Who’s funding the Dallas public safety, homelessness proposition?

Friday is the last chance to vote early before the November 3 mid-term elections. Dallas County residents can vote at any of the 84 polling locations countywide. Find locations and current wait times here, and reference our voter guide here.

If you’re trying to learn about the City bond and County TRE down-ballot measures and decide how to vote, here’s a quick primer:

City of Dallas Bond Proposition A

What it does: The bond would fund the construction of Dallas PD training facilities, storage rooms and an operations center, as well as fund a replacement fire station.

Amount: A $443 million bond for the public safety facilities (estimated repayment: $629 million).

Added to ballot: Aug. 12 by a 11-4 City Council vote (“no” votes were councilmembers Adam Bazaldua, Paula Blackmon, Cara Mendelsohn and Paul Ridley)

In favor: Public Safety for Dallas
A publicsafetyfordallas.com website and campaign is financially backed by the Together for Dallas PAC, led by the Dallas Citizens Council, with endorsements coming mostly from police and fire associations, local chambers of commerce and other business entities.

Their pitch: Supporters believe the bond is “an investment in the basics of public safety — a modernized fire station, a weatherproofed 911 center, critical crime labs, evidence storage, and training centers that will deliver 21st Century training for police” that will “help replace buildings that are old and outdated without raising taxes.”

The money behind it: Dallas Citizens Council president Kelvin Walker filed as treasurer on Oct. 14, and Together for Dallas’ 8 Day report shows $376,500 raised from people and entities who reflect the endorsements, and nearly $275,000 spent, with $250,000+ going to Allyn Media for consulting and advertising expenses.

Opposed: Bust the Bond
The bustthebonddallas.com website doesn’t name any specific endorsers, other than “a group of Dallas neighbors and taxpayers urging you to vote NO in NOvember.”

Their pitch: Naysayers believe the bond is “new debt, added to the $8.6 billion outstanding debt” which is “too much money, with too little accountability. It’s an obvious first step to abandoning and demolishing Dallas City Hall. … We request the City come back with a smaller bond for the police academy in May 2027.”

The money behind it: We don’t know who is funding those yard signs you’ve seen. District 12 Councilmember Cara Mendelsohn filed as campaign treasurer on Sept. 9, but City Secretary Bilierae Johnson says Bust the Bond’s campaign finance reports have not been filed with her office, as required by state law. We’ve emailed the campaign and Mendelsohn to ask for the reports.

Dallas County Proposition A

What it does: The tax increase would raise about $100 million to resolve encampments, increase access to mental health treatment and support programs that provide “stable housing and self-sufficiency” through Housing Forward​.

Amount: $0.248650 per $100 valuation, so a tax bill on a $350,000 home would increase by about $84 annually, according to the County. (Last year, the tax rate was $0.215500 per $100 valuation.)

Added to ballot: Aug. 11 by a 3-2 County Commissioner vote (“no” votes were commissioners Elba Garcia and John Wiley Price)

In favor: Dallas Homeless Solutions
The dallascountyhomeslesssolutions.com website names 15 organizations, 10 elected officials and a long list of community leaders who support the tax increase. Some overlap exists between supporters of the county and city propositions, such as the Dallas Citizens Council, the Dallas Regional Chamber, the Dallas Police Association and Hunt Realty Investments.

Their pitch: “Dallas County has a plan that works. Proposition A would take it to scale — getting more people off the streets, resolving encampments faster and making a visible difference in the neighborhoods, business districts and public spaces where people live and work.”

The money behind it: Former Dallas Mavericks CEO Cynt Marshall was named treasurer in a Sept. 18 filing, but no state-required financial documents are posted with the County’s campaign finance reports. We’ve placed calls to the Dallas County Clerk, Dallas County Elections Department and the phone number on Marshall’s filing, as well as emailed Dallas Homeless Solutions to find out whether reports haven’t been submitted or why they aren’t posted.

Opposed: Commissioners Garcia and Price
No formal and funded effort is campaigning against the tax ratification election (TRE), but social media posts and media interviews from Garcia, Price and other detractors are circulating. 

Their pitch: In a Facebook post this week, District 4 Commissioner Garcia says, “Addressing homelessness matters,” but she criticizes a lack of “clearly defined costs, accountable spending, and measurable results” that “does not justify approving a substantial tax commitment without sufficient clarity about what it will deliver.” District 3 Commissioner Price did a 21-minute interview with Jason Whitely of Inside Texas Politics on why he opposes the TRE, mainly because “taxes are up. You can’t keep talking about affordability. You can’t keep talking about, you know, the challenges. … An increase is an increase.”

More clarification needed? You can visit Vote411.org and type in your address to find a nonpartisan guide from the League of Women Voters Dallas that matches your ballot, and even print out your picks, since you can’t use your phone in the ballot box.

We’ve also pasted the League’s explanations here:

City of Dallas Proposition A 

Although State Law mandates the words “THIS IS A TAX INCREASE” be printed at the top of the ballot proposition, the city of Dallas is reducing its property tax rate for 2026-27 from $0.6988 per $100 taxable value to $0.6978. The new lower tax rate will raise more revenue because property values have risen and the tax base has experienced some growth.

The City of Dallas serves a population of approximately 1,336,000.  It seeks authorization to issue $443,000,000 general obligation bonds to fund improvements for:

$82 million to close the funding gap for the Law Enforcement Training Center at the University of Texas at Dallas. The current law enforcement training academy is located in a warehouse the city leased as a temporary site in 1990. Funding for a new Law Enforcement Training Center in the amount of $50 million was approved by voters in the 2024 bond election. Construction has started. However, there is not enough funding to complete the project. In addition to the $50 million from the 2024 bond, the city has received $25 million from a state grant and $31.5 million in private philanthropy. The city anticipates receiving an additional $38.5 in private philanthropy. The current revised project budget is $227 million. Assuming the city receives the additional $38.5 in private philanthropy, there is a shortfall of $82 million in funds for this project, which this bond authorization would provide.

$149 million for the Public Safety Training Complex, with outdoor, driving, tactical and range capabilities at Dallas Executive Airport. The Public Safety Training Complex is a separate specialized training project that has not been previously funded through earlier bond programs.    The University of Texas at Dallas campus will not allow for construction of a vehicle track or a gun range. Therefore, these components cannot be built as part of the Law Enforcement Training Center at the UT Dallas location and will have to be built at a separate site.

$150 million for police evidence storage, a property room, and crime lab.  The plan combines the currently separate property room, crime scene processing, and evidentiary vehicle storage into a single, unified joint facility.  

$40 million to relocate the 9-1-1 call center and emergency operation center from City Hall.  Federal agencies determined  the emergency operation center facilities in City Hall were inadequate during preparation for the recent FIFA games. This authorization would address that deficiency.

$22 million to replace Fire Station #4 downtown. Station #4 is located downtown on Akard Street and was built in the 1950s. Present-day traffic on Akard makes it difficult to maneuver fire engines in and out of the stations. The replacement station site is part of the ongoing renovations to the Kay Bailey Hutchinson Convention Center.                                                                                

The last bond election from the City was in May 2024 for $1.25 billion and involved 10 voter-approved propositions to fund 850 projects.

Dallas’s credit ratings from Moody’s for its tax supported debt is A1. An A1 rating is defined as “upper-medium grade, low credit risk” with Aaa the “highest quality, minimal credit risk.” Moody’s changed the City’s credit rating to stable from negative in June 2026.

Moody’s credit ratings of large cities in Texas:

Austin	Aaa
San Antonio	Aaa
Houston	Aa2
Fort Worth	Aa3
Dallas	A1

 2025-26 property taxes rates per $100 taxable value for other large cities in Texas:

Houston	0.519190
Austin	0.524017
San Antonio	0.541590
Fort Worth	0.670000
Dallas	0.698800

Dallas County Proposition A
A vote of the people is required when the portion of a local taxing district’s new tax rate exceeds the rate calculated according to a complicated formula set by the state legislature. Dallas County’s total tax rate approved by the Commissioner’s Court exceeds the State’s calculated rate and thus must be approved by the voters or else it will revert to the lower State calculated rate. This type of election is called a Voter Approval Tax Ratification Election (VATRE). Dallas County’s tax rate approval proposition will be on the ballot as Proposition A. The words THIS IS A TAX INCREASE are mandated by the State to be at the top of a proposition like this one.       

2026-27 tax rate approved by Commissioner’s Court and up for voter approval:
$0.24865

2026-27 maximum state calculated tax rate without voter approval:
$0.22465 

2025-26 Dallas County tax rate:     
$0.21550           

Dallas County has not raised its tax rate for 16 years. If voters approve this increase, the anticipated $100 million raised from the increase will be used to:

• Fund programs that measurably reduce homelessness and resolve encampments;
• Improve neighborhood vibrancy;
• Support homeless people to achieve self-sufficiency;
• Increase access to mental health treatment; and
• Support programs that provide stable housing.

If voters do not approve this increase, the tax rate will be $0.224650 and the County will not fund the anticipated $100 million for homeless services.

Comparable county tax rates per $100 taxable value for 2025-26:

Collin County	0.149343
Tarrant County	0.186200
Dallas County	0.215500
Bayer County	0.276331
Travis County	0.375845
Harris County	0.417500