Erath County voters largely followed state trends in deciding constitutional amendments during the Nov. 7 election while Stephenville voters decided two propositions on their ballots.
Proposition 1 if approved would have allowed the city of Stephenville to decrease the number of City Council members from 8 to 6 and the amount for a quorum from 6 to 4 members. A total of 982(60.51%) voted against the measure while 641 (39.49%) voted for it. There were 56 voters who chose not to cast a vote either way.
Proposition 2 will allow the city of Stephenville to increase the amount of terms City Council members can serve from two 2-year terms to three 3 2-year teams for a total of six possible years in the council if re-elected. The matter narrowly passed with 820 (50.28%) in favor and 811 (49.72%) against. A total of 48 voters presented with the choice left it blank.
Santo ISD voters also approved a $27m bond to expand facilities with 32 voters for and 28 against.
On the state level, 13 of the 14 propositions passed with only Prop 13 failing to garner enough support. Erath voters mirrored voters on the state level in all decisions except Proposition 12 in which 51.56% of Erath voters voted against and 48.44% voted for the item.
The narrowest approval votes in Erath County ballots were for Prop. 5 (53.09%), Prop. 10 (55.41%) and Prop. 11 (52.42%).
Amendments on the ballot included: Prop. 1 – Right to Farm, Garden and Ranch – Protect people’s and businesses’ right to farm, produce timber or manage wildlife on land they own or lease.
Prop. 2 - Tax Break for Childcare Centers. Allow counties and cities to lower property taxes on child care centers owned or rented and have at least 20% of enrolled children receiving subsidized child care.
Prop. 3 – Barring an Individual wealth Tax. Prohibit an individual wealth or net work tax or a tax on the value of one’s assets minus liabilities.
Prop.4 – Authorizing Property Tax Cuts. Allow the state to implement this year the historic property tax cuts the State Legislature approved in July.
Prop. 5 – Research at Texas Public Universities. Expand funding for research grants for Texas public universities.
Prop. 6 – Funding for Water Projects. Create a water fund to provide grants and low-interest loans for badly needed water projects across the state.
Prop. 7 – Funding for Electricity Plants. Create a $5 billion state energy fund to provide loans or grants to companies to build or upgrade electricity generating plants.
Prop. 8 – Expanding High-Speed Internet. Allow creations of a $1.5 billion state fund to expand high-speed internet across Texas which would expire in 10 years.
Prop. 9 – Cost-of-Living Increase for Teachers. Authorizes first permanent cost-of-living adjustments for retired teachers in nearly two decades, as approved by State Legislature earlier this year.
Prop. 10 – Breaks for Medical Manufacturers. Allow the state to exempt medical or biomedical equipment manufacturers from paying property taxes on their inventory and equipment used in the manufacturing process.
Prop. 11 – El Paso County Parks. Add El Paso County to the list of counties that allow their conservation reclamation districts to issue bonds to develop or finance parks and recreational facilities.
Prop. 12 – Abolishing Galveston County Treasurer’s Office – Abolish the Galveston County treasurer’s office effective Jan. 1.
Prop. 13 – Retirement Age for Judges. Raise the mandatory retirement age for state judges from 75 to 79 and allow the State Legislature to set a lower retirement age, though not less than 75.
Prop. 14 - $1 Billion for State Parks. Would take up to $1 billion from the state’s budget surplus to create a Centennial Parks Conservation Fund to buy land to create and improve parks.