"We don't provide a lot of extravagant services. We're not into social services. Very, very small. We've talked a whole lot about homeless services, but that's about all we do as far as social services. We're the basics. We fund police and fire and streets and then to a much lesser extent parks and rec and libraries and that's pretty much our general fund."
The budget prioritizes public safety and first response, but also addresses several issues residents have raised for months, including a homeless shelter, a grocery store on the north side of town, and renovations to the animal shelter. However, staff cuts prompted questions from residents.
One neighbor raised concerns about whether the city is keeping pace with its own growth.
"If Killeen is growing naturally, the workload is growing for the city as well. And if residents are being asked to contribute more to support that growth, which I think is fair, and I think it's fair to ask whether we're also making sure that the people who actually provide our city services have enough staff and resources to do their jobs."
Council Member Debbie Nash King said department heads played a key role in shaping the final budget.
"The budget is balanced at the best of our ability, our input, but what's important that the police, fire, the chief, and the executive directors have a say in what they want to see in their budget."
Resident Leo Gukeisen said the added costs are a burden for many in the community.
"Every penny nowadays counts. Especially talk about people talk about on a fixed budget in the long run it might not seem a lot a couple pennies but for them it does."
The higher tax rate is accompanied by higher water and sewer rates and a new brush pickup charge. The new tax rate is $0.7301.
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