Over 60 East Texas cities named in statewide illegal property tax investigation

EAST TEXAS (KETK) — A number of cities across East Texas have been named in part of a statewide investigation regarding alleged unlawful property tax increases.
The investigation was launched by Attorney General Ken Paxton earlier this month, claiming that many cities are not complying with Senate Bill 1851, which requires them to complete and publicly post annual financial audits before increasing property taxes.

Due to possible violations of SB 1851, Paxton is demanding documents from over 1,000 cities across the state to ensure they are complying with audit and transparency requirements before raising taxes. The Office of the Attorney General clarified that the investigation of the cities is not for them raising taxes but to ensure they are following compliance with audit and transparency requirements.

East Texas cities that have been named in the investigation include:
*Alba
*Alto
*Arp
*Athens
*Atlanta
*Avinger
**Broaddus
*Brownsboro
*Bullard
*Caddo Mills
*Canton
*Carthage
*Center
*Chandler
*Clarksville
*Coffee City
*Crockett
*Daingerfield
*De Kalb
*Diboll
*Edgewood
*Elkhart
*Emory
*Frankston
*Garrison
*Gilmer
*Grapeland
*Hallsville
*Hawkins
*Henderson
*Hughes Springs
*Jacksonville
*Kilgore
*Livingston
*Lone Star
*Longview
*Lufkin
*Malakoff
*Mineola
*Mount Enterprise
*Mount Pleasant
*Mount Vernon
*Nacogdoches
*New London
*New Summerfield
*Newton
*Noonday
*Ore City
*Overton
*Palestine
*Pinehurst
**Pittsburg
*Point
*Quitman
*Rusk
*San Augustine
*Tatum
*Texarkana
*Troup
*Trinity
*Tyler
*Van
*White Oak
*Whitehouse
*Winnsboro
*Winona
*Zavalla
Paxton added, “I am demanding that cities prioritize transparency and work to minimize the tax burden of every citizen across the state,” Paxton said. “While many cities have complied with these requirements, I will continue to fight to ensure that every municipality across our state is following the law.”