For first time, voters to fill seats on appraisal board

The Bexar Appraisal District board of directors will soon have three elected at-large members — an under-the-radar change that voters approved for Texas’ largest counties in last year’s constitutional amendment election.

Three of the board’s seats will now be filled by election, while taxing entities within the district will appoint members to the other five seats.

The board hires the chief appraiser, approves the appraisal district’s annual budget and appoints volunteers to the Appraisal Review Board, which hears property valuation protests and can decide to lower someone’s property value.

The appraisal district determines annual residential and commercial property valuations based on market value, as required by state law. Local taxing entities, such as the city of San Antonio, county and school districts, in turn use the valuations to determine how much tax revenue they’ll collect based on the tax rates they set annually.

Though the board of directors is a nonpartisan office, that hasn’t stopped political groups from backing candidates.

Early voting ends today, with election day on Saturday. The winners will take office on July 1 and serve through Dec. 1, 2026. Candidates must receive more than 50% of the vote.

Here is who is seeking the atlarge seats:

Place 1

Anna Campos and Naomi Elizabeth Miller are vying for the Place 1 seat.

Miller is executive director of the American Council of Engineering Companies of San Antonio. From 2018 to 2022, she was the director of governmental relations for the Northside Independent School District. Prior to that, she spent nearly a decade as district director to then-texas House Speaker Joe Straus.

She has the support of both the conservative True Texas Project and Republican Party of Bexar County Chairman Jeff Mcmanus.

Campos runs her own business consulting firm. She ran unsuccessfully as a Republican for Texas House District 119 in 2012. Her sister, Democrat Liz Campos, was elected to that district in 2020.

Place 2

Stephen Spears, Yen Yan and Erika Hizel are running for Place 2.

Spears is a Realtor at Stonepoint Properties Inc.

Yan is a commercial real estate specialist at Real Broker LLC, and a former commercial and residential real estate agent at Keller Williams City View.

Hizel owns Kimeaux Investments, a real estate investment firm. She is co-founder and president of San Antonio Property Owners Alliance, which says it advocates for “mom and pop,” or small-scale, landlords.

The True Texas Party endorsed Yan, while the North East Bexar County Democrats endorsed Hizel.

Place 3

Dr. Mel Bayne, Robert Bruce, Bradley Frerich and G.L. “Larry” Lamborn are seeking the Place 3 seat.

Bayne is a retired U.S. Air Force pilot and physician who was a hospital commander and medical center vice commander. The True Texas Project and Mcmanus are supporting his candidacy.

Bruce founded United Audio Recording Productions and Boerne Stage Airfield, and is coowner of Astro Super Bowl bowling alley. He also has the support of the local Republican party chairman.

Frerich is a landscape architect at Cooper-lochte Landscape Architecture LLC.

Lamborn is a retired U.S. Army Reserve colonel and retired CIA senior operations officer who is endorsed by the North East Bexar County Democrats.