TWO ENCUMBENTS AND FORMER COUNCIL TO TAKE COUNCIL SEATS
  
William DeLeon Bill Flynn Pat Riddell
Two incumbents, William DeLeon and Bill Flynn, and a former council member, Pat Riddell, were the only candidates to sign up for the City’s upcoming general election. Current City Council Member, Ken Graham, did not file for re-election.
According to City Secretary, Christy Fath, since only three seats were up for election and only three candidates filed for the seats, the seats are considered filled. However, because the City is holding a special election to consider a change to the economic development sales tax, the proposed council members will still be listed on the ballot.
Also on the ballot for the May election will be a proposition to change the current 4A sales tax to a 4B sales tax. This proposition will not change the current amount of the tax, but will broaden the scope of projects for which the tax can be used. For more information regarding the 4B sales tax proposition, call Crista Bromley at 512.715.3217 or go online at www.cityofburnet.com and click on 4B Sales Tax.
The election will be held on May 10 from 7 am until 7 pm. Early voting for the election will begin on April 28 and will run until May 6 from 9 am until 5 pm weekdays except for April 30 and May 5 which will be from 8 am until 8 pm. All voting will be held at the Burnet County Courthouse on the square in Burnet. April 10 is the last day to register to vote in this election.
Your Opinion Matters
The City of Burnet has established several short surveys for citizens to complete regarding a number of important issues in the City. The surveys were created and posted in June of last year but have been reset in January to provide a new set of data. Citizens are urged to complete the surveys by clicking here and choosing which surveys they are interested in. No matter which survey citizens choose to complete, they should also complete the Demographics survey once. The other surveys should be completed only one time by each citizen. Results will be collected and analyzed in six and then again in twelve months. Click here for the results from the 2007 partial year survey.
4B Sales Tax Goes to Voters
In May of 2008, the citizens of the City of Burnet will have the opportunity to make a change in the City's economic development sales tax.
The city currently has a 1/2 cent 4A sales tax which will be replaced by the 4B tax. The amount of the tax will remain the same but the qualified uses for the tax will expand. According to Director of Economic Development, Crista Bromley, there are a number of important differences between the 4A and the 4B taxes. The 4A tax is generally considered the more restrictive of the two taxes in terms of types of allowable expenditures; however the 4B is more restrictive in the oversight procedures. Both 4A and 4B monies are overseen by the development corporation’s board of directors and by the City Council. The process for the selection of qualified projects, the time frames for publication, and public recourse for repeal of a project are also more restrictive in 4B.
In order to adopt the 4B tax and repeal the 4A tax, the proposition must be placed on the ballot for the citizens to vote on. The City Council recently approved moving forward with a special election to bring the issue to a vote. For more information download the Frequently Asked Questions or contact Bromley by phone at 512.715.3217 or by email at cbromley@cityofburnet.com.
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