Houston Daily

Harris Central Appraisal District Board of Directors met March 19.

Here are the minutes provided by the board:

A meeting of the Harris Central Board of Directors was held Wednesday, March 19th, 2025, at 9:30 a.m. at the HCAD offices.

Chairman Jim Robinson called the meeting to order at 9:33 a.m.

Board member Annette Ramirez led those in attendance in the Pledge of Allegiance and the Salute to the Texas Flag.

Roll Call. The presence of a quorum was established by roll call. Jim Robinson, Martina Lemond Dixon, Kyle Scott, Ericka McCrutcheon, Melissa Noriega, Annette Ramirez and Kathy Blueford Daniels were present. Cassandra Auzenne Bandy arrived at 10:41 a.m. Mike Sullivan was absent.

Chief Appraiser Roland Altinger and Tammy White-Chaffer of Olson and Olson, legal counsel, were also in attendance.

IAAO Designees. Chief Appraiser Altinger recognized the following employees on achieving designations from the International Association of Assessing Officers (IAAO). Ranjisha Bhat, Valuation Analyst III receiving the Residential Evaluation Specialist(“RES”) designee, Sarah LaRue, GIS Supervisor, Luis Otero, GIS Specialist III and Eartha Courtright, GIS Specialist II all receiving the Cadastral Mapping Specialist(“CMS”) designee.

Recognition of Service Awards and Employees of the Month. Chief Appraiser Altinger and Board member Martina Lemond Dixon presented the awards.

10-year service awards were presented to Viettu Deem of the Business & Industrial Property Division, Joseph McCoslin of the Legal Services Division, Abdelkader Moussa of the Information Technology Division, Trang Nguyen of the Review Appraisal Division.

A 15-year service award was presented to Davin Brantley of the Review Appraisal Division.

A 25-year service award was presented to Sherene Blake-Facey of the Business & Industrial Property Division.

35-year service awards were presented to Tamara Spencer of the Information & Assistance Division and Clarette Walker of the Office of Chief Appraiser.

Employees of the Month. Employee of the Month plaques were presented to Margarita Dozal of the Review Appraisal Division, Chantelle Harper-Brown of the Human Resources Division, Allen Jamail of the Residential Property Division, and Lawanda Taylor of the Information & Assistance Division.

Comments from Members of the Public. Property owner Peter Xi Zhu addressed the board.

A handout was provided to the board.

Consent Agenda

“All matters listed under consent agenda are considered to be routine and will be enacted by one motion, there will not be separate discussion of these items. If discussion is desired, that item will be removed from the consent agenda and considered separately.”

Mr. Scott, seconded by Ms. Noriega, made a motion to approve the consent agenda. The motion carried unanimously.

a. Approval of Minutes. Reviewing and approving the minutes of the regular meeting of February 26, 2025.

b. Exemption Applications. Approving a one-year renewal of a subscription to TrueRoll software for automating the processing of exemption applications received electronically through Omnia Partners vendor SHI in the amount of $287,000.

c. Case Management System Renewal. Approving a one-year subscription renewal with Eccentex Corporation for Case Management System in the amount of $65,000.

d. VMware Licenses Renewal. Approving a second-year renewal of a three-year contract for support and subscription of VMware licenses from DIR vendor Accudata Systems in the amount of $428,100.

e. Accudata System Renewal. Approving a one-year renewal of licensing and support for the District’s remote access solution through a DIR vendor Accudata Systems in the amount of $95,000.

f. Hillyer Professional Services Renewal. Authorizing the chief appraiser to renew a contract with Dick Hillyer in the amount of $30,000, an increase of $3,000 from 2024 to review utilization of health and dental contracts and assist in negotiation of renewals for 2026.

g. Employee Recognition Activity Funds. Approving funds in the amount of $15,000 for part of the cost of the 2025 HCAD employee social event.

h. Furniture & Equipment Surplus. Declaring furniture and equipment surplus and approve the sale and/or disposal.

i. Financial Reports. Receiving the district’s monthly financial reports.

j. Bills and Payroll. Authorizing payment of bills and payroll in the amount of $6,467,545.78 as submitted.

Replacement Workstations. Ms. Lemond Dixon, seconded by Ms. Ramirez, made a motion for discussion and possible action to approve the purchase of replacement workstations from a DIR vendor CWD-G for a total cost of $91,000. After a roll-call vote, the motion carried unanimously.

AI Governance Framework. Ms. McCrutcheon, seconded by Ms. Auzenne Bandy, made a motion for discussion and possible action to approve Resolution 2025-03, approving the Artificial Intelligence Governance Framework for the district. With no further discussions and after a roll call vote, the motion carried unanimously.

Google Cloud Platform. Ms. Lemond Dixon, seconded by Mr. Scott, made a motion for discussion and possible action to review and approve a new one-year commitment for Google Cloud Platform (GCP) computing services in the total amount of $86,000. After a roll call vote, the motion carried unanimously.

Generator Contract. Ms. McCrutcheon, seconded by Ms. Lemond Dixon, made a motion for discussion and possible action to review proposals and award a contract for the replacement of generator number three for the appraisal district headquarters building at 13013 Northwest Freeway. After a roll call vote, the motion carried unanimously.

Boardroom Remodel. At the request of the Chairman and due to the sensitive content regarding security measures, discussion of this agenda item would be presented in Executive session.

BOD Meetings Online Streaming. Chief Appraiser Altinger presented a brief outline on the possible live streaming of future board of director meetings. Chairman Robinson opened the floor to board members for discussion stating that if the board wanted to move forward with this item it would be brought back to the board for proposal and action.

Taxpayer Liaison Officer Report. Teresa Terry, Taxpayer Liaison Officer, provided a verbal report to the board. A written report was also provided in the board packet.

Appraisal Review Board Report. ARB Secretary, Kevin Stone, reported on the progress of hearings, attendance by members of the appraisal review board at hearings, and activities of the executive staff and the board’s attorney.

Appraisal Matters. Chief Appraiser Altinger informed the board about a recent e-mail and hand delivered attachment they should have all received on the subject of board decorum and other matters to address accusations made by a board member during last month’s public meeting. Board member Mr. Scott inquired about the handout provided by today’s speaker during the public comment portion of the meeting.

Executive Session. Chairman Robinson called the board into executive session at 10:46 a.m. for the purpose of: (a) considering the appointment of appraisal review board members; and (b) private consultation with the board’s attorney regarding (i) pending and potential litigation, (ii) settlement of pending appeals to the State Office of Administrative Hearings, (iii) settlement of pending arbitrations under Texas Tax Code Chapter 41A, and (iv) settlement of pending litigation under Texas Tax Code Chapter 42; (c) considering the appointment, employment, evaluation, reassignment, duties, discipline, or dismissal of a public officer, or employee, including the duties and appointment of the chief appraiser; (d) considering the deployment, or specific occasions for implementation of security personnel or devices; (e) deliberating the purchase, exchange, lease or value of real property if deliberation in an open meeting would have a detrimental effect on the position of the governmental body in negotiations with a third person, as permitted by the Open Meetings Act, Chap. 551, Government Code.

Chairman Robinson opened the meeting at 12:14 p.m.

Roll Call. Board members Martina Lemond Dixon, Ericka McCrutcheon, Kyle Scott, Melissa Noriega, Annette Ramirez and Cassandra Auzenne Bandy were present. Kathy Blueford-Daniels and Mike Sullivan were absent.

ARB Appointments.

As required by Section 6.41(d-2-1)

A board of directors acting as an appointing authority must make appointments to the appraisal review board by majority vote, with at least two members of the majority being elected members of the board of directors.

Elected board member Mr. Scott, seconded by elected member Ms. McCrutcheon, made a motion to discuss and vote on Resolution 2025-04, appointing individuals to the Appraisal Review Board for service. After a roll-call vote, the motion carried unanimously.

Pending Litigation. Ms. Lemond Dixon, seconded by Ms. McCrutcheon, moved to approve settlement of pending litigation, arbitrations, and SOAH appeals as submitted by staff. After a roll-call vote, the motion carried unanimously. A list is attached.

Appeals Under Sec. 42.02 Tax Code. There were none.

Boardroom Remodel. No action was taken on this agenda item.

Adjournment. Upon motion duly made and seconded, the meeting adjourned at 12:18 p.m.

https://hcad.org/assets/uploads/pdf/resources/2025/Boardbook-April-16-2025-meeting.pdf