RICHMOND, Texas – Fort Bend County Commissioners Court voted Thursday to propose a 2026 tax rate of 41.2 cents per $100 of taxable property value, which would fund the county’s Fiscal Year 2027 budget, setting up a final vote on Sept. 10 that will take place amid an ongoing dispute over who has the legal authority to preside over the court.
Commissioner Andy Meyers, Commissioner Vincent Morales and interim County Judge Daniel Wong cast the votes to move the proposed rate forward, along with setting a public hearing on the proposal for Sept. 10 at 1 p.m. in the Commissioners Courtroom at the Historic Courthouse in Richmond. Democratic Commissioners Dexter McCoy and Grady Prestage were not present. Both have stayed away from Commissioners Court since June, citing concerns over Wong’s authority to preside.
The proposed combined rate breaks down as follows, according to Thursday’s agenda:
Added to the Fort Bend County Drainage District’s proposed rate of roughly 1 cent, the combined rate homeowners would see on their county and drainage district tax lines works out to approximately 42.2 cents per $100 of taxable value, unchanged from the rate charged in 2024 and 2025.
Same Rate, Bigger Bill
Even though the printed rate isn’t moving, the county’s own truth-in-taxation calculations classify the proposal as a tax increase. That’s because the rate needed to collect the same revenue as last year, known as the “no-new-revenue rate,” has fallen as property values across the county have risen.
Fort Bend County’s 2026 tax-rate summary lists the combined no-new-revenue rate at approximately 40.5588 cents per $100, about 1.64 cents below the proposed 42.2-cent rate. The county’s proposed rate sits roughly 4% above that no-new-revenue benchmark for both the county and the drainage district, which is why Thursday’s agenda also called for the Sept. 10 public hearing on a proposed tax increase.
If Commissioners Court does not adopt a rate by the state deadline, Texas law requires the county to default to the lower of the no-new-revenue rate or last year’s rate. In Fort Bend County’s case, that would mean the rate falls to approximately 40.588 cents per $100, not the 42.2-cent rate currently proposed.
For homeowners, the practical effect depends on how much their individual taxable value rose. A home valued at $400,000 for county and drainage purposes would owe about $1,688 combined at the proposed 42.2-cent rate. If that same home’s taxable value rose 3.88%, roughly in line with the county’s reported increase in residential market values, the bill would climb to about $1,753, an increase of roughly $65. Homeowners whose taxable value rises the full 10% allowed under the homestead cap could see the county-and-drainage portion of their bill increase by around $168.
Those figures cover only the county and drainage district portions of a tax bill, not school district, city, MUD or other special-district taxes, which vary significantly by location even among homes with the same mailing address.
The Wong Dispute
Thursday’s vote took place against the backdrop of a monthslong standoff over Wong’s authority to serve as county judge.
Wong was temporarily appointed after then-County Judge KP George was suspended following his felony conviction. McCoy and Prestage contend Wong’s temporary appointment ended June 17, when the civil case underlying his appointment was dismissed. Wong and his attorneys have disputed that reading.
At an Aug. 5 hearing, District Judge Edward Krenek did not rule on the merits of the underlying quo warranto lawsuit challenging Wong’s authority. Instead, he set an expedited schedule for the case while repeatedly emphasizing that no court has yet ruled Wong should be removed from office, and that Wong retains the authority to act as county judge unless and until a court issues a judicial declaration otherwise. The county attorney’s office has publicly disputed characterizations of the hearing as a “ruling” allowing Wong to continue serving.
A separate case has also produced a recent order relevant to Wong’s status. Visiting Judge Jeth Jones, who signed the April order appointing Wong in the first place, denied two motions filed by Sarah Roberts. Roberts, whose original lawsuit against George led to Wong’s appointment, had asked the court to clarify and enforce her earlier nonsuit and to modify the underlying judgment that put Wong in office; both requests were denied in full. Jones separately denied Wong’s own petition to intervene in that case, along with two related motions from Roberts, but did so as moot, meaning the court found no need to rule on them once Roberts’ first two motions failed, not that it granted Wong anything he’d asked for. The order leaves the original April judgment appointing Wong intact but does not resolve the separate quo warranto case pending before Krenek, and it should not be read as a fresh ruling on whether Wong’s continued service is lawful.
McCoy and Prestage have continued to stay away from Commissioners Court meetings regardless, arguing that any votes taken with Wong presiding could later be challenged in court.
The dispute carries direct consequences for the tax rate. Texas Local Government Code Section 81.006 requires at least four Commissioners Court members to be present when a county tax is levied, with at least three voting in favor. Thursday’s meeting had only three members present, enough to propose the rate, but not enough for final adoption.
What Happens Next
The county’s Fiscal Year 2027 budget, a recommended $792 million spending plan that finance officials have described as a 4.2% increase over the current fiscal year, is built around the proposed 42.2-cent combined rate. Finance Director Pamela Gubbels has estimated that falling to the no-new-revenue rate would remove approximately $21 million from the proposed budget, a gap county officials say could eliminate a proposed 3% cost-of-living increase for employees and delay road, park and flood-control projects, while raising concerns about the county’s bond rating.
Budget hearings are scheduled for Sept. 9 and 10, with the public hearing on the proposed tax increase and the final vote on both the tax rate and budget set for Sept. 10. Reaching the four-member quorum required to finalize the rate has at least two paths, and each side has staked out a different one: McCoy and Prestage have said they would return if Wong steps aside from presiding specifically over the tax-rate and budget votes, letting the four elected commissioners handle that business without him. Wong has given no indication he plans to recuse himself and intends to preside over the Sept. 10 meeting regardless. Meyers has called on McCoy and Prestage to return and participate without conditions, arguing Fort Bend County’s employees and taxpayers should not bear the cost of what he has characterized as a political boycott.
Neither side has signaled it’s ready to move first. But the county’s own numbers give both parties a reason to: a missed quorum defaults the rate to the lower, no-new-revenue figure, which by the county’s own estimate would strip roughly $21 million from the proposed budget, jeopardizing the employee cost-of-living raise and delaying infrastructure projects that affect the entire county, not just one party’s voters. Whether that shared cost is enough to bring Wong to the table on recusal, or bring McCoy and Prestage back to the dais without it, remains the open question heading into September.
The next regular Commissioners Court meeting is scheduled for Aug. 27.