The Scurry County Tax Appraisal District has released preliminary 2018 valuations, but its director warned not to put much stock in the numbers.
Tax appraisal districts are required by state law to release a preliminary list of tax valuations to taxing entities in the county, but Chief Appraiser Larry Crooks said the figures were way too preliminary to be of much good.
“It’s pretty much an exercise in futility,” Crooks said. “There are a lot of businesses and such folk who are in the process of requesting extension and their information won’t be available until May 15 at the earliest ... In about two weeks, we will be able to provide more accurate data. Before then, we don’t want the entities to base their budgets on these figures.”
Providing accurate valuations has taken on even more importance this year for the district in light of data entry errors by TY Pickett & Co. — the firm hired by the appraisal district to compute mineral valuations — that caused three taxing entities to dip into reserve funds to make up for shortfalls in 2016.
In the wake of those errors, several taxing entities, including Scurry County, Western Texas College, the county hospital district and Snyder and Ira school districts, have either retained or are in negotiations with Dallas-area attorney D. Brent Lemon to ensure mineral valuations are reported accurately.
Taking into account Crooks’ caveat, preliminary 2018 figures are largely unchanged from last year’s certified totals:
• Scurry County — $2.361 billion, up from last year’s certified total of $2.357 billion.
• Western Texas College — $2.418 billion, up from last year’s certified total of $2.412 billion.
• Scurry County Hospital District — $2.526 billion, unchanged from 2017’s certified value.
• City of Snyder — $544 million, basically unchanged from last year’s certified rolls.
• Snyder ISD — $2.037 billion, down about $1 million from 2017 certified figures.
• Ira ISD — $133.7 million, down slightly from 2017’s certified total of $134.1 million.
• Hermleigh ISD — $149.6 million, up from 2017’s certified total of $140.9 million.
Crooks said mineral valuations in the county are expected to remain stable.
“I don’t think we’ll see much of a change in mineral valuations from last year,” he said. “The appraised value of West Texas Intermediate Crude increased 1.6 percent from last year. Still, it boils down to overall expenses and production. We hope it holds its own.”
Agriculture productivity valuations, however, are expected to jump dramatically, but that’s more due to the way the appraisal district calculates those values than any increases in production from Scurry County farmers.
“When calculating those values, we average out the past five years’ production,” Crooks said. “This year, the 2011 numbers, which were far below average for this area, were dropped and 2016 numbers, which were much better, were added, which accounted for a 54 percent increase in ag values.”
Crooks said the appraisal district will have a much more accurate idea of the county’s tax valuation totals on May 15.
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