AUSTIN (Talk1370.com) -- Two bills that would make it extremely difficult for Texas' largest urban areas to cut law enforcement budgets are nearing the finish line at the Texas Capitol - and will likely be on their way to Gov. Greg Abbott for his signature.
House Bill 1900 would freeze property taxes and utility fees in any city of more than 250,000 residents that reduces police funding from the previous fiscal year. In addition to the property tax freeze, the city's sales tax revenue would be redirected to the Texas Department of Public Safety, the city's annexation powers would be stripped, and any areas that had been annexed into the city in the last 30 years could trigger a vote to de-annex themselves from the city.
Senate Bill 23, on the other hand, targets Texas counties of more than one million people, requiring those counties to hold an election before cutting funding or "reallocating" funding from a law enforcement agency.
Both bills are a direct response to the Austin City Council's efforts last year to "reimagine" its police budget, cutting more than $20 million in immediate spending and identifying another $130 million to potentially shift outside of police control.
