MCLENNAN COUNTY, Texas — Texas voters will decide on Proposition 4, which would dedicate $1 billion annually for 20 years to address aging water infrastructure, conservation and new water supplies.
- Texas voters will decide on Proposition 4, which would allocate $1 billion annually for 20 years to address aging water infrastructure.
- The funding would come from sales tax revenue and support water conservation, reuse, and infrastructure improvements across the state.
- Half of the funding would go toward conservation measures like fixing leaky pipes, while the other half would develop new water sources.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Voters across Texas will soon decide whether to dedicate $1 billion annually for the next 20 years to address the state's aging water infrastructure through Proposition 4.
The measure would allocate the first $1 billion of sales tax revenue each year—after the total exceeds $46.5 billion—to the Texas Water Fund, supporting water conservation, reuse, and infrastructure improvements.
"This is going to be $1 billion a year for 20 years, and that will address some, but not all, the water infrastructure needs for Texas," said Kimberly Gamez, City of Waco Source Watershed Protection Manager.
The funding would target multiple water-related priorities across the state, including communities that have experienced water outages due to deteriorating infrastructure.
"About 50% is going to conservation and reuse or essentially conservation measures, which would cover things like fixing old infrastructure and fixing leaky pipes and that sort of thing. And then the other 50% will be going to developing new sources, so yes absolutely would address that," Gamez said.
If approved, the proposition would help cities develop new water supplies, purchase water rights, develop wells, rehabilitate dams, and implement better agricultural water conservation practices.
The City of Waco, which manages approximately $2 billion in water infrastructure, recently received funding from the Texas Water Development Board for copper and lead pipe replacements. With additional funding through Proposition 4, the city is exploring the purchase of water rights from Lake Whitney.
"They do have programs we would qualify for, you just have to apply and hope you're the one who qualifies the best," Gamez said.
While the $20 billion investment would provide significant support, one study indicates Texas would need $154 billion by 2050 to fully address its water infrastructure needs. However, Gamez hopes this initiative will build momentum toward securing more funding in the future.
For more details on the proposition, you can visit here.
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