On May 2nd, 2026, Texas voters approved $76.4 billion in new principal debt in a single afternoon—more than the entire gross domestic product of Uganda, according to a report published by the Texas Public Policy Foundation. The authorization allows local governments to add onto the $368.3 billion in principal debt already owed across the state. The report warns that unchecked local borrowing is driving an affordability crisis and calls for urgent fiscal reform as the 90th Texas Legislature approaches.
The report details that when interest costs are included, the $368.3 billion in existing local debt outstanding actually approaches $552 billion. During the May election cycle, 431 propositions were offered for consideration, with the Texas Bond Review Board reporting that 338 propositions passed, 51 were defeated, and 42 election results remained pending at the time of publication. Dallas ISD sought approval for a $6.2 billion bond package—the largest school bond proposal in Texas history—which balloons to more than $12 billion once interest payments are included, based on the district's Voter Information Document. The city of Fort Worth asked voters to support an $845 million bond package, the largest in the city's history, which rises to more than $1.3 billion in total once interest costs are added. In Fort Worth, only 13,601 voters said yes from a total city voting population of 547,546, meaning just 2.5% of the electorate approved the measure.
The report questions whether Dallas ISD's massive debt was even necessary, noting that the district's enrollment shrank from 158,604 students in the 2015-16 school year to 139,802 in the 2024-25 school year—a loss of almost 20,000 students or nearly 12%. The authors write that the Dallas and Fort Worth examples "are illustrative in the sense that they represent the lack of restraint obvious at the local level right now." According to the report, local governments appear "seemingly unconcerned by the affordability crisis currently gripping Texas and the nation."
The report argues that low voter turnout in May elections—significantly lower than November cycles—enables large debt authorizations with minimal public input, which is one reason conservatives have called for moving fiscal matters to November ballots, though such efforts are commonly opposed. The authors explain that the situation has gotten "so far out of hand" in part because it's "being driven by a lack of restraint" at the local level. For districts facing enrollment decline, the report raises questions about why new buildings are needed, how districts will pay for staff at new facilities, and whether there are better uses for taxpayer money than "fancy new facilities."
The report concludes that the 90th Texas Legislature represents "a much-needed opportunity for meaningful local debt reform," with the urgency underscored by the scale of borrowing on May 2nd. The authors recommend that "such indifference demands far-reaching fiscal constraints to protect taxpayers and engender responsible governance." The bottom line: "We must rein in local borrowing, lest the reckless abandon push taxes endlessly higher and nudge Texas to become a California-like mess."