Georgetown Mayor Josh Schroeder highlighted the need for state water infrastructure funding and property tax-funded public services at a Georgetown Chamber event Oct. 16.

At the event, Schroeder discussed the 17 amendments to the Texas Constitution up for vote in the November election, giving a local perspective on how each could affect residents. The propositions include reducing property taxes, funding water supply projects and creating a state dementia research institute, according to previous Community Impact reporting.

The big picture

Schroeder asked voters to consider how some propositions will be funded if others reduce taxes.

Propositions creating funds include:

• Proposition 1 for the Texas State Technical College System
• Proposition 4 for the Texas Water Fund
• Proposition 14 for a state dementia research institute

Additionally, Schroeder said the $20 billion the Texas Water Fund proposition would allocate over 20 years is “not even close to what we need.”

“For us to build the infrastructure it's going to take to move the water from East Texas to Georgetown, a small fraction of that pipe is going to be a half billion dollars,” Schroeder said.

Propositions cutting taxes include:

• Proposition 2 banning taxes on capital gains
• Proposition 5 for an animal feed tax exemption
• Proposition 6 banning securities transaction taxes
• Proposition 7 exempting taxes for military spouses
• Proposition 8 banning death taxes
• Proposition 9 exempting business taxes
• Proposition 10 exempting taxes for homes destroyed by fire
• Proposition 11 exempting taxes for elderly and disabled homeowners
• Proposition 13 increasing the homestead exemption
• Proposition 17 creating a border security tax exemption

“If you do like some of the services [the] government provides you, [such as] police, fire, roads ... and you acknowledge that none of them are free, we’ve got to acknowledge that we have to pay for them through some taxing mechanism,” Schroeder said.

Explained

State lawmakers determined which amendments would be on the ballot at the most recent legislative session.

Since 1876, Texas has had over 700 constitutional amendments, and they have about a 75% approval rate, according to the Legislative Reference Library of Texas. It takes a simple majority for an amendment to pass.

What they’re saying

Schroeder said he doesn’t believe constitutional amendments are “a great way to govern,” because it puts the burden on the voter to understand the larger impact of the proposition, especially in instituting tax cuts.

“A lot of times what you see in these constitutional amendments is you get a very specific question without the context and the result of the answer of that question,” Schroeder said.

At the polls

The only items on Georgetown-area voters’ ballots are the charter amendments.

Early voting for the Nov. 4 election runs from Oct. 20-31. Polls are open:

• Oct. 20-25, 8 a.m.-6 p.m.
• Oct. 26, noon-6 p.m.
• Oct. 27-31, 7 a.m.-7 p.m.

Registered Williamson County voters can cast their ballot at any polling place in the county. There are a handful of early voting locations in Georgetown, including:

• Fire Station No. 6, 6700 Williams Drive
• Georgetown Annex, 100 Wilco Way
• Georgetown City Hall, 808 Martin Luther King Jr. St.
• Georgetown ISD Technology Building, 603 Lakeway Drive
• Hammerlun Center for Leadership and Learning, 507 E. University Ave.
• The Oaks Community Center - Sun City, 301 Del Webb Blvd.

For more election information, visit www.wilcotx.gov/185/elections.