SATX-BNE: Impact 10/21/2025

Election season has arrived, bringing state propositions, a Boerne ISD tax rate election and county ballot items in the Boerne and Fair Oaks Ranch area. Early voting began Oct. 20, running through Oct. 31. Election day is Nov. 4.

What’s on the ballot? Boerne ISD voters will decide on the district’s first voter-approval tax rate election, or VATRE, designed to support teacher salaries and provide funds for capital improvements outside of bonds and other funding mechanisms.

Statewide legislation on the ballot includes homestead tax exemption increases, tax exemption for homes destroyed by fire, water supply funding, parental rights and additional propositions. 

The city of Fair Oaks Ranch falls within three counties. Bexar County residents will vote on whether or not to raise the hotel occupancy tax, or HOT, from 1.75% to 2%.

A new therapy provider has opened its doors in Boerne, offering services in an environment that encourages open communication. Owned by Natasha Smith, The Story of US Therapy began in Helotes and operated for two years before the opening of the Boerne location.

About the business: Smith focuses on relationship therapy, including romantic partnerships, intimacy, parents and children and other services. While Smith specializes in intimate relationships, she also offers individual therapy.

Smith operates both the Helotes and Boerne locations, and appointments for services can be made on the business website or by calling 210-500-6479.

“The big takeaway is you don’t have to suffer alone,” Smith said. “We are here to help and be of service to the people who need it.”

• 1022 River Road, Ste 8B, Boerne

As Bexar County voters head to the polls Nov. 4, they will decide whether to raise the hotel occupancy tax, or HOT, from 1.75% to 2%.

Funds raised from this increased tax, as well as the existing 5% tax on rental cars, will go toward the renovation of the Frost Bank Center, the transformation of the Freeman Coliseum into a permanent home for the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo, and up to 25%, or $311 million, of the cost for a San Antonio Spurs arena downtown.

The details: Voters will decide on two propositions, with Proposition A funding the existing county venues and rodeo, while Proposition B funds a portion of the Spurs arena. Jim Lefko, director of communications for Bexar County Judge Peter Sakai, said the tax is estimated to generate $503 million over a 30-year period. Lefko said the most important aspect of the vote is that funds raised through this tax can only be used on venues.

As water restrictions and shortages become more common in Texas communities, state lawmakers are asking voters to approve $20 billion to fund new water supply projects and improve existing systems over the next 20 years.

The overview: If voters approve State Proposition 4, which is on the November ballot, the state will create a dedicated funding stream to help local utilities access more water and upgrade their infrastructure. Without the new funding, Texas’ water crisis could deepen, experts say.

“We’ve got 1,500+ people moving to Texas every day, and not one of them is bringing a single drop of water with them,” Dean Sharp, who leads the management division of the Texas American Water Works Association, said Oct. 16.

Key takeaway: Despite the $1 billion annual price tag, Proposition 4 would not create any new state taxes or increase costs for Texans, lawmakers and experts said. Beginning in 2027, the money would come from existing sales tax revenue and be deposited in the Texas Water Fund, a state account that voters approved in 2023.