Three candidates running for a seat on the El Paso Central Appraisal District Board of Directors were unopposed and have been officially elected without having to go through the May 4 election.
The three candidates – Alfred Phillip Gonzalez, a retiree; Melody Jimenez, a consultant; and Silvia Serna, a grant analyst – were certified as unopposed and therefore elected, according to the CAD election cancellation order approved by the current board on March 26.
The election would have cost the CAD about $600,000.
“We were lucky as there was only one candidate for each place (Place 1, Place 2, and Place 3) who will now take office on July 1st of this year. This allowed us to cancel (the election) and save that expense,” CAD Executive Director and Chief Appraiser Dinah Kilgore told El Paso Matters.
The composition of central appraisal district boards to include both appointed and elected members was approved by Texas voters in November 2023 as part of a historic $18 million tax relief bill. Part of the tax relief bill included a requirement that three positions on appraisal district boards in counties with a population of 75,000 or more be elected.
Since the early 1980s, board members have been nominated and appointed by taxing entities within the county, such as the city and county governments and school districts.
The three new El Paso CAD members will grow the board from nine to 13 seats until Jan. 1, 2025, after which the board will again comprise nine members – three elected, five appointed, and the county tax assessor. That means that fewer taxing entities will have appointed members on the board each year.
Appointed members will serve staggered four-year terms starting on Jan. 1 of every other even-numbered year; while elected members will serve their terms beginning Jan. 1 of every other odd-numbered year. Board members are not compensated for their service.
Appraisal districts were mandated by state law in 1971 and were required to be established by 1982. El Paso’s was established in 1981.
The districts are responsible for appraising all property for taxing entities that impose property taxes in El Paso County, such as school districts, the city and county. The rates and the valuation combine to determine how much tax each property owner must pay. The valuations are set based on recent sales of comparable properties or other means to estimate the fair market value.
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