Hawk Cove City Council Special Session 9/30/26
0:00:10 Council member: Good evening.
0:00:11 Mayor: All the special session of the City Council of the City of Occo, Texas, to order. On Wednesday, September 30, 2026, at 6 .31 p .m.
0:00:25 Speaker: Go on the roll for a quorum. Ms. Logan?
0:00:29 Council member: Here.
0:00:30 Mayor: Mr. Butcher?
0:00:31 Council member: Here.
0:00:32 Mayor: Mr. Cork?
0:00:33 Council member: Here.
0:00:33 Mayor: Mr. Howdy. Here. Ms. Wall. All members present, except Ms. Wall. We do have a quorum in accordance with Chapter 22 .039 of local Texas book government code. Special session requires 405.
0:00:56 Mayor: Ms. Hodges? Yes sir. Could you please lead us in the invocation?
0:01:01 Speaker: Thank you.
0:01:03 City Attorney: Thank you for the rain. Thank you for the cooler temperatures and all the other many blessings and gifts that you scatter and put the forest and invest in us. Father, I would ask a favor of you tonight. I petition you, please, Father, that you allow this council meeting to go smoothly, that the council members do as they are required to do by statute, that the city of Patco be allowed to benefit from the council's actions, and that the city have caught coke, thrive, and prosper. These things I ask of you, but I also thank you for the birth, life, death, and the resurrection of your son, Jesus, who is our Savior and our Lord. In his most holy name, Father, amen and thank you.
0:02:01 Mayor: Rise and join me in the Pledge of Allegiance, please.
0:02:08 Speaker: I pledge allegiance to the flag
0:02:09 Speaker: of the United
0:02:10 Speaker: States of America and
0:02:12 Speaker: to the Republic for
0:02:13 Speaker: which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
0:02:23 Mayor: I remember like first grade. I didn't have a kindergarten where I went. I lived, but we did that for the
0:02:33 Speaker: first of
0:02:34 Speaker: the eighth grade, I
0:02:35 Speaker: think, something like that.
0:02:36 Speaker: Every morning we did
0:02:37 Speaker: it in the high school.
0:02:38 Speaker: Every morning, yeah. Okay, Madam Secretary, do we have public comments? No public comments at this time. Great. Tonight I'll now proceed with the keynote.
0:03:00 Mayor: Members of council and fellow residents. Our community can restore its financial footing, but delay can raise costs and limit choices. We need cooperation, timely decisions, and sound processes. These concerns require attention. Delayed council action, requests outside designated channels and inquiries that begin before supporting facts are clear. Addressing them is not about blame, it is about protecting our city's future. Council members may disagree but they share a duty to govern in the community's best interests. Delays involving budget, contracts and obligations can raise costs or narrow or even end options.
0:03:48 Mayor: Residents deserve and are entitled to preparation, focused questions and workable solutions instead of making rhetoric and accusations. Debate strengthens the city, prolonged inaction weakens it. The public has important rights to government records subject to legal exemptions. Requests should use the city's standard process to track deadlines, protect confidential information, and document costs. Bypassing or ignoring these processes may create duplication,
0:04:24 Mayor: legal risk, or legal risk while repetitive or overly broad requests can divert staff, time, and resources from essential services. Our residents have the same rights as council members. No patriotism can be allowed. This is not a call for less transparency. A request should not be labeled vexatious merely because it is inconvenient, critical, or time -consuming. Any such conclusion must follow applicable law, documented patterns, and neutral legal guidance. Fair procedures protect access while helping the city respond consistently.
0:05:08 Mayor: Oversight should begin with stated concerns and available evidence. Credible concerns deserve review, but unfocused providers may consume staff time, increase legal costs, and we can trust. Document concerns preserve relevant records, seek independent review when warranted, and report varied findings as the law permits will make the oversight more effective.
0:05:36 Mayor: We can rebuild confidence now. Council should adopt a recovery plan within lawful deadlines, named responsibilities, and public updates. Plain language budget reports can identify problems early. A consistent records request protocol may reduce duplication, staff expense, and legal risk for preserving resources for essential services. Despite review, can provide independent review can provide reliable feet findings well progress reports show residents how the bonds are used and who is accountable we can put our site the city on stable ground that requires public commitment to action council members should begin the recovery plan follow established procedures a report progress opening residents should stay informed and ask for documented results. Let us choose action over delay, evidence over suspicion, and service over conflict. Working together can protect essential services, restore financial stability, and rebuild public competence. That is the responsible government our taxpayers deserve. Thank you.
0:06:54 Speaker: Ms.
0:06:54 City Attorney: Hodges? May I remain seated? Yes, ma 'am. Thank you. Citizens of our code, mayor and council. I'm again addressing the statutory duties still before the governing body. I'm not recommending or suggesting that any council member vote for or against a proposed budget or tax rate. Those are the decisions of each council member. My presentation tonight is limited to the statutory requirements is governing the proposed municipal budget and tax year 2026 tax rate presently before council. And only the consequences expressly provided within those statutory frameworks. I'm not addressing other law that may relate to governmental action or inaction. And nothing in this limited presentation should be understood as expressing an opinion concerning the existence, application or effect of any such law. First, the budget. Local Government Code section 112 .007a provides that at the conclusion of the public hearing on the proposed budget the governing body shall take action on the proposed budget. That is a mandate. It is not something that a council is authorized to sidestep. It's mandate from the legislature of Texas. That section further provides that a vote to adopt the budget must be a record vote and so that each person's vote is identified with their name. The required public hearing has been held and concluded. Council still has not complied with the statutory mandate. Section 102 .009a separately provides that the governing body may levy taxes only in accordance with the budget. Section 102 .009b provides that after final approval of the budget, municipal funds may be spent only in strict compliance with that budget, except as is otherwise provided for an emergency. I found no local government code chapter 102 provision that failure to adopt the proposed fiscal year 2026 -2027 budget automatically adopts extends or rolls forward last year's budget. I found nothing relieving I've also found nothing to the contrary just to be fair. I found nothing relieving the council of mandate to adopt a budget. That I have not found. The mandate exists. There's no statute that allows the council to avoid passing or adopting a budget. Council has also previously expressed concern about whether it had enough financial information to act on the proposed budget. For clarity of the record, council Council has the same CFO compiled financial information from which the Mayor as Budget Officer prepared the proposed budget. That includes quarterly profit and loss statements, balance sheets, other financial reports, the City's financial reports for the preceding two fiscal years, the Tax Year 2026 tax rate calculation worksheet that is produced from the County Tax Office, and the proposed fiscal year 2026, 2027 budget. In response to council's request for additional underlying financial information, council has city bank statements covering July 2024 through August 2026 with accounting routing information redacted for financial security. Those statements provide underlying source records against which the city's reported cash transactions and balances may be examined. They can be compared. They can be determined for accuracy. I identify those records only to state what information council has. I express no opinion concerning the conclusion any council member should draw from them.
0:11:27 City Attorney: After the budget is the tax year 2026 tax rate. Tax code section 26 .05a provides that the governing body shall, that's a mandate, it's a requirement adopt a tax rate for the current tax year and must, again, it's a mandate, it's a requirement, do so before the later of September 30th or the 60th day after receiving the certified appraisal role.
0:12:03 City Attorney: Do before the later of, so before September 30th was yesterday. On the information applicable to Hawk Cove, tonight is the city's adoption deadline. The rate presently noticed for Council's consideration is 0 .794903 per hundred dollars of property valuation. Council's not required by my advice to vote for or against that proposed rate. The legislature has, however, specified what happens if counsel does not timely adopt a rate. Tax code 26 .05C provides that the tax rate then becomes the lower of the current year's no new revenue rate or the rate adopted for the preceding tax year. The statute expressly provides that rate established in this manner is treated as an adopted tax rate. Hawk Cove 2026 no new revenue rate is 0 .794903. Hawk Cove tax year 2025 rate was 0 .774139. Again that's per hundred dollars of property valuation that is determined from the county assessor and tax offices combined. So last year the 2025 rate of 0 .774139 consisted of 0 .644185 of maintenance and operations. That's what keeps your city working and moving and functioning and 0 .129954 interest in sinking and that is the figure that is allocated solely for debt. The city's debt like the USDA debt. That county's official 2025 tax rate schedule confirms that total and those historical components. Therefore, if Council does not timely adopt the proposed Tax Year 2026 rate tonight, Section 26 .05 of the Tax Code, subsection C, rather than Council discretion, establishes the tax year 2026 total rate at 0 .7741 39 per hundred dollars of property valuation the statute treats that rate as adopted section twenty six point oh five C then imposes another duty it's another mandate it's another requirement it's not something the council can avoid before the fifth day after establishment of that rate, the governing body must ratify the applicable rate in the manner required by subsection B.
0:15:25 City Attorney: There presently is an unresolved procedural difficulty. The Open Meetings Act now requires ordinary meeting notices to remain posted for at least three business days before the date of a meeting. That's out of government code section 551 .043a. The city's presently posted agenda notices adoption tonight of 0 .794903. It does not notice a later ratification of the lower rate of 0 .774139.
0:16:06 City Attorney: The Concerning the interaction of these statutory requirements, I spoke with the Texas Comptroller's Property Tax Assistance Division. The representative understood the factual and statutory problem, understood the situation that is presently in effect at this council meeting tonight. That representative was unable to identify guidance to resolve the factual and statutory problem with which the council is faced now. That representative asked that I report any guidance that I subsequently received from the attorney general's office. I have also contacted the attorney general's open government hotline. And I've left a request for guidance. That request remains pending as of this presentation. And there is a second unresolved statutory interaction. Section 26 .05 C says that the fallback tax rate is treated as adopted while local government code section 102 .009 a says that a municipality may level levy taxes only in accordance with the budget. I've located no statute either way providing that section 26 .05 c of the tax code that establishment of the tax rate simultaneously adopts or extends a municipal budget so there's there's no out is what I is what I say there's no out from adopting a budget The tax rate statute doesn't provide a way out from adopting a budget. Accordingly, if council does not adopt a budget and does not timely adopt the proposed tax rate tonight, the statutes produce the following budget and tax consequences beyond merely continuing the present disagreements. The proposed budget remains unadopted despite 102 .007A's direction. The Council shall take action upon it. The City's authority to levy taxes remains subject to Government Code 102 .009A requirement that taxes be levied only in accordance with the budget. Section 26 .05C itself establishes that if the tax rate is not adopted tonight, 0 .774139 will be the tax year 2026 rate and will treat it as adopted. Council then incurs a separate mandatory statutory duty to ratify that rate within the period prescribed by 26 .05 C. Please remember, the budget must be adopted before the tax rate can be adopted. So the council is looking at a mandatory statutory duty to ratify the tax rate, and it has not yet adopted the budget that it has to adopt first.
0:19:42 City Attorney: The city presently has sought but has not yet received authoritative guidance resolving how the ratification deadline is to be reconciled with the Open Meetings Act's News Free Business Day notice requirement or how the statutorily established rate is to be implemented if no fiscal year 2026 -2027 budget is adopted. Finally, council's decision. They remain council's decisions. Nothing I have said requires any member to vote for or against the proposed budget or the proposed tax rate. Nothing I have said requires that. You have to refer to the My presentation has been limited to the statutory requirements governing those matters, and the consequences expressly provided only within those statutory frameworks. I have not undertaken to address, nor will I address, other law that may relate to governmental action or inaction, and no conclusion concerning other law should be drawn from its absence from this presentation. Each council member retains the duty and judgment of office concerning the vote that individual council member casts. Thank you, Mayor. I yield the floor to the chair.
0:21:18 Mayor: Thank you, Ms. Hodges.
0:21:24 Mayor: We have no new business.
0:21:28 Mayor: Our Next item is old business discuss
0:21:38 Mayor: consider and take action to adopt the revised proposed fiscal year 2027 municipal budget presented to reflect an ad hoc tax rate of zero point seven nine four nine zero three dollars per one hundred dollars of taxable value. Record vote required. The budget is a flexible evolving document that should be revised when necessary and remain subject to oversight, a report comparing actual results with the adopted budget is in development and will be issued with the city's first monthly close for fiscal year 2027. State law requires any amendment involving a material budget change to be presented to the city council for discussion and approval before taking effect. This oversight is a fundamental responsibility of government. The budget must be adopted before the property tax rate because the statutory rate calculation depends on the adopted budget debt service component. I need to be clear, meetings of the City Council are subject to provisions of the Texas Open Meetings Act of the Texas Government Code. Section 551. Subsection 551 .041 pertains to the posting of the agenda for each meeting. These meetings have have been posted properly. Subsection 551 .042 prohibits debate, deliberation, and decision on any items or subjects not identified on the proposed agenda. Emails, records, e -mails, record requests, complaints, and demands do not expand the posted agenda and therefore are identified as out of order. Furthermore, subsection 551 .143 prohibits any series of communications units to involve a quorum in deliberation regardless of method, sequence, or intent. This meeting will remain open, lawful, and strictly confined to the posted agenda items. These requirements are not optional and will be enforced. For the good of the city and its residents, let us approve both the budget and the no new revenue tax rate rather than allow personal differences to stand in the way of a people we have formed to serve.
0:23:57 Mayor: Council members have had plenty of time to review the budget.
0:24:05 Mayor: I'll now entertain discussion and I call on you.
0:24:10 Speaker: Miss Logan.
0:24:11 Council member: Mr.
0:24:14 Council member: Butcher.
0:24:19 Council member: We're here to discuss the budget. I really feel like we're out here discussing the budget. you're just trying to get us to vote on a tax rate of 0 .79 which we're in disagreement of but
0:24:39 Council member: other than that I don't have anything else to say on this if I can't get us to discuss the budget and not put a vote up
0:24:53 Council member: set price that we none of us even discussed a budget. This was all set up prior to us even seeing anything.
0:25:08 Council member: So my question is is why haven't we gone heavier into the budget locating the discrepancies and and taking care of the problem and cutting it cutting the budget so the tax doesn't have to be raised. Do you want me to answer that? Would you please that's a question I have and I need it I need it taken care of really.
0:25:45 Mayor: Each call of the item agenda item I am open for discussion.
0:25:51 Council member: It's been the same every night though is what I'm saying. That's right. It's been the same and you have to change it and we haven't been able that say anything on it to change it. Your Honor. That's true. My point
0:26:02 City Attorney: of my building. Could we have one person talking at a time please and when someone is talking until they finish I would ask that anyone else remain quiet and allow them to finish.
0:26:15 Speaker: Thank you.
0:26:17 Council member: Again, while we're discussing this, which we should all be doing, instead of listening to all of the the legal work of a role that we're having to go through, and discuss the budget and
0:26:34 Council member: where the money is being spent and why it's being spent and why the council hasn't been given the opportunity to discuss with these different vendors and persons that are doing business with our town
0:26:55 Council member: nothing's been discussed with us we've been out we've been shunned so I'm trying to get this straightened out and this is the best way I know how to do it is bring it up in front of God and everybody and let's get the let's get this taken care of it and quit the like I said the legal rigmarole that we're having to go through every night
0:27:21 Speaker: I
0:27:28 Mayor: will answer your questions okay you have had the budget documentation yes sir since Tuesday a week eight days every meeting I have opened the floor for discussion twice per agenda item once prior to requesting a motion and once after to each individual. Many times that option opportunity has been declined. Occasionally that opportunity has been taken and has gone out of order.
0:28:17 Mayor: There has been ample time to review and discuss but can't discuss it if you don't have if you haven't done your research.
0:28:32 Speaker: Miss Hodges.
0:28:34 City Attorney: Yeah I would submit that that budget has been up on the board since the end of August. Yes. We are now at the end of September. It has not been eight days it has been over a month.
0:28:49 Mayor: If you have a point that I was saying it was in their hand it's been in their hands
0:28:56 Mayor: physically and by authority for eight days does
0:29:08 Mayor: that answer your questions
0:29:09 Council member: part of it what
0:29:15 Mayor: part is not answered we
0:29:16 Council member: still don't get to discuss the budget we have it I mean you're putting it out there it's been out there for eight days posted or a month or whatever but we have people recording us all the time when did we get a chance to talk to each other without them wanting to come up and or somebody try to bust us for having an open meeting act, a violation, or something. This is getting ridiculous, man. Every day we walk out of here. She's got a recorder on us. Mckeehan had a recorder on us when she was here. She's had a recorder on us. I'm sorry, but you have had a recorder?
0:30:04 Council member: Anyways, back
0:30:05 City Attorney: to the budget,
0:30:08 Council member: we're here to discuss setting a budget, not what you guys are proposing. That's what you propose, this .79. We're not going for the .79. It's too much. There's too much money going out and not enough coming in.
0:30:31 Council member: It's being spent on stuff that, we're finding stuff in here, but we can't question nothing because then we're in violation of something.
0:30:43 Mayor: No, if you want to question the budget, you are more than invited to do so. In fact, it's your responsibility if you have a line item question on the budget.
0:30:55 Council member: I have a bunch of questions that I would like for Miss Bernardi when she has her chance to speak up to be able to voice because I'm in a lot of agreement with what she has to say about the legality of everything that's going on.
0:31:13 City Attorney: Your honor we could take every line item. Pardon? We could discuss every line item by council member one line at a time get all that line taken care of go to the next slide. I don't see a problem with that. Do
0:31:27 Mayor: you? No, ma 'am. I do not
0:31:32 Mayor: have a secretary.
0:31:35 Speaker: Yeah, I need to clear up. Mr. Butchers statement. Yes, sir. Those are for records for me to do the minutes. That is the only recording that I've ever done of you. And those are specifically for me to do the minutes.
0:31:52 Council member: I had no understand that
0:31:53 Speaker: one
0:31:54 Speaker: and that that's part of my job I have not recorded you any other time okay and that is for
0:32:00 Speaker: the record retract my statement thank
0:32:03 Speaker: you off
0:32:03 Speaker: agenda
0:32:04 Speaker: I just
0:32:05 Speaker: don't know why this town needs a council we'll never get to vote on anything when you hire somebody we don't know we don't know who's here and who's not here we don't ever get to vote on them to be here are we supposed to if they hire a cop if they hire somebody to do work or whatever are we not supposed to have a boat on that Shall
0:32:30 Mayor: I answer that now? Well, I guess so. The City Council, the governing body of an entity is not involved in day -to -day operations. That is the reason for things like city administrators, city managers, CFOs, secretaries, etc., etc.
0:32:51 Council member: What does council do? Utilities clerks, pardon me? What do we do? What do the councils do? What do we get to do? What do we vote on other than this?
0:33:05 City Attorney: Policy ordinances. Ordinances,
0:33:08 Council member: resolutions. Well I haven't voted on any of those.
0:33:11 Mayor: We haven't been able to get to those.
0:33:15 Council member: So we don't get a vote who they hire us? No. Somebody that's we don't get a vote at all. Why
0:33:25 Mayor: would you want to? That's a rhetorical question. That's a rhetorical question. Miss Hodges.
0:33:33 City Attorney: The city administrator and the city secretary have been delegated the obligations of the day -to -day activities that maintain the city. They are basically the folks behind the scenes that help to keep the city running on a fairly even keel. The purpose of the council is as a legislative body. Now let's say for example if you look at your Texas state legislator, legislature, they make policy, they control, they make statutes, they're the ones that are controlling the legislative lawmaking part of Texas. The day -to -day operations of the state of Texas are vested in the Comptroller's Office, the Tax Office. These are like your separate groups in your administrative groups within the city that keep it running day -to -day. The legislature meets for certain periods of time and the others the the other departments who are not law making authorities they keep things running according to what the legislature has written for them to do that is a division that may help you. So,
0:35:10 Council member: just like they say hired Massey, we don't get to decide that we'd be hired, how much money she should be getting from, we don't get to decide that. Even as you, we don't get to decide where your now salary will be. We don't get to decide none of that. I don't understand that. What's our job?
0:35:28 Speaker: I can. Let me, let me answer
0:35:30 Speaker: her. Why don't I know how much you make?
0:35:32 Speaker: Let me answer her please. I
0:35:34 Speaker: had a your contract and
0:35:36 Speaker: I will when she stops for a minute so that I can speak I was hired by a previous counsel I remain the city attorney as under that authority until that authority has changed I remain the city attorney
0:35:53 Speaker: but I can't see your contract I'm not
0:35:59 City Attorney: responsible for giving you that if you want a copy of city records, you need to follow the city mechanism that it's in place for council members to acquire records to request and obtain records. It's that simple.
0:36:14 Council member: It means they cost $2 ,000. Yeah. Point of
0:36:17 Speaker: order.
0:36:18 Mayor: I'm gonna ask that if you feel that you're qualified, would you do this job? Or are you qualified to do any of jobs for the amount of money we pay
0:36:32 Speaker: them.
0:36:35 Council member: The budget,
0:36:37 Mayor: all the money that we pay in payroll, the employee component and the federal tax component is in the budget. It is in the budget by fund because that's the way budgets are designed for governmental entities. They're designed to be budgeted by funds.
0:37:07 Speaker: Some of that information you're requesting
0:37:09 Speaker: is,
0:37:12 Speaker: some
0:37:13 Speaker: of that information you're requesting is protected information by the Texas Privacy Act and the US Government Privacy Act.
0:37:28 Mayor: I recommend for all council members to read those two those two documents as well as a state constitution and a federal constitution.
0:37:43 Speaker: I have.
0:37:46 City Attorney: Now I think your honor and fairness Miss Logan still had something that she wanted to say. You
0:37:51 Council member: know I understand what everybody's saying here. I understand what you're saying. I don't get it, I don't think it's right but I understand what you're saying. But I will read it over again and maybe get some other information as well.
0:38:05 City Attorney: Alright the agenda item is budget.
0:38:08 Mayor: Back to the agenda item or the budget.
0:38:14 Mayor: Mr. Butcher you you still have the floor on that okay Mr. Clark do you have anything to discuss with regard to the agenda item budget no
0:38:30 Council member: I'm already with this I think it all home and I read all of it I understand it I agree with it I've read the salaries,
0:38:43 Speaker: I've read the
0:38:45 Council member: the budget,
0:38:47 Council member: I've seen the campus checks, it was able to line it up easy, it was so it's simple to do and I have I have no problems.
0:38:58 Council member: Everything is in order and the way it should be so
0:39:03 Mayor: I'm okay. Thank you.
0:39:08 Speaker: I'm
0:39:22 Council member: concerned that I have all that was said, I could do what we said on that. We don't have a timely day to talk about the major problems that we have with our change in our government. You can deny it all day long. There's enough from the Attorney General's office to clearly see that we got a change in our government without the election process. Out of order. Out of
0:39:51 Mayor: order. Under budget, please. Budget with regard to budget. We are addressing budget.
0:39:57 Council member: We are addressing budget. We are addressing budget. So, in regards to the budget, the things that I, in the tax rate, which obviously a jig on hand in hand. And what I understand,
0:40:19 Council member: we're talking about the 2025 that
0:40:29 Council member: tax order that was signed off on. And my findings on that, it states that in Texas, the county tax order is not the same legal instrument as a city council ordinance. municipalities have their own governing bodies and statutory procedures for adopting when it is.
0:40:52 Council member: Counties on the other hand are separate taxing units.
0:40:58 Mayor: Yes that is correct. What is the question? What is the point? Please hurry and get to the point without going off budget agenda item please. we
0:41:21 Council member: were talking about if the budget is not come to a head that we don't make a decision on the budget that it's going to go back to the obviously to the tax rate of 0 .79 of which was calculated by the county of which was we talked about that before of where was it how was the information given to them to calculate that. Then we go back to our budget issue which
0:41:49 Council member: there was there's still the missing operating bank accounts that was requested that nobody saw what those are. And that is very fundamental to what M &O operation property taxes are, which are tied to M &O which are tied to our operating account
0:42:06 Speaker: what accounts were never
0:42:08 Speaker: the operating bank account. Those we never got those banks.
0:42:12 Speaker: Identify that bank account. What
0:42:14 Speaker: is it? Operating bank account. Operating
0:42:16 Speaker: bank account. That is not in the in the stack that was given to you? It
0:42:20 Speaker: wasn't mine.
0:42:21 Speaker: No. It was like one month. It wasn't the whole year.
0:42:25 Speaker: That's because the whole year isn't existing yet. No.
0:42:30 Council member: No. No, we we got back from the previous July of 25. Through the end of August. That's a year's word. We didn't get that for operating. We only got all that she came back and provided July. That is not a whole year's worth of bank statements for the operating account, which is our M &L account, which a lot derives from that account. But we never got that. Not even after a second time, not even after a third time, and we never got that. So going back to the validity of that tax order, which we're referring to because we don't pass that here. We're very back to last year. And last year's last year's was a tax order. It was a hot county tax order, not an ordinance. So that's where it comes back to us in the local government code. What's that for chapter 51 012? think it is general powers of municipality general provisions picking 1 .012 ordinances and regulations the municipality may adopt an ordinance an act a law or regulation not inconsistent with the state law that is necessary for the government interest welfare good order of municipality as a as a body politic so basically also it's a county tax order passed by its own valid as a municipal act. If it is purport purports to be adopted by City Council, there is no automatic validity from City Council on a county tax order. The City Council cannot adopt a county tax order. If the City Council gets to do so, the act would be invalid as a municipal act because it was not adopted by the correct governing body. If the county tax order was passed by City Council or any municipality, it is not valid. It's not a valid county tax order and would be invalid for county tax purposes. Therefore, I am able to charge taxpayers on behalf of the municipality. The contract and assessment and collection services between Hunk County Tax Assessor and the City of Wauk Co. states, under administrative provision item 3D, the county shall not be liable to the taxing unit or City of Wauk Co. on I can't have any failure to collect taxes unless failure to flex taxes result from some failure of the county tax essential office to perform the duties imposed upon the hunk county tax office by law and by agreement or previous our previous mayor, the worst
0:45:15 Mayor: fans
0:45:15 Council member: can
0:45:17 Council member: and has more witness after she stated verbally and publicly writing and social media issues misled to sign the nine 3025 County tax order to 25 .9 .1 in City Hall. It was signed off in City Hall without council's knowledge. This action to sign up on the tax order 93025 was restricted by our city attorney and city admin manager. Both of whom signed off on and sent over this 2025 tax order to the tax
0:45:46 Mayor: office. And this is how
0:45:47 Council member: I'm getting on so that so that the county could charge the taxpayers and city could receive money. This action is perceived as an act the tax fraud against the taxpayers and see about the tax order twenty twenty five point nine point one states whereas the majority of the city council this is on that tax order whereas the majority of the city council of the city of pop toe did not adopt the fiscal year twenty twenty five twenty six property tax rate and whereas the fiscal year 25 -26 property tax rate is therefore established pursuant to tax code 2605 B and C and this order ratifying the same pursuit to tax code sections 2605 B and C is in the best interest of the City of High Code.
0:46:40 Mayor: How is last year's action effect this year? Last year's inaction effect the budget issue. We
0:46:54 Council member: just got there saying that if this tax rate does not pass, it reverts back to the previous.
0:47:03 Council member: The previous is this right here from 2025. Order not it is not the legal instrument as stated to be used by counsel to tax the county tax order. This county tax orders and contradiction to what the state of Texas says are the powers and provisions on municipality 51 .012 ordinance and regulations is stated. It is also invalid as a council had not adopted a budget according to 102 .0 9a and administration and city attorney block code misled Miss Mary Spence and was under the influence she was under the influence and moved forward in attempt to show an adopted tax rate of 0 .774 to legitimize charging for that tax rate for 2025 even without a budget and no passage of a tax rate as it appears it was stated in that it was sitting that tax code for 2025 that we hadn't passed a budget we didn't have a budget we didn't have we hadn't voted on anything but it was forced by hand on a tax court tax document it was a tax code document from the county it was not passed to this council we had no budget we had no tax approved but Mayor Spence and our registration signed off down anyway and submitted it without our approval without our without our knowledge so
0:48:36 Council member: what appears to be favorable to the council to our citizen is tax code 2604 H1 which
0:48:51 Council member: I submitted that three years ago when we had the other issue of the same thing. It's a submission of a role to the governing body. No new relevant and voter approval tax rates. Notwithstanding subsection H, if the anticipated collection rate of a taxing unit as calculated under that subsection is lower than the lowest election rate of the taxing unit for any of the preceding three years, the anticipated collection rate of the taxing unit for purposes of this section is equal to the lowest actual collection rate of the taxing unit for any preceding three years. This is for Hawk Cove the quarantine unit and the points of how county five year tax rates history including their doctorate as posted on the hot contacts website would be your 2023 adopted rate of 0 .642038 those within the three year look back window according to that 2604 H1. If there is a continuance to pursue the hot county 2025 tax order as a basis for this year's tax rate disregarding 2604 h1 then based on the tax code provided based on the tax code provided to us by state of Texas our taxpayers may receive according to tax code 2604 g a person who owns taxable property is entitled to an injunction prohibiting the taxing unit city about code in which the property is taxable from adopting a tax rate. If the assessors are designated officer or employee city secretary of the taxing unit the chief appraiser of the applicant appraisal district or the taxing unit the city as applicable has not complied with the computation publication or posting requirements for this section or section 26 .16 posting of tax -related information on county's internet website 26 .18 posting the tax rate and budget information by taxing unit on the website and which all the above with the exception of 26 .17 are applicable it is a defense and an action for an injunction under this subsection that the failure to comply was in good faith. Now this information came off
0:51:24 Mayor: I got a question for you. Did you pay your taxes last year?
0:51:29 Council member: Yes, sir. I did. And one of the high payers
0:51:31 Speaker: out here. Did you protest? Did you protest the rate?
0:51:36 Speaker: Yes, I did. Oh, you know how
0:51:37 Speaker: much I paid? Did you know how much I
0:51:39 Speaker: paid? Did you know how much I paid? Oh, stop. That's off, Jenna. Stop.
0:51:44 Speaker: Did you protest the rate then for your own taxes? Last year is now.
0:51:51 Mayor: Well you were you were charged 0 .77.
0:51:56 Council member: Sure and I asked about it then to
0:51:58 Mayor: the city of Oco. Yes
0:51:59 Council member: I did and I said something about it. I sure did. I sure did. I said it to them. They know about it. In fact I believe I've heard Mckeehan and say that they talked to the county into the tax office and you know said all kinds of hateful But yeah.
0:52:18 Mayor: Oh, did you get your feelings hurt? No. I didn't say that. I didn't say that. Excuse me.
0:52:22 Council member: My feelings hurt. I'll just
0:52:24 Mayor: finish with your discussion with regard to the agenda item for the budget.
0:52:31 Council member: I do. I got a question about the budget. Okay. I have a question for everyone here on the budget and how things cost.
0:52:43 Council member: Do you really care about how the people are out here talking about the way the roads are? Just answer yes or no. No comment, just yes or no.
0:52:58 Council member: I care about the people, they're poor people. One at a time. Yes or no? They don't have the money to pay that. Okay, okay. They don't have it. Most of them. Do you not have to talk to them?
0:53:09 Speaker: Wait
0:53:09 Council member: a minute. I've talked to people. And I hear, I hear what they say. So I'm saying, I'm questioning is, have you, do you care about what they're saying about the roads?
0:53:23 Council member: Sure, that's
0:53:24 Council member: okay.
0:53:28 Council member: And yes, okay. And you and you have said this online, right?
0:53:35 Council member: When, when that was brought up. What about the road? Sure. Okay, I'm asking I'm gonna ask you do you know how much it costs to lay one mile of Asphalt No, I look it up Because I look up things
0:53:54 Speaker: So how
0:53:56 Speaker: much
0:53:56 Speaker: is it cause
0:53:57 Speaker: my question is how much is it cost how much do you know how much it costs to lay one mile of Asphalt that includes milling which means you have to dig it up and lay the asphalt don't if you cover it again where the hose work it's gonna cave in like a sinkhole.
0:54:18 Speaker: Be careful you're getting in the head still there now. He does that.
0:54:22 Mayor: Let me ask this question. I just
0:54:24 Council member: asked a question. I didn't ask for comment. Do you know how much it costs? No. Okay. Do you know how much it costs? Okay, it costs anywhere between $400 ,000 to $1 million. Okay, so where does that money come from? When we drop big, we keep on dropping everything. Who's going to pay for that? What are you going to tell these people say I dropped all this money? And I'm saying that you don't get rose fixed because it's going to cost anywhere between $400 ,000 to $1 million. That's good. That is just...
0:54:57 Council member: All these people around here are getting too much money.
0:55:00 Speaker: I'm going to ask each individual a question. Thank you, sir.
0:55:05 Speaker: I'm done and I
0:55:06 Speaker: call for it. Thank you for your input. Thank you for your
0:55:08 Speaker: input. Yeah, but it doesn't mean anything, so it doesn't really matter. Would you like
0:55:11 Speaker: this? I'm going to ask each individual a question. Coming from recess. It is that and where does the money come from for the city's delay road? Who pays for it?
0:55:33 Mayor: How does the city get it?
0:55:39 Mayor: How does the city get the money to pay roads? It
0:55:41 Council member: comes by maintenance and operations.
0:55:44 Mayor: And how is maintenance operations funded? Through our property taxes. They're going? Right. Okay.
0:55:56 Mayor: I'm going to let that sink in for a bit. When we come back from recess, I will then entertain a motion. at this time we are in motion we are in recess at 7 26 p .m. September 30 2026 or 10 minutes
0:56:57 Council member: Everybody has a practice. You know that. You guys are really valid. Good questions. It really is. There's people thinking that same thing that's why you're sitting in that chair. That's why each of us are in our position because the voter wanted us to speak on their back.
0:57:15 Council member: I talked to people, you know, I've talked to people all the time. I know what the answer
0:57:19 Council member: is. And that's a good thing. That's a good thing.
0:57:23 Council member: Ten yards of aggregate is 600 bucks.
0:57:29 Council member: But see, the realization of all that, as you see the housing we have out here, what is our, what is the federal poverty level? Okay, so our problem is if you're in the federal poverty level, and you've got people, and we have a payroll, and independent contractors, and the people with almost a half a million dollars, which most likely exceeds our maintenance and operation, what does that tell anybody? But see, I'm not allowed to speak that, right? But that's the truth in there.
0:58:06 Council member: Yes, sir. Well, too many, too many people.
0:58:09 Council member: We can't get in here to discuss on it.
0:58:11 Council member: And we're sitting here having a tax order that's invalid. Those passed without counsel's knowledge, without, I mean, but that's what we have to go back to. That's because nobody wants to provide that information that's sacred. Do you know that? That is sacred. It's our money, but it's sacred and hit from us, but it's our money. See, that's the whole problem.
0:58:47 Council member: When you separate that out and say, oh no, you can see all this over here that I've fixed for you. But this over here, you can't see it. And I don't have to answer you, and I don't have to tell you why you can't see it. and that and we're in a we're in a public this is open
0:59:08 Speaker: yeah
0:59:09 City Attorney: we're
0:59:10 Council member: opening here this is supposed to be transparent open government we don't have a transparent open government that's the problem.
0:59:22 Council member: I guess our policy 552 -011. I think it is. I'm so
0:59:29 Council member: tired of hearing all these policies and
0:59:31 Council member: issues. Well, I'm reading
0:59:34 Council member: them. It's all you want. It's a bunch of crap.
0:59:38 Council member: Yeah, no, but I'm talking about the policy that says we're not talking
0:59:40 Council member: about the issue of the budget. We're talking about all these laws and this and that and what we're supposed to. Yep, I hear ya. Just burning the clock
0:59:51 Council member: up. Yeah,
0:59:52 Council member: I know. One of these days, somebody will be telling us they don't stay cold. That's all they're going to say. Nothing what they say. You just gonna be cold.
1:00:11 Council member: People talking in cold all the time. It's what's coming to
1:00:17 Council member: the jazz. I believe he asked a very valid question.
1:00:22 Council member: What they do need to cut some stuff. What you can tell?
1:00:27 Council member: That's why he got it.
1:00:34 Council member: I don't know. I don't know.
1:00:38 Council member: I take people food all the time around here.
1:00:41 Council member: All the time. I thank you for doing that.
1:00:43 Council member: I enjoy it. I do enjoy helping people.
1:00:48 Council member: You have a good heart.
1:00:49 Council member: You know, I'm a writer and I mow the grass up and down. Yes, sir. You do, ma 'am. They do down Jeffries and Evelyn and Maureen and do a couple yards over there for some women.
1:01:11 Speaker: That shows the goodness in your heart. Thank you. You're not the evil person, but
1:01:15 Speaker: something can make
1:01:16 Speaker: you out of me. Well, I don't try to be me at all.
1:01:17 Speaker: I've never, I'm always trying to help folks.
1:01:22 Speaker: This is it.
1:01:24 Speaker: This is what we have
1:01:25 Speaker: to do. I didn't have the money, but I bought a little damn one of them little mini skid -steers that you stand on, so I could try to fix my street, all the roads and stuff.
1:01:39 Speaker: Yeah, we actually, uh,
1:01:43 Council member: we were talking about the roads. Yeah. Yeah, we actually sent in the bills on the, over ten grand up. Yeah. Yeah, my axles and everything tore up. Sixty -five hundred dollars. Yeah. I didn't pay tax.
1:02:08 Speaker: And then I got back to the university.
1:02:10 Speaker: You got to rebuild on that truck.
1:02:13 Speaker: I know you were. You had said something about that. You were working on it.
1:02:15 Speaker: You see
1:02:19 Council member: my husband's truck. That red dooley, I love that truck. He keeps on trying to sell it. He ain't selling that truck. I love that truck. I can't drive it, but I love it. I can't even see him staring.
1:02:35 Council member: We are selling the Hummer though. You're interested, Alan?
1:02:40 Speaker: Uh -huh. That's out of my league.
1:02:43 Speaker: About 6 ,000, that's it.
1:02:46 Speaker: Isn't that bad?
1:02:48 Speaker: I'm good for my old beat -up Chevy truck. I
1:02:52 Speaker: like them old trucks.
1:02:57 Speaker: I'm gonna tell you. I
1:02:59 Speaker: gotta get it back over to
1:03:00 Speaker: the truck. I ain't hatin' that hurt since the day he brought it home.
1:03:04 Speaker: It's too tall for you, ain't it?
1:03:06 Speaker: Well, it is a little tall. No, it's inside. so small it's just compact. You don't look that one, but you get in it and you're like this.
1:03:16 Speaker: But
1:03:22 Council member: what are you saying about that? A mile? We said it's 400 ,000 from a mile of court.
1:03:28 Speaker: So would you say all of that? No,
1:03:29 Council member: it's 400 ,000 to one million. To what?
1:03:33 Council member: One million. That's a big wide difference there. So half a million to a million from one mile wide enough. That's true asphalt, not recycled. No, it's not. It's true.
1:03:42 Council member: It's not recycled. Recycled is just mud.
1:03:47 Speaker: One mile.
1:03:49 Speaker: But that's a big, that's a big gap.
1:03:52 Speaker: And the only way, the only way to get that is
1:03:55 Speaker: to cross your T's and zot your I's. The federal government can get grants
1:03:58 Speaker: to get that. You can turn it off. That was it to the young ones. Yeah.
1:04:12 Council member: Yeah, for two new Morris was 25
1:04:16 Council member: ,000. Yeah, that was close to been spent. Yeah.
1:04:25 Council member: Yeah, I was 20 ,000 for the resupple. Yeah, that I was told for that for that part.
1:04:33 Council member: From there up Amy.
1:04:36 Council member: Just on Morris and then it was 25 ,000 when Grand Hercules station the angle of station down to the actual plant but it was not recycled it was the next step up I guess. But so out of that we'll say 50 ,000 There's still 100, or what should we say, 97
1:05:00 Speaker: ,000. They
1:05:01 Council member: did not mill it, and it was already starting to fall apart. And it wasn't even a model. No, it wasn't even a quarter model. I was saying about two football fields long,
1:05:13 Mayor: but they -
1:05:15 Council member: Well, there is a crack there in the road where they - That's
1:05:20 Council member: because they just went through there and just covered up holes.
1:05:23 Council member: Yeah, they didn't picture that.
1:05:24 Speaker: It has to be fixed. You're talking about Amy? Yeah they need
1:05:31 Council member: to get one of those big grinders over there. We need to find one of those big grinders and grind that road up and have it laid back down.
1:05:49 Council member: We are returning
1:05:50 Mayor: from recess at 7 36 p .m. on September 30, 2026. Special session of the City Council for the City of Hopco.
1:06:03 Mayor: Prior to recess I
1:06:09 Mayor: made the statement that we will I will call for an entertainer motion. I will now entertain a motion to adopt fiscal
1:06:21 Mayor: year 2027 municipal budget presented to reflect an ad valorem tax rate of 0 .79434903 dollars per hundred dollars in taxable value. Do I have a motion? Mr. Cork has made the motion to adopt. Any further discussion?
1:06:48 Mayor: I will now entertain a second.
1:06:58 Mayor: There is no second to adopt.
1:07:02 Mayor: Therefore, there is no vote to adopt.
1:07:07 Mayor: The next item on the agenda becomes a moot because you have to have an adopted budget before that could be interest. No other business. I will now entertain a motion to adjourn.
1:07:27 Mayor: Ms. Bernardi has made the motion for adjournment. I will entertain a second.
1:07:34 Mayor: Ms. Logan has seconded the motion. All in favor of adjournment indicate by saying aye. All opposed indicate nay. You guys have it. We are adjourned at 7 .38 8 p .m. on September 30, 2026 for the special session of the City Council and City Hop Code. Thank you all very much. I'll make sure I get that for record,
1:08:50 Speaker: please. Me too. Did
1:09:01 Mayor: you get that ordinance draft, ratification ordinance draft?
1:09:10 Mayor: Oh no, you wouldn't be drafting that, it'd be the agenda item.