The Board’s evaluation of this year’s budget began in July with the first of two public workshops, continued with a public hearing on the proposed tax rate, and reached its final step today. The Board of Directors voted to approve the 2026-27 budget and tax rate at the September 15th meeting.
Here’s a look at what was approved and what it means for the community.
The approved rate
TRWD’s tax rate for the coming fiscal year is set at $0.0273 per $100 of property valuation, a 3% change from the previous rate of $0.0265. For the average homeowner in TRWD’s taxing district, that works out to about $82.70 which is an increase of $5.61 from the previous tax year.
TRWD’s rate remains among the lowest in Tarrant County.
What does the tax rate fund
TRWD’s tax rate supports the General Fund, which pays for flood protection and recreation — the levees and floodway system that protect our community, along with the Trinity Trails and other recreation assets residents use every day.
The FY27 General Fund budget reflects continued investment in key areas:
– Maintaining and upgrading the existing flood protection system
– TRWD owns and operates a 27-mile levee system with two reservoirs that protect close to 1,000 businesses and 7,200 homes
– Continued work on the Central City Flood Control Project, TRWD’s partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
– Construction on the North Bypass Channel is expected to begin in 2027, with TRWD managing the local share of coordination with federal partners
– Construction progress on the Panther Island canal system
– Unlike the North Bypass Channel, the canals are locally funded and built to provide flood protection, stormwater management, and recreation benefits, with construction on a new phase beginning this fall
– Growing demand for the Trinity Trails and other recreation amenities
– The budget funds continued investment in trail lighting, signage, and maintenance as public use of Trinity Trails and other recreation assets keeps increasing
The full TRWD FY27 budget
The Board of Directors approved budgets across all TRWD’s funds this September. The FY27 Budget includes the General Fund, the Revenue Fund, and the Governmental Contingency Fund.
General Fund: $33,570,000 — 100% tax-funded, supporting flood protection and recreation as previously outlined
Revenue Fund: $223,715,299 — funded through water sales and other miscellaneous income, supporting water supply operations, including reservoirs, pipelines, and future water supply planning
Governmental Contingency Fund: $41,541,000 in Special Projects (projects that are expected to span multiple years due to their scale, like the Panther Island canals) which are funded from non-operating income, and $9,500,000 in Capital Projects (costs for the local portion of the Central City Flood Control Project), which is funded with general obligation bond proceeds.
Sharing this differently this year
Residents told us in the past that budget and tax rate information came too late and without enough context. This year, we started earlier, sharing what budget season looks like back in July, walking through what workshops and hearings are, and explaining the process well before any numbers were final. Our goal was to make this year’s process easier to follow, not just easier to announce.
Take a deeper dive
The complete FY27 Budget, including fund-level details, are available at Budget and Financials – Tarrant Regional Water District.
If you followed along with us this season, thank you for being part of the conversation. If this is the first you’re hearing about it, you can catch up on the full series here: News – Tarrant Regional Water District
