Houston County Hospital District Meets, Discusses Tax Rates
By Greg Ritchie
Messenger Reporter
HOUSTON COUNTY – The Houston County Hospital District (HCHD) held a board of directors meeting Tuesday, Aug. 16 at the Crockett Medical Center (CMC) on Crockett Loop 304.
After the meeting was opened, the public was invited to make comments. Among the notable comments, the board was asked to address the roof of the CMC – which needs to be completely replaced before it begins to leak or affect operations at the hospital. It was stated this is the job of the board, and not the hospital itself which are tenants in the building.
Several members of the public asked the board to not raise hospital taxes. The board was told this is a rural, poor county, and that taxes are high enough. The current tax rate is 13 cents, but due to higher property appraisals in the county, many are paying more year over year.
The board was also reprimanded during the public comments for the lack of clear communication with the public. At the moment, there is no website for the HCHD or publicly available information about board member, decisions and meeting times.
The monthly ambulance report for July was presented. The CMC had 266 requests for ambulance service, with most of those patients going to CMC. There were also nine emergency helicopter flights during the month. Most of the requests were from the city of Crockett with several from other communities in Houston County. The average 911 response time was listed at 3 minutes, 58 seconds within Crockett and 14 minutes, 22 seconds within the county.
The board then heard from TORCH, the Texas Organization of Rural Hospitals. TORCH helps rural and smaller hospitals run smoother and with more efficiency. The board had many questions for the representatives of TORCH, who were able to provide information from other rural districts similar to HCHD. They told the board that two-thirds of rural hospitals were independently run, with the other third run directly by the local hospital boards.
HCDC Board President Barbara Crowson then told the board that CMC alerted them they plan to renew their contract in January but that there will be a negotiation before this can be completed.
Several board members asked the board to consider lowering the hospital tax given that the HCHD will pay off the last of its debts by the first of the year. Even considering a new roof, several board members considered this tax rate would be enough to cover all expenses.
Board member Rhonda Brown supported this notion and asked that each board member state publicly where they stand, and why they support keeping the same tax rate.
Member Dina Pipes was set to speak next, but Board President Crowson asked several board members about the cost of a new roof for the facility before being reminded this was not on the agenda.
Pipes spoke about the need to give residents in the county a tax break, and reminded the board that people are paying more tax in reality due to the higher appraisals of property in the county. Other board members pointed out that with negotiations set to begin soon, the HCDC should not limit its options at the present time. President Crowson told the group they could always lower the rate at a later date, but could not raise it if they needed to.
In the end, the board voted to hold a public hearing on the tax rate at the next meeting, usually the third Tuesday of each month.
The salary for accountant Dick Murchison was raised from $1,000/month to $1,200/month.
Greg Ritchie can be reached at [email protected]
