BY BEN THOMPSON
Bonds
Next steps
A contractor for the auditing process could be approved after this summer’s budgeting process and before the current 2025-26 fiscal year ends in September. Initial program costs were not available as of press time. It remains to be seen if Save Austin Now will earn enough support to prompt an election to integrate the audit requirement into the city’s charter. The group originally targeted this May’s ballot, but its petition wasn’t completed and submitted before the February filing deadline. PAC co-Chair Matt Mackowiak said he believes the charter measure will make it to the November ballot. As for the possible November bond, the bond advisory task force continues to meet and is expected to produce its own project list by early May. Grace Dickens contributed to this report. Spending review timeline 2025 • November: Proposition Q fails 2026 • February: citywide audit process approved • Spring: planned employee transitions for IT department begin • Summer-early fall: audit contractor approved; auditing continues indefinitely • October: consulting guidelines updated • November: potential $700 million bond and Save Austin Now charter amendment may appear on ballot
scaled-down $700 million list has just over two dozen initiatives. Debt like public improvement bonds is paid for through a portion of city property taxes. The owner of a median-valued home in Austin will pay about $450 in debt service taxes this year, a total expected to rise to about $615 by 2030 based on current conditions with the city’s existing debt. The city, Austin ISD and Austin Community College had nearly $3.6 billion in combined bond propositions approved in 2022, including Austin’s $350 million affordable housing bond, with that debt adding to those entities’ tax bills for years. And last fall, voters passed separate tax rate elections for Travis County-led child care programming and AISD district staff raises and operations.
In the midst of spending discussions, city leaders are weighing whether to put a bond package before voters this November. A $700 million bond package to fund mobility, watershed protection, parks and public facility projects was recommended by city staff in January after months of review. The outline may not represent Austin’s final 2026 bond—if an election is called this year—as a public task force will also weigh in with its own project proposals this spring. Austin hasn’t called a compre- hensive bond election since 2018, although stand- alone packages were approved for transportation in 2020 and affordable housing in 2022. The $3.87 billion project wish list released last year included 66 programs or projects from more than a dozen public-facing city departments. The
2026 recommended bond projects
Tax impacts
Current debt projections show Austinites will pay more taxes by 2030. Additionally, this shows how a $500 million or $750 million bond would impact taxes.
An initial list of projects to be funded by Austin’s 2026 bond was proposed within a $700 million cap recommended by city staff.
Current and authorized debt With $500 million 2026 bond With $750 million 2026 bond
2026 initial recommendation
Transportation: $251M
Debt service taxes
Parks and Recreation: $140M Watershed protection: $160M
$0 $200 $400 $600 $800
Police: $62M
Community facilities*: $58M Fire/EMS: $29M
*ANIMAL SERVICES CAMPUS IMPROVEMENTS, LIBRARY RENOVATION, FLEET PROPERTY ACQUISITION, NEW HOMELESS SHELTER
Year
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