Resident raises alarm about proposed 36% county budget increase and bond rollover

Fern McClarty used the meeting’s public comment period to criticize the proposed 2026 Hidalgo County budget and draw attention to several statewide ballot issues she said would affect taxpayers.

McClarty said the county’s proposed 2026 budget of $429,700,000 is 36% higher than the approved 2025 budget of $316,000,000 and argued the court should consider tax reductions rather than roll bonds. She said the county’s plan to issue a $50 million bond to “keep the flow of money coming” could extend obligations and suggested the county is not sufficiently sensitive to residents’ economic pressures.

Direct quotations from the public comment: “The proposed budget for 2026 is $429,700,000. That is a 36% increase.” McClarty also urged the public to consider ballot measures that would limit new local taxes and commented generally about political accountability.

Court response in the record: staff and commissioners acknowledged the comment and continued through the agenda; several later agenda items and staff remarks noted that some purchases were already allocated in department budgets. The county also set procurement deadlines for year-end purchases and discussed bond and funding schedules in other agenda items.

Why it matters: Public comment raised an explicit numerical claim about the county budget increase and asked the court to justify spending decisions amid inflationary pressures facing residents. The court’s approvals of large contract amounts and adoption of purchase deadlines occur against that backdrop.

Speakers quoted in this article are taken from the meeting transcript and identified in the speakers list below.