Denton County commissioners are set to consider borrowing up to $25 million to buy voting system equipment, under an order on their agenda for 9 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 20, at the Administrative Courthouse, 1 Courthouse Drive in Denton.
The order would authorize "Denton County, Texas, Tax Notes, Series 2026." Money raised would pay for purchasing and acquiring voting system equipment and for professional services tied to that purchase and its financing, the document says. It does not name a vendor or describe the equipment.
How the borrowing would work
Commissioners would not set the final terms themselves. The order hands that job to the county judge and the county auditor, either of whom could act as pricing officer, within limits: no more than $25 million in principal, a true interest cost of no more than 6%, and final maturity before the seventh anniversary of the Texas attorney general's approval of the notes.
The notes could be sold competitively or by private placement.
The county would levy a continuing annual property tax to repay them, the order states. If the pricing officers do not act within 180 days of adoption, the authority expires.
The agenda lists the County Auditor's office as the source of the item.
Paper-ballot system dates to 2017
The current setup traces back to 2017, when commissioners approved just under $9 million for Hart InterCivic equipment that returned the county to paper ballots, The Texas Tribune reported at the time. That system prints ballots on demand, and voters using touch screens get a printed ballot that is run through a scanner.
