Hill County, Texas
13 local notes for Hill County — practical, plain-English, and pointed at the official source to confirm. DFW / North Texas.
Money & Taxes
Property Tax Basics
Two offices handle your property taxes in Hill County
Hill County has two separate offices for property taxes: one that values your property and one that collects your bill.
Homestead Exemption
A homestead exemption can lower your tax bill in Hill County
If you own and live in your home in Hill County, you can apply for a homestead exemption that reduces the taxable value of your property.
Tax Protest
You can protest your property value in Hill County
Hill County property owners can challenge the appraised value set by Hill CAD each year before the Appraisal Review Board.
Agricultural Valuation
Farmland in Hill County can be taxed on what it produces, not what it sells for
Texas lets qualifying farm and ranch land be appraised at its agricultural productivity value, which is usually much lower than market value.
Home & Property
Cars & Driving
Outdoors
Lake Whitney
Lake Whitney offers public fishing and hunting on Hill County land
Lake Whitney, managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, sits partly in Hill County and offers public fishing, hunting, and camping.
Wildlife Resources
Hill County has TPWD wildlife staff you can contact about land and habitat
Texas Parks and Wildlife assigns biologists to Hill County who can help landowners with wildlife habitat, ag land management, and hunting questions.
Rules & Licenses
Right to Farm
Texas law limits nuisance lawsuits against farms near Hill County homes
Texas has a Right to Farm law that makes it harder to sue a neighboring farm over dust, odors, flies, or noise in rural areas like Hill County.
Public Hunting Permit
You need a permit to hunt on Corps of Engineers land near Lake Whitney
About 18,000 acres of public hunting land around Lake Whitney in Bosque and Hill counties require a permit through recreation.gov.
History & Culture
County Origins
Hill County was formed in 1853 and named for a Republic of Texas official
Hill County was carved from Navarro County in 1853 and named for Dr. George Washington Hill, who served in Sam Houston's cabinet.
Historic Courthouse
Hillsboro's 1890 courthouse burned in 1993 and was restored with help from Willie Nelson
The Hill County Courthouse in Hillsboro is an 1890 limestone landmark that was heavily damaged by fire in 1993 and restored over six years.
Agricultural Heritage
Hill County was once a top Texas cotton producer, boosted by a railroad in 1881
Cotton farming and the 1881 arrival of the Missouri, Kansas and Texas Railroad shaped Hill County's growth and its immigrant communities.