Note: This is the fifth in a series of posts about the City of Round Rock’s proposed fiscal 2021 budget and tax rate.
Want better roads? How about better parks? All you have to do is Shop the Rock!
Seriously, head over to the outlets and buy those shoes, or venture downtown for lunch. It doesn’t matter if you are shopping, dining or getting your pet groomed; your dollars are helping to build our community. What makes this possible? Sales tax.
For every $100 in purchases by visitors, residents and businesses, the City collects $2 in sales tax revenues. The General Fund, which pays for public safety, parks, library and other basic City services, gets $1, while 50 cents goes to property tax reduction and the remaining 50 cents goes to the Type B Fund to pay for roads and economic development.
In the proposed fiscal 2021 budget, sales tax revenue makes up $48.3 million of the General Fund budget – that’s 40 percent. Property tax revenue, by comparison, makes up 37 percent.
Clearly, sales tax revenue is vitally important to Round Rock’s budget. The 50 cents out of every $100 spent in Round Rock that goes into the Type B Fund helps address Round Rock’s biggest challenge: traffic. Since approved by voters in 1997, that half-cent has generated $600 million worth of transportation improvements. It also helps fund the City’s economic development partnership with the Round Rock Chamber, which brings high-quality, high-paying jobs to the community.
And about that 50 cents earmarked for property tax reduction. It reduces the property tax rate for FY 2021 by 14.4 cents. That saves the median homeowner $31 per month, or 25 percent, on their monthly tax bill.
Paying for new roads and keeping our property tax rate among the lowest in the state — what other reasons do you need to Shop the Rock?
So next time you see a shirt you love, buy it! Your city – and your tax bill – will thank you.
