Property Taxes

Funding Overview

Community colleges are funded differently than public four-year colleges and universities. There are three primary sources of revenue to community colleges:

  • Student tuition & fees
  • State funding
  • Property taxes

Community colleges are the only public institutions of higher education that construct and maintain campus facilities without state funding assistance. Local community colleges have taxing authority for this purpose. ACC operated for 14 years without a tax base. In 1986, ACC District voters approved the establishment of a maintenance and operations (M&O) tax capped at 5 cents per $100 valuation, in exchange for comprehensive programs and services. Voters raised that cap to 9 cents in 2003. It cannot go above $0.09 without voter approval.

Financial Information

Information on the Austin Community College Fiscal Year 2021 Budget, as well as prior fiscal years can be located on the college’s budget page.

Prior fiscal year audited financial statements can be found on the financial statements page. 

Budgeted Property Tax Revenues and Rates (Last 3 Years)

Property Tax Revenues

Year M&O Debt Service
2020-21 $223,496,152 $39,423,799
2019-20 $210,845,426 $35,613,549
2018-19 $196,135,280 $29,967,749

Property Tax Rate

Year M&O Debt Service Total
2020-21 $0.0900 $0.0158 $0.1058
2019-20 $0.0900 $0.0149  $0.1049
2018-19 $0.0900 $0.0148  $0.1048

 

Property Tax Exemptions

ACC Board Policies CAI, CAIA and CAIB govern property tax implementation. Tax Code Section 11.13, Residence Homestead, and Tax Code Section 33.06 provide statutory authorization regarding homestead exemption and the option to defer collection of taxes for senior citizens and residents with disabilities.

  • Homestead exemption:  ACC provides a $5,000 homestead exemption to all residential taxpayers (or 1% of property value, whichever is greater)
  • Exemption for seniors (65+) and homeowners with disabilities:  The College also provides a $164,000 exemption for senior taxpayers and homeowners with disabilities, for a total exemption of $169,000 for those taxpayers. This is an increase of $4,000 over last year's exemption to offset the impact of increased property appraisals and is the most generous exemption policy in the region.

  • Commercial property owners:  Commercial properties are taxed at the same rate as residential property; however, per Texas Property Tax Code, commercial properties are taxed on both real property and personal property, while residential properties are only taxed on real property.

Tax Implications for ACC District Homeowners and Businesses - 2020-2021 

Property Value Regular Homestead Senior/Disabled Exemption Commercial
$60,000 $58.19 Annual
$4.85/month		 NO ACC TAX $63.48 Annual
$5.29/month
$110,000 $111.09 Annual
$9.26/month		 NO ACC TAX $116.38 Annual
$9.70/month
$160,000 $163.99 Annual
$13.66/month		 NO ACC TAX $169.28 Annual
$14.11/month
$210,000 $216.89 Annual
$18.07/month		 $43.37 Annual
$3.61/month		 $222.18 Annual
$18.51/month
$260,000 $269.79 Annual
$22.48/month		 $96.28 Annual
$8.02/month		 $275.08 Annual
$22.92/month
$310,000 $322.69 Annual
$26.89/month		 $149.18 Annual
$12.43/month		 $327.98 Annual
$27.33/month
$360,000 $375.59 Annual
$31.29/month		 $202.07 Annual
$16.84/month		 $380.88 Annual
$31.74/month

 Updated September 14, 2020