Maverick County Commissioners Court to Hold Public Hearing on Proposed Budget Amid Revenue Losses and Public Safety Concerns

By Jose G. Landa, Copyright 2026 Eagle Pass Business Journal, Inc.

EAGLE PASS, Texas — The Maverick County Commissioners Court will hold a public hearing Tuesday, September 8, 2026, to discuss a proposed fiscal year 2026–2027 budget shaped by declining revenues, the loss of a major federal jail contract and significant proposed reductions to public safety expenditures.

The special meeting is scheduled for 5 p.m. at the Commissioners Courtroom inside the Maverick County Courthouse at 500 Quarry Street in Eagle Pass, Texas. Interim County Judge Pablo Garcia Jr. and Commissioners Yolanda Ramon, Roxi Rios, Olga Ramos and Roberto Ruiz are expected to review the proposed budget and receive public comments.

The county’s published proposed budget lists approximately $24.49 million in General Fund revenues and an almost identical amount in expenditures. That represents a decrease of approximately $5.69 million from the previous budgeted revenue total of about $30.19 million.

Earlier in the budget process, county officials confronted an estimated gap of nearly $5 million, with projected revenues of approximately $23.6 million and expenditures of about $28.5 million.

The proposed balanced budget appears to have closed that gap through expenditure reductions, adjusted revenue projections and other budgetary changes.

One of the county’s largest financial problems involved the loss of approximately $2 million in revenue from a federal agreement to house detainees at the Maverick County Jail.

The loss placed additional pressure on a General Fund already responsible for law enforcement, courts, emergency services, county facilities and other essential operations.

Among the most controversial proposals is a reduction of $560,526 from the Maverick County Sheriff’s Department.
The Sheriff’s Department budget would fall from $3,835,507 during the current fiscal year to $3,274,981 under the proposal. The reduction is approximately $560,000, or nearly 15 percent.

The proposal would reduce the Sheriff’s holiday and overtime allocation from $208,018 to only $10,000. Training funding would be reduced to $500. The proposed budget also eliminates or sharply reduces funding for uniforms, mileage, equipment and several other operational expenses.

Vehicle repair funding would decrease from $238,000 to $150,000, although fuel and oil funding would increase from $115,000 to approximately $175,258.

The reductions have raised concerns because the Sheriff’s Department was already confronting a serious shortage of deputies. Previous reporting found that the department had approximately 11 deputies responsible for patrolling a county with nearly 58,000 residents, leaving as few as three deputies working during certain shifts.

Those deputies must respond to calls throughout Eagle Pass and the county’s rural areas, transport prisoners, investigate crimes, assist other law enforcement agencies and provide security during emergencies.
Reducing overtime to $10,000 could make it more difficult to maintain adequate coverage when deputies are absent, attending court, transporting prisoners or responding to major incidents. Limited training funds could also affect the department’s ability to keep personnel properly certified and prepared.

The County Jail’s holiday and overtime allocation would separately decrease from $54,000 to $10,000. However, the proposed jail budget totals approximately $3.95 million and includes funding for 47 full-time and two part-time employees.
The proposed property tax rate is $0.366060 per $100 of taxable valuation, down from the current rate of $0.378313. Despite the lower rate, rising property values may result in some taxpayers paying more, depending on the taxable value of their property.

County officials previously discussed pursuing the maximum allowable increase in property tax revenue, freezing certain personnel and capital expenditures, transferring or eliminating expenses and potentially turning airport operations over to the City of Eagle Pass.

The Commissioners Court also reinstated the county’s 3-2-1 early property tax payment discount, providing a 3 percent discount in October, 2 percent in November and 1 percent in December. While providing relief to taxpayers who pay early, the discount also reduces the amount of revenue ultimately collected by the county.

Tuesday’s hearing will give taxpayers an opportunity to question the proposed reductions and ask how the county intends to maintain public safety and essential services with fewer available dollars.
Residents wishing to speak must complete and submit a Commissioners Court public participation form before the meeting begins.

Each speaker will be limited to three minutes.

The proposed budget remains subject to changes before final adoption. The central question facing county leaders is whether the county can balance its finances without weakening the departments responsible for protecting residents and responding to emergencies.