City council sets proposed 2026 tax rate

September 11, 2026

Mineola—The Mineola City Council convened for a meeting on Aug. 10 to address critical financial, operational, and personnel matters for the upcoming 2026–2027 fiscal year.

The meeting opened with an invocation led by Councilmember Mitchell Tuck and the Pledges of Allegiance led by Mayor Jayne Lankford. No public comments were submitted.

Health & Supplemental Insurance Plans Awarded

Following presentation and discussion regarding employee benefits, the council took decisive action on health and supplemental coverage options for city staff:

Health Insurance: Councilmember Jimmy Alexander made a motion to award the employee health insurance contract to the low bidder, United Healthcare. The motion was seconded by Councilmember Cassandra Sampson and passed unanimously.

Dental, Vision & Life: Councilmember Tuck moved to approve Guardian as the provider for employee dental, vision, and life insurance. Seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Terry Eaton, the motion carried unanimously.

The council reviewed four contribution scenarios to manage a 19% increase in overall health insurance costs. Under the baseline plan, the city pays 100% of employee-only premiums ($482,558.74 annually under current rates). The budget proposals evaluated shifting or absorbing costs across HSA and Buy-Up plans to balance municipal expenses against employee out-of-pocket payroll contributions.

Council Formally Adopts Proposed 2026 Property Tax Rate

Following a briefing by City Manager and Finance Director Cindy Karch, Mayor Pro Tem Terry Eaton made a motion to set the proposed 2026 property tax rate at $0.522357 per $100 of valuation. Seconded by Councilmember Cassandra Sampson, the motion passed unanimously.

Tax Rate & Revenue Impact: The proposed rate represents an increase from the 2025–2026 rate of $0.497131 per $100. It is projected to raise $198,199 (a 9.92% increase) more in property tax revenue than the previous year's budget, with $100,523 coming from new property added to the tax roll.

Tax Base Growth: Mineola's certified net taxable property values increased to $518.73 million for 2026, up from $502.81 million in 2025.

Debt Obligation: Total city debt obligation secured by property taxes stands at $417,809, with a reduced Debt Rate of $0.099408 per $100 (down from $0.114075).

FY 2026–2027 Budget Overview

Karch briefed the council on the draft General Fund budget, which balances revenues and expenditures at $6,472,786. Sales tax remains the city's largest single revenue stream (34% of total revenue at $2.22 million), followed closely by property tax (33% at $2.16 million).

Departmental Allocations:

Police Department: $2,053,114

Street Department: $1,843,651

Administration: $967,428

Fire Department: $779,492

Parks & Open Spaces: $214,977

Community Development: $208,862

Animal Shelter: $158,063

Municipal Court: $128,315

Across all accounts, including Enterprise/Water Utility ($3.36M in expenses) and Special Revenue Funds, the city projects $19.99 million in total revenues against $19.65 million in total expenditures, keeping municipal cash reserves above recommended levels.

Other Council Business

UT Health EMS Contract: Councilmember Eaton made a motion to postpone action on a contract amendment regarding ambulance memberships with UT Health East Texas EMS. Seconded by Councilmember Alexander, the motion passed unanimously.

This article was created with artificial intelligence using public meeting materials and was edited by staff before publication.