Lubbock is preparing to raise city property taxes on local taxpayers, again. 

The rate proposed for 2026¹ is $0.513421 per $100 of valuation, which is above the no-new-revenue rate of $0.475154 and just under the voter-approval rate of $0.513447. Because the proposal is not greater than the voter-approval rate, the city does not have to call an election for voter approval under current state law. 

The city’s notice on the proposed rate is clear: The proposed rate “is greater than the no-new-revenue tax rate,” and Lubbock “is proposing to increase property taxes for the 2026 tax year.” No-new-revenue is the rate that would collect roughly the same money from the same properties as last year. A rate above that line is a tax increase, regardless of whether or not the tax rate is lower than the previous year. (The city raised property taxes last year as well, adopting a rate of $0.472191, above the 2025 no-new-revenue rate of $0.461938).² 

The estimated impact on Lubbock homeowners is also in the same notice.³ Last year’s city rate levied $1,060.55 on the average residence homestead. The proposed new rate would produce $1,177.88. That is $117.33 more to the city alone, or more than an 11% increase. The levy on all properties would rise $10,774,962, or 8.62 percent, to $135.7 million, of which more than $3.1 million is from new properties.⁴ And of course, those city taxes stack on top of school district, county, and special-district tax levies.

The proposal sits about $0.000026 under the cap that would force an election for the voters to have a say. The certified worksheet⁵ lists last year’s adopted rate as $0.472191 and a 2026 unused-increment rate of $0.015959, the leftover room that lifts the voter-approval ceiling.

Councilman David Bruegel voted against the tax rate⁶ and preferred a rate below no-new-revenue. Final adoption is on the September 8 agenda.⁷ Lubbock County, in which the city of Lubbock resides, has been working toward a no-new-revenue county tax rate.⁸ 

The first duty of a city budget is to respect and steward the people’s money responsibly, and pay for core functions by cutting waste, fraud, abuse, and fluff: nonessential travel, padded contracts, non-essential projects, and programs that shouldn’t be funded by taxpayers in the first place. 

Families in Lubbock are already paying more for groceries, insurance, and other living essentials. Another $100-plus city levy on the typical family is money that cannot go to a car repair, a medical bill, or savings.

Taxpayers in Lubbock should make their voices heard before the final September 8th vote by the city council.

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1. https://www.mylubbock.us/m/newsflash/Home/Detail/87 ↩︎
2. https://www.mylubbock.us/DocumentCenter/View/1664/FY-2025-2026-Budget-Work-Session-PDF ↩︎
3. https://www.mylubbock.us/DocumentCenter/View/10327/Tax-Rate-Public-Hearing-Notice-26-27 ↩︎
4. https://www.mylubbock.us/m/newsflash/Home/Detail/88 ↩︎
5. https://www.mylubbock.us/DocumentCenter/View/10279 ↩︎
6. https://www.kcbd.com/2026/09/02/lubbock-city-council-approves-police-fire-association-agreements/ ↩︎
7. https://www.mylubbock.us/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09082026-225 ↩︎
8. https://www.kcbd.com/2026/09/01/lubbock-county-commissioners-propose-no-new-revenue-tax-rate-budget-talks-grow-tense/ ↩︎