The cities of Hempstead, Prairie View and Waller are located in southeast Texas along U.S. Highway 290 corridor in Waller County. Located 40 miles West of the central business district of the City of Houston.

Hempstead (3,956)
County seat; agribusiness center; varied manufacturing; mental health facility; watermelon fest.
Prairie View (4,105)
Home of Prairie View A & M University.
Brookshire (3,587)
Pattison (377)
Pine Island (626)
Waller (1,831)
Partly in Harris County

AVERAGE ANNUAL TEMPERATURE
70 degrees F

AVERAGE LOW TEMPERATURE
January - 39 degrees F

PREVAILING WIND DIRECTION

Southeast, average speed of 8mph

Coldest Month - January
Hottest Month - July
Date of Last Freeze - February 24
Date of First Freeze - December 4

Length of growing season .....238 days

MINERALS

Oil, gas, sand, gravel

AGRICULTURE

$35 million average annual income from beef cattle, hogs, goats, horses; crops include rice, hay, corn, watermelons; 10,000 acres irrigated for rice, commercial vegetables, soybeans and peanuts. Market value $27.5 million. Some timber marketed.

Businesses - 383
Number employed - 7,315
Oil Value - $1,084,538
Square Miles in County - 518
Tax Value - $1,519,987,092
Voter Registration - 15,041
Wages Paid - $138,935,305

PER CAPITA INCOME

County Commissioners serve as the County government. Mayor-Alderman is the form of municipal government. The cities of Hempstead, Prairie View, Waller and Brookshire are incorporated under the statutes and general laws of Texas which provide for General Law Cities. Local police protection, along with volunteer fire protection and volunteer ambulance service are available.

COUNTY OFFICIALS

Mr. Owen Ralston - County Judge
Mr. Bill Eplen  - Commissioner, Pct # 1
Mr. Terry Harrison   -  Commissioner, Pct # 2
Mr. Milton Whiting  -   Commissioner, Pct # 3
Mr. Glenn Beckendorff  -  Commissioner, Pct # 4
Mr. Elton Mathis  -   County Criminal Dist. Atty
Ms. Cheryl Peters - County Clerk
Ms. Pat Spadachene - District Clerk
Ms. Vickie Tyson - County Auditor
Ms. Ellen Shelburne - Tax Assessor - Collector
Mr. Randy Smith - Sheriff

Although agriculture remains the mainstay of the local economy, agrarian dominance is being challenged in the 1990s by the heavy influx of people into the farm and ranch lands that surround Waller. Many Houstonians have purchased small farms in the area, and the number of local residents who commute to jobs in Houston has grown steadily over the past decade. Much of the countryside around Waller has been subdivided for home sites. With the recent completion of the new Hwy 290 by-pass through the city, the trend toward urbanization is expected to continue.

Radius of the labor drawing area - 70 miles
Total annual high school graduates - 260
Manufacturing workers in unions - None

LABOR ANALYSIS (MONTHLY AVERAGE EMPLOYMENT)

Agriculture - 220
Government - 2,740
Finance - 160
Manufacturing - 1,570
Mining - 9
Services - 770
Construction - 210
Trade - 1,800
Transportation/Communication/Utilities - 80
Labor analysis date - 1993

COUNTY LABOR FORCE

Date 8/98

Labor Force - 12,627
Employment - 12,004
Unemployment - 623
Rate - 4.9%

STATE OF TEXAS

Corporate Income Tax - None
Personal Income Tax - None

Sales and Use Tax

Six and one quarter percent on the retail sales price of merchandise and some services. Cities, counties and transit authorities may add to the sales tax rate up to a maximum combined state and local rate of 8 1/4 percent.

Machinery & Equipment

The application of the sales tax to purchase of machinery and equipment has been phased-out

Property Tax

None However, the property tax is the largest revenue source for local governments. (See Waller County Tax Rate Chart)

Goods in Transit

Local taxing entities have the option to exempt from property taxes goods traveling temporarily
through Texas.

Corporate Franchise Tax

The corporate franchise tax is the state's chief business tax. The franchise tax rate is $5.25 per $1,000 of taxable capital with a minimum of $68.

Corporate Filling Fees

Domestic Firms $300
Foreign Firms $750

Oil Tax

Production -
4.6% market value of oil produced in Texas.
Regulation -
1/2 of one cent on each barrel produced in Texas.

Natural Gas

7.5 percent of the market value of gas produced in Texas.
Regulation-
.000333 of one cent on each barrel produced in Texas.

Motor Fuels Taxes

Motor Fuels 0.20 per gallon
Special Fuels -
Diesel Fuel 0.20 per gallon
Liquefied Fuel...0.15 per gallon

2006 Tax Rates for properties located in Waller ISD, Hempstead ISD & Royal ISD

Waller ISD 1.69000
Waller County FM 0.03293
Waller County 0.63311
Waller – Harris ESD 200 0.10000

Total  2.45604

Hempstead ISD 1.59000
Waller County FM 0.03293
Waller County 0.63311
Waller – Harris ESD 200 0.10000

Total 2.35604

Royal ISD 1.52000
Waller County FM 0.03293
Waller County 0.63311
Waller – Harris ESD 200 0.10000

Total 2.28604

If within city limits, add:

City of Waller 0.43070
City of Prairie View 0.50000
City of Hempstead 0.36390
City of Brookshire 0.60000

If in Harris County & Waller ISD

Harris County 0.40239
Harris Co Dept Educ 0.00629
Harris Co ESD 21 0.05000
Harris Co ESD 3 0.03000
Harris Co Flood Contrl 0.03241
Harris Co Hospital 0.19216
Port of Hous Auth 0.01302
Waller ISD 1.69000

Total 2.41627

U.S. 290 and Texas 6 provide 4-lane highway access to the Houston area as well as Austin, Waco and Bryan College Station. Interstate 10 is located in southern Waller County. Railroad service is provided by Union Pacific Railroad. Central Freight Lines provides motor freight service. Commercial air service is available at George Bush Intercontinental Airport, which is served by all major airlines for intrastate, continental and transcontinental flights. Waterway transportation is available at the Port of Houston, approximately 50 miles away.