County Finalizes New Budget

Fayette County Commissioners Court wrapped up next year’s budget at their meeting last Thursday, Aug. 12. They adopted the budget for next year and held a public hearing on the tax increase necessary to fund next year’s budget.

The tax rate went down slightly from this year, but increasing property values in Fayette County will result in an 8.4 percent tax increase for maintenance and operations, despite the lower rate. The Commissioners held a public hearing on the tax increase, but no one from the public spoke.

In other business, Commissioners approved two applications for the division of real property. Both of them – a 6.991 acre in Pct. 1 and a 14.22 acre tract in Pct. 2 – were being divided into two smaller tracts.

County Inspector Clint Sternadel presented a septic and subdivision report for the month of August. There were 24 septic permits issued, compared to 17 the previous month. Sternadel’s office completed 24 septic inspections, which was the same as the previous month. The office issued 25 development permits, up from 19 in July. There were five divisions of property in August, down from 12 in July. Those divisions resulted in six new tracts of property. Two of those divisions were in Pct. 1, two were in Pct. 2, one was in Pct. 3, and there were no divisions in Pct. 4 during August.

Commissioners approved an application for a pipeline crossing under Hills Road in Pct. 2. The application was submitted by ET Gathering & Processing LLC.

The Court also authorized the Recycling Department to purchase a 2018 Chevy Silverado crew cab from ValMark Chevrolet in New Braunfels for a cost of $30,388.09. They also awarded a bid for the sale of a 1999 Ford pickup from the Recycling Department. Recycling manager Paul Zapalac said the truck suffered from some mechanical problems. Zapalac said he tried selling the pickup on an online auction site, but it failed to attract a buyer. The County advertised it for sale to the public. The winning bid was $502 from Lawrence E. Hoff.

Commissioners approved a slate of contracts for detention and counseling services for juvenile offenders. The providers include facilities operated by Guadelupe County, Bell County, Victoria County and Fort Bend County; the Rockdale Youth Academy; Shoreline, Inc.; Gulf Coast Trades Center; Gilleland Behavioral Health; and counselors Jill Flores and Rose