If you're a registered voter in any county with a population greater than 75,000 residents (that includes Travis, Williamson, Hays, Blanco, and Bastrop counties among others), there's an important election that few people know about occurring on May 4, 2024.
In the constitutional amendment that gave property owners and seniors a reduction in their property taxes, there was also a provision that modified the composition of the Central Appraisal Districts' (CADs) board of directors and how they are selected. For those counties, the board's composition now includes five members appointed by a majority vote of board members, three elected members, and the county tax assessor-collector, as an ex-officio director. Board members serve staggered four-year terms. To be an appointed member of the board, candidates must serve on one of the taxing units that are a part of the CAD. Appointed board members must garner a majority of the board members and the majority must include at least two of the three elected members, which gives elected members a veto over the selection of appointed members. To be a candidate for an elected position on the board, an individual must have lived in the district for two years and either pay a filing fee or collect a certain number of signatures on a petition.
In Travis County, there are seven candidates for the three positions on the Board.
For Place 1, two candidates are on the ballot: Jett Hanna and Don Zimmerman.
For Place 2, three candidates are on the ballot: Matt Mackowiak, Jonathan Patschke, and Daniel Wang.
For Place 3, there are two candidates on the ballot: Richard "Dick" Lavine and William "Bill" May
What do we know about the candidates and their supporters? Although the positions are nonpartisan, the party affiliation of the candidates plays an important role in each candidate's campaign. Jett Hanna, Daniel Wang, and Dick Lavine identify as Democrats; Don Zimmerman, Matt Mackowiak, and Bill May identify as Republicans; Jonathan Patschke is a Libertarian. For further information on the candidates, articles in the Austin Chronicle, Austin Monitor, and Austin Bulldog provide some information (much of which is redundant); however, you can check out the candidates' Websites for more information.
Don Zimmerman (no campaign Website found)
Matt Mackowiak (no campaign Website found)
Jonathan Patschke (no campaign Website found)
Bill May (no campaign Website found)
For more information about the Travis CAD and the election, visit this page on the Travis CAD Website.
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