Paxton Warns 110 Texas Cities They Cannot Raise Property Taxes Above State Limit 

On Monday, Attorney General Ken Paxton announced that he sent letters to more than 100 Texas cities notifying them that they are prohibited from raising property taxes on residents above the no-new-revenue rate. 

Paxton’s letter informs the 110 cities that they “are subject to the enforcement provisions and penalties established under SB 1851 and may not adopt property tax increases.”  

The letters were sent after more cities across the state were found to have violated Senate Bill 1851, which was passed and enacted into law in 2025. The law prohibits cities from raising property taxes above the rate if they do not meet the state’s financial statement audit and transparency requirements. 

SB 1851 added provisions to the Local Government Code, including requirements that municipalities have their records and accounts audited annually and have an annual financial statement prepared based on the audit. The law also requires the annual financial statement and the auditor’s opinion to be filed with the municipal secretary or clerk within 180 days after the last day of the municipality’s fiscal year. 

In April, Paxton demanded documents from more than 1,000 municipalities as part of an investigation to determine whether they were complying with the new law.

His investigation led to more than 130 cities being identified as failing to comply with the statutory requirements for the new fiscal year. Paxton subsequently sent letters to those cities in May notifying them that they would be subject to enforcement provisions and penalties for failing to comply.  

Two months after sending the first round of letters, Paxton sent 110 more to municipalities across East, South, and West Texas as his investigation remains ongoing. 

“I am continuing to fight to stop cities from unlawfully raising taxes on hardworking Texans,” said 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.”