Some Southwest tax measures fail to win over voters
Bloomberg News
Tax and spending measures on
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In Oklahoma, a legislatively referred constitutional amendment
It would have slowed revenue growth for schools and local governments, possibly leading to millage rate hikes to make payments on voter-approved bonds, according to the nonpartisan
The fate of Oklahoma County’s bond-financed
The county already sold $260 million of
County Commissioner Brian Maughan did not respond to a request for comment.
Colorado and Arizona measures
Results for Colorado’s two competing income tax measures were undetermined. Constitutional Amendment 87, which would replace the state’s flat 4.4% personal and corporate income tax rates with graduated rates ranging from 3.7% to 8.4%, had a slight lead
Gov. Jared Polis
Arizona’s Proposition 320, which would require an estimated 94 of the state’s 207 school districts to spend at least 60% of their operating budgets on direct instructional expenses or face a reduction in state funding, was trending toward defeat in
If passed, non-complying districts would face a reduction in their per pupil allocations from the state’s Classroom Site Fund, which totals about $800 million annually.
Tax hikes in Texas
Texas voters turned down dozens of maintenance and operations property tax rate increases sought mostly by school districts, according to
Round Rock Independent School District, which had its underlying bond rating downgraded to Aa3 with a negative outlook from Aa1 by Moody’s Ratings in September, lost its bid for a $30 million
Plano voters rejected
“Without authorization for these venue taxes, the proposed financing approach would need to be reassessed before city council considers any actions related to the arena,” City Manager Mark Israelson said in a statement. “Our focus will be on providing them with a clear understanding of the financial implications and the options available moving forward.”
In Corpus Christi, where a water supply crisis that led to bond rating downgrades and negative outlooks
The city has estimated the amendment would result in loss of about $6 million in annual revenue supporting debt the city issued through the Texas Water Development Board and a water rate hike would be required in 2029 to offset the loss, according to
Austin voters approved a $295 million general obligation bond package for parks and recreation facilities and public libraries, while rejecting
Constitutional Amendment B
Economic development districts won’t be created in Arkansas with the narrow defeat of constitutional amendment Issue 3.
The districts would have been used by cities and counties to spur housing, retail, and other projects and use incremental increases in property or sales taxes within the district to pay off bonds.
