The village council of Vinton -- still without a budget and without a tax rate after council members are unable to come to a resolution Tuesday night.

As KFOX14 has reported, three council members have prevented the village, which is facing a half-million dollar debt, from approving a budget and ratifying a tax rate in time for the Oct. 1 deadline.

The debt is owed to an engineering firm for wastewater assessment, after councilwomen Juvencia Rios Ontiveros, Martha Garcia and Maria Medina rejected the grants that would have paid for the project.

On Tuesday, Ontiveros, Garcia and Medina again voted against extending last year's budget 90 days. which would keep taxes the same for residents but does nothing to address the village's mounting debt. Without a tax rate, the village has no way to generate revenue.

A move that surprised no one, but didn't do anything to relieve the growing frustrations of residents.

"They say they are for the village but it's been nothing but against the village," said resident Norma Venzor.

"The people are getting very frustrated. They are frustrated because they feel they have not been listened to," said Mayor Madeleine Praino.

Also on Tuesday night's agenda, submit an application for $168,000 in grant money to the Texas Department of Agriculture. Every two years the village has received grant funding through the Texas Community Development Block grant program. This year residents proposed the grant money be used to fund monthly, bulk-waste collection or a skate park for Vinton youth. The three councilwomen rejected even applying. Since the application, needs to be submitted by Oct. 26, the village has lost the opportunity to apply. This means the other 10 communities in the area, including Anthony and Clint, will be able to divide the ample funds.

"I want to understand, why?" asked Venzor.

"I cannot allow the mayor and her administration to accept grant money until an audit or other financial discrepancies are cleared up or resolved," said Ontiveros.

But funding agency's said the village is still eligible to apply and receive the money -- money that would not raise taxes for residents, instead help improve their quality of life.

While the village is behind on its audit, the state has granted the village more time to complete it, seeing as how, without a budget, the village had to lay off employees, including the accounting assistant. According to village records, audits were not performed for three years during the time Onitveros was mayor, despite the fact that the village accepted grant money during that time.

As the three members continue to block efforts for the village to move forward, many believe the three councilwomen are intent on dissolving the village, making it an unincorporated area of El Paso County.

"If that's what they are trying to do they have another thing coming," said Praino.

"I don't think it will fly because the people of Vinton are bound and determined to keep the town going," Praino added.

When asked Tuesday night, neither Ontiveros nor Garcia would answer questions regarding disincorporation.

County commissioners met in executive session Monday to discuss their options. County leaders tell KFOX14 they won't be picking up the tab on the village's debt, meaning incorporated or not, residents will have to pay the half-million dollar debt one way or another.

"Our village needs to keep growing, in homeowners, in businesses, it has to keep going-- and that’s why I keep coming [to the meetings]," said Venzor.

County leaders told KFOX14 they are very concerned of the state of the village, and are encourage them not to unincorporated.

"The future of Vinton is still uncertain when it comes to making any progress with infrastructure or any new projects. We are continuing to provide basic services sanitation, law enforcement, and public works," said Village Clerk Jessica Garza.

"We have a lot of beautiful people here, who are willing to fight. They deserve it, and I owe it to them to keep fighting," said Mayor Praino.

Garza said without a tax rate and without a budget, the best case scenario is that the village could continue to operate until April.

Because the village missed the deadline to ratify the tax rate, the village will be saddled with the burden of paying for the costs associated with calculating,printing and shipping tax bills, when a tax rate is approved -- an additional cost, the village, cannot afford.