According to the Bond Review Board’s most recent data, Texas’ local governments have accumulated an eyepopping $500 billion in debt, which is an increase of almost $40 billion from the prior year. That’s almost $16,000 owed for every man, woman, and child in the Lone Star State.
Most of this debt comes from school districts, which have borrowed more the $200 billion. None of that money goes into the classroom. Instead, it goes to pay for high-priced, fancy facilities and wasteful projects, like $80 million stadiums and a pool no one uses, that have no connection to improving educational outcomes.
These few examples are part of a larger pattern of excess. In fact, Texas spends more money than any other state on new buildings and construction – even more than California and New York, even though they both have higher labor and real estate costs.
How do Texans pay off the debt? Property tax hikes. Despite the state legislature providing $51 billion in tax relief over the last several sessions, local governments keep spending and borrowing, which robs taxpayers of their tax cut to service mounting debt obligations.
How did this happen? A new blockbuster report from my colleague Jorge Borrego breaks down the data for every single House District in the state.
See, many bonds get passed during the May election cycle, which tends to have very little turnout compared to November elections. Borrego’s data shows how frighteningly few people show up for these elections to approve all this debt – some with as little as one person voting. (Yes, ONE total vote.)
Governments know these things and they use it to their advantage to foist more debt onto the public, whether they want it or not.
In TPPF’s most recent polling, fully 80% of Texans say property tax is a significant burden on them or their family. Every single one of these bond elections is a vote to increase property taxes.
Unless Texans start to make the connection, the state will continue careening toward a debt death spiral.
