Residents of Fort Worth will vote on May 7 for a $560 million bond package with thirteen charter amendments. The bond package includes increasing the mayor’s and city council’s salaries by three times, a new city council member, improving roads, and a list of other items. April 25 is the start of early voting.
According to Roger Venables, who gave the city bond presentation at a public education meeting, the half-billion-dollar bond package will still leave some debt capacity for the city if needed for emergencies or other projects. He also emphasized that the bonds will not lead to an increase in taxes.
However, the Texas Government Code mandates that the ballot proposition also raise the question of whether to impose a tax on property to pay interest on the bonds and provide a sinking fund to redeem the bonds. As a result, residents are voting to approve any future taxes required to repay the bonds.
The ballot is divided into five propositions, each focusing on a different sector of the city. Proposition A puts aside $360 million for streets and other mobility projects. Proposition B allocates $123.9 million for parks, a new aquatics center, and to help rebuild Forest Park Pool. Proposition C intends to use $12.5 million for a new library. Proposition D is giving $39 million to police and fire department facilities. Proposition E sets aside $15 million to enhance air and water quality and a few other environmental projects.
“The goal is for growth to pay for growth,” said District 4 Council Member Cary Moon during a meeting held on February 8. Moon left his seat open as he began a run for the Texas House of Representatives. He came in third behind former Southlake Mayor Laura Hill and former pastor Nate Schatzline. Whoever is elected to fill Moon’s seat will only serve the remainder of Moon’s elected time, ending in May 2023.
The new member of the position on the City Council will be involved in how to handle a $2 billion budget, thirty-four different neighborhoods, and will have to work on a variety of other subcommittees.
As for the thirteen proposed charter amendments, most changes would remove outdated language from specific city codes.
One of the amendments, labeled Proposition F, also aims to increase the pay of city council members and the mayor, which were last updated in 2006. The mayor received $29,000, and the council received $25,000. The new figures are $99,653 for the mayor and $76,727 for each of the other council members, according to February 2022 data.
Council Member Elizabeth Beck says that the pay increase could bring new faces to the City Council. She explained that low pay is a barrier for many people. It requires someone to already be wealthy to afford to be a city councilman.
Cat Jillson, a political science professor at Southern Methodist University, concurs with Beck. She says a pay increase would make the council job more like a full-time job and less like volunteer work.
Fort Worth typically has a meager voter turnout, so city officials encourage people to vote during the May elections. For example, Fort Worth’s 2018 bond election saw just under 5% of citizen turnout. Bond elections are typically less popular than significant elections considering the 2020 presidential election had a turnout of nearly 69%.