Hidalgo County vote on propositions to increase/create taxes for Emergency Service Districts

HIDALGO COUNTY, Texas (ValleyCentral) — In Hidalgo County residents are voting on a proposed tax increase and creation for Emergency Service Districts throughout the county.

But what is an Emergency Service District or ESD?

ESD's are created by voters to provide fire protection and other emergency medical services (EMS) in a specific area.

Propositions 1 through 4 proposed increasing the maximum tax rate for the Emergency Service District, while propositions 5 and 6 asked residents to vote on whether or not they support the creation of Emergency Services Districts.

The six propositions propose raising the cap on the amount of ad valorem taxes that could be assessed on them to 10 cents per $100 valuation. Even though those in ESD 5 and 6 have never had a rate, the proposed rate is also 10 cents per $100 valuation.

In Hidalgo County, unofficial early voting numbers reflect that voters are against an increased tax rate for ESD 1.

For ESD's 2 through 4, voters are also not in favor of the increase, according to early voting numbers

In ESDs 5 and 6 voters are for the tax creation, which would be at 10 cents per $100 valuation.