Where El Paso's tax money goes. Documented.
El Paso has some of the highest property taxes in Texas. This site tracks what the City of El Paso and El Paso County take in, what they spend, and what they refuse to show you. Every figure links back to the document it came from.
$0.00
City of El Paso + El Paso County spending since you opened this page
$840,627,650
Voter-authorized bond amounts in the Texas Comptroller HB103 extract for the City of El Paso and El Paso County: 7 carried elections with stated amounts, pulled Oct 7, 2026.
Estimate, not a cash register. City: Preliminary all-funds budget from the official May 27, 2026 council presentation. The adopted budget was about $6.4M lower after the tax rate was cut (news reporting); the city has not published the adopted all-funds total. County: Adopted general fund budget as reported; the county's pre-adoption communications put the all-funds total at approximately $690.7M. Both figures are spread evenly over a 365-day year; real spending is lumpy. This shows the pace of authorized spending. Sources: FY2027 Preliminary Budget presentation, City Council, May 27, 2026; El Paso Times, Sep 15, 2026 (adopted budget as reported).
Combined tax rate per $100, in-city
FY2026-27 adopted rates. Caller-Times, El Paso Times, Aug 18, 2026
City tax rate per $100, FY2026-27
Adopted 6-2, Aug 18, 2026. Highest of Texas's eight largest cities.
Sheriff's office over budget, FY2026
County budget office to Commissioners Court. El Paso Times, Sep 25, 2026
Deck Plaza price tag, plus $32M TxDOT walls
2027 dollars. Downtown Deck Plaza; only ~$74-84M committed.
Vendor checkbooks published by city or county
Neither publishes vendor-level spending. See the Gap.
What do you pay?
Enter your home's taxable value to see the estimated annual bill from each taxing unit, at FY2026-27 adopted rates.
| Taxing unit | Rate per $100 | Est. annual tax |
|---|---|---|
| City of El Paso | $0.798000 | $1,835 |
| El Paso County | $0.451133 | $1,038 |
| EPISD (context only) | $1.074500 | $2,471 |
| UMC hospital district (context only) | $0.236904 | $545 |
| Total | $2.560537 | $5,889 |
Estimate only: Sum of adopted rates Before exemptions. A homestead exemption lowers the taxable value and the bill. Rates verified 2026-10-07; see the city page for sources.
Where does $1 of your property tax go?
Built from the adopted FY2026-27 rates. EPISD and UMC are shown for context; they are outside this site's scope.
Combined in-city rate: $2.560537 per $100. Arithmetic from adopted rates; exemptions vary by homeowner. Sources: Caller-Times and El Paso Times, Aug 18, 2026.
Latest flags
The big deals
Three stories explain where El Paso's money fights are. Each card has the timeline, the verified numbers, the source documents, and the questions still open.
Meeting watch
Money gets spent in public meetings. Here is where to watch the next ones:
- City Council: regular meetings on Tuesdays. Next posted: Oct 13, 2026. Agendas, documents, and video on Legistar.
- Commissioners Court: check the official calendar on PrimeGov for the next posted meeting date, agendas, and video.
Dates from the official calendars, checked Oct 7, 2026. Schedules change; confirm on the linked calendar before attending.
What they won't show you
Neither the City of El Paso nor El Paso County publishes a vendor-level checkbook. You cannot look up who got paid, for what, and when. Two school districts in this county publish more payment detail than the city does. Read the transparency scorecard.