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Donley County presented the City of Clarendon with two new proposed agreements last week after the city declined to move forward with a sales tax-funded district to support the sheriff’s department.

During a called session of the Donley County Commissioners’ Court last Friday, Judge John Howard said it could be argued that the city breached its law enforcement contract with the county after a January 11 vote of the city council reversed a December vote to put the creation of a County Assistance District before city voters this spring.

“I don’t mind if the city doesn’t want to participate in the County Assistance District,” Howard said, “but we need multi-year agreement.”

Howard said the city’s contract has historically covered about 20 percent of the sheriff’s budget, the current agreement for $140,000 in fiscal year 2024 only provides 13.4 percent of the sheriff’s budget. He also said he had made clear to the city council in December that the $140,000 contract was inextricably linked to the city putting the assistance district before the voters.

In order for a County Assistance District to be created in the city, Clarendon would have to give up five-eights of a cent of its two-cent sales tax. Howard said he understands if the city doesn’t want to give up its sales tax, but he reiterated that a multi-year agreement is needed and said the cost must reflect the expense the county incurs.

The county had wanted the city to pay $170,000 in fiscal year 2024, but as negotiations went on last spring and summer, no multi-year agreement could be reached, which led to the $140,000 deal in December.

Sheriff Butch Blackburn asked the court to pull out of the contract with the city by giving 30 days’ notice and start negotiations at $170,000. The sheriff says the city’s support is necessary to keep four deputies employed and provide 24-hour police protection. Without the agreement, Sheriff Blackburn said he would not be able to have two nighttime deputies and night calls would have to be called out to an officer not on duty.

Three commissioners – Daniel Ford, Mark White, and Dan Sawyer – agreed the county should give the city 30 days’ notice, but Commissioner Neil Koetting urged the court not to take that action but instead let the city meet again first.

“There’s no question they want to fund the police,” Koetting said. “They have to serve their voters just like we do.”

Clarendon Mayor Jacob Fangman said he didn’t think anyone on the city council did not want to pay the sheriff but that it was just a matter of how and how much.

Sheriff Blackburn said to the mayor, “Let’s get our Big Chief tablet out and figure something out.”

The court approved two agreement proposals for the city council to consider. The first would increase the city’s cost for the current fiscal year from $140,000 to $170,000, and the second would start fiscal year 2025 in October at $180,000 with a two-percent increase each year after that through fiscal year 2029.

In other business, the court voted to change the wording on its documents related to creating an assistance district in Howardwick, setting the sales tax rate at one cent instead of three-quarters of a cent.

Editor’s Note: Last week’s article about the proposed County Assistance District for Clarendon stated that Donley County had agreed to cap the revenue from that district at $165,000 per year. The county actually proposed a $165,000 cap for just three years. We regret that error and any confusion it may have caused.

Seven candidates have signed up to run for local offices in Donley County during the first week of filing.

The cities of Clarendon, Hedley, and Howardwick; the Clarendon and Hedley school districts; the Clarendon College District; and the Donley County Hospital District all have a total of 21 positions available this year.

As of Tuesday morning, the City of Howardwick was leading the candidate count with three people having filed for three positions available on the city council. Aldermen Mary Grady and Terry Barnes are seeking re-election, and Johnny Hubbard is also running.

Both incumbents at Hedley CISD have filed for re-election to the school board. Dana Bell and Carole Ward are seeking new terms in office.

In the City of Clarendon, Alderman Tommy Hill will be on the ballot for one of three positions on the city council up for election this year. Aldermen John Lockhart and Larry Jeffers currently hold the other two positions.

Mayor Trisha Chambless is seeking a full term in office in Hedley, and two other positions are available on the city council. Those seats are currently held by Aldermen Aaron Hanes and Clayton Beagle.

The Donley County Hospital District has Mark C. White running for re-election to his Place 6 spot on the board of directors, and three other positions are also up this year. The terms of Jan Farris – Place 4, Nikki Adams – Place 5, and Lori Howard – Place 7 are expiring.

No one has signed up to run for any of the four positions on the Clarendon College Board of Regents. Those seats are currently held by Tommy Waldrop, Janice Knorpp, Lon Adams, and Brittney Word.

Likewise, no one has signed up for the Clarendon ISD Trustees positions now held by Wayne Hardin and Wes Hatley.

All local boards are elected at-large, but hospital board candidates must file for a specific place on the board. Candidate applications are available from the administrative offices of each entity.

Filing continues through Friday, February 16. This spring’s elections are scheduled to be held Saturday, May 4, 2024.

Business renditions are now due and must be filed by April 15, according to the Donley Appraisal District.

If you own tangible personal property that is used to produce income, you should have received your 2024 rendition form.
You must file a rendition with the Donley Appraisal District by April 15.

A rendition is a report that lists all the taxable property you owned or controlled on January 1 of this year. Property includes inventory and equipment used by a business. Owners do not have to render exempt property, such as church property or an agriculture producer’s equipment used for farming.

The appraisal district may use the information submitted in the rendition to set property values. For most property types, renditions must be filed after January 1 and no later than April 15. A property owner may apply, in writing, for a mandatory extension to May 15. Different deadlines apply for regulated properties.

A 10-50 percent penalty may be imposed if a rendition is filed late, is incomplete or not at all. The chief appraiser may extend the deadline another 15 days for good cause shown in writing by the property owner for each type of property.

File your rendition with the appraisal district office at 304 S. Kearney or mail to PO Box 1220, Clarendon TX 79226.

For more information about rendering property, deadline extensions, penalties and rendition forms, taxpayers may contact the Donley Appraisal District by phone at 806-874-2744.

Information is also available from the comptroller’s property tax assistance division’s website at comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/property-tax/.

The Clarendon City Council reversed course on a proposed County Assistance District during their regular meeting January 11, voting to rescind its December action on the subject.
Donley County officials have proposed creating four sales tax-funded County Assistance Districts to help fund the sheriff’s department. The plan would ask voters to approve creating one district in each of the cities of Clarendon, Hedley, and Howardwick and one in the unincorporated areas of the county.

The city approved a resolution to put the matter before the voters during a December 21 meeting. Two of the five council members were absent from that meeting, and one of the members who voted for the resolution asked that it be reconsidered at the January meeting. All five aldermen were present last week.

Clarendon currently has a two-cent sales tax, the maximum allowed for a Texas city. The county has asked the city to rescind or give up five-eighths of a cent (0.625 cents), which would then be re-directed to a County Assistance District covering Clarendon.

The new district, according to statements made by county officials at the December meeting, would be governed by two city representatives, two county commissioners, and the county judge.

County officials also previously said the district would be capped to only take $165,000 per year and anything above that would be returned to the city.

Discussion at last week’s city meeting centered on doubt about how the proposed district would be governed, how the revenue cap would work, the limitations that would be put on future city councils by the creation of the district and loss of the sales tax revenue, and the benefits of the city continuing to fund the sheriff’s department by contract as it has since 1981.

Two citizens spoke about the proposed district. Roger Estlack said revenue generated by sales taxes in the city limits ought to continue to be governed by the city council as the elected representatives of the citizens of Clarendon, and he encouraged the council to continue to work with the sheriff to fund law enforcement by multi-year contracts.

Former city administrator David Dockery asked the council to consider the limitations that would be placed on his successor, Brian Barboza, and the council going forward by giving up a portion of the sales tax.

Several council members said they did not feel like they had had time to consider all the aspects of the county assistance district at the December meeting, and members also noted that this was the first time they had considered the downsides to giving up a portion of the city’s sales tax to another body.

Mayor Jacob Fangman also addressed the need to keep the city’s options open in the future. He said right now it doesn’t make sense for the city to have its own police department, but he said circumstances may be different at some future date.

Mayor Fangman also discussed pursuing a multi-year contract for law enforcement but wants to consider ending the county’s support of the city-owned Burton Memorial Library and subtracting that amount from the law enforcement contract. The county, he said, could redirect those funds to the sheriff.

The council then unanimously approved a motion to rescind its December action on the proposed district in its entirety.

Clarendon’s sales tax revenue rose slightly for January when Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar distributes $1.1 billion in monthly sales tax revenue to local governments.
The city brought in $38,454.40, up 2.15 percent from January 2023.

Hedley’s January allocation dropped 3.31 percent to $797.23, and Hedley’s revenue fell 32.08 percent down to $1,268.81.

These allocations are based on sales made in November by businesses that report tax monthly.

The Clarendon CISD Board of Trustees will meet in called session this Thursday, January 18, at 7 p.m. to discuss facilities improvements.

Superintendent Jared Bellar says the board will hear from a speaker on possible new facilities and facility upgrades and from another speaker regarding the possibility of passing a bond to pay for the improvements.

Bellar said the school is looking at security improvements and possibly a new field house and new agriculture building.

Citizens can start signing up next Wednesday, January 17, 2024, for positions at seven local governments that are scheduled to hold elections this spring.

The cities of Clarendon, Hedley, and Howardwick; the Clarendon and Hedley school districts; the Clarendon College District; and the Donley County Hospital District all have a total of 21 positions available this year.

In Clarendon, the two-year terms of Aldermen John Lockhart, Larry Jeffers, and Tommy Hill are up this year.

Hedley has two aldermen’s seats and the mayor’s position up this year. Those are two-year terms and are currently held by Mayor Trisha Chambless and Aldermen Aaron Hanes and Clayton Beagle.

In Howardwick the terms of Aldermen Mary Grady, Terry Barnes, and Del Essary are expiring. Those are all two-year terms.

Clarendon ISD Trustees serve three years, and the terms of Wayne Hardin and Wes Hatley are expiring.

Hedley ISD has two three-year terms up this year. Those seats are held by Carole Ward and Dana Bell.

The Clarendon College Board of Regents’ terms are six years, and three full terms are up this year as well as one partial term. The full terms are held by Tommy Waldrop, Janice Knorpp, and Lon Adams. A partial term expiring in 2028 is also up this year and is currently held by Brittney Word.

The Donley County Hospital District Board of Directors has four two-year terms up this year. Those are currently held by Jan Farris – Place 4, Nikki Adams – Place 5, Mark C. White – Place 6, and Lori Howard – Place 7.

All local boards are elected at-large, but hospital board candidates must file for a specific place on the board. Candidate applications are available from the administrative offices of each entity.

Filing continues through Friday, February 16.