Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has notified over 100 cities that they are prohibited from raising property taxes as part of an effort to prevent municipalities from illegally hiking tax rates.
This comes after the state legislature passed a measure in 2015 requiring cities to complete an annual financial audit and file a related statement within 180 days after their fiscal year ends.
Attorney General Ken Paxton Sends Letters Prohibiting More Than 110 Cities from Illegally Raising Taxes on Texans: https://t.co/REuI0wG9Y5
— Texas Attorney General (@TXAG) August 17, 2026
Paxton’s office announced the development in a press release:
Attorney General Ken Paxton sent letters to over 110 different Texas cities to notify them that they are prohibited from raising ad valorem taxes above the no-new-revenue tax rate. This action follows Attorney General Paxton’s investigation of over 1,000 Texas cities and his previous letters stopping other cities from illegally raising taxes.
During the 2025 legislative session, SB 1851 was passed and then enacted into law. This law bars cities from raising property taxes above the no-new-revenue rate if they do not meet Texas’s financial statement audit and transparency requirements. In April, Attorney General Paxton demanded documents from over 1,000 municipalities as part of an ongoing investigation to determine statewide compliance with SB 1851. That led to the identification of over 130 cities that failed to comply with the statutory requirements for the new fiscal year. In May, Attorney General Paxton notified those 130 cities that they are subject to the enforcement provisions and penalties established under SB 1851 and may not adopt property tax increases above the no-new-revenue rate.
Now, over 110 additional cities have joined that list of cities and are barred from illegally raising taxes. Letters were sent to an additional list of non-compliant cities, and the investigation remains ongoing. The OAG will continue to take additional action and make further determinations as more cities are found to be out-of-compliance with audit requirements.
“I am continuing to fight to stop cities from unlawfully raising taxes on hardworking Texans,” said Attorney General Paxton. “My office has been investigating cities across Texas. Now, over 110 new cities have been notified that they must not raise property taxes in violation of state law. I will continue to make sure that taxpayers are protected from unlawful tax increases.”
Attorney General Ken Paxton is blocking more than 130 Texas cities from hiking property taxes this year, accusing them of breaking a new state transparency law. pic.twitter.com/2x4BYck8mk
— Texas Scorecard (@TexasScorecard) May 15, 2026
Cities that fail to complete the report cannot increase property taxes above the no-new-revenue rate. Yet, some of these cities tried to pull a fast one.
Some city leaders are pushing back. Brazoria Mayor Philip Ray pointed out that small cities often have limited staff and struggle to meet the deadlines. “Our auditor is a one-man show,” he said. “Do you want it quick or do you want it right?”
He also argued, “It’s frustrating that Austin keeps telling cities how to run things without asking if it’s even possible.”
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