Six neighborhoods on the outskirts of Austin could vote to remove themselves from the city on Saturday. "Disannexing" from the city could mean some services – like fire and police – and some fees and taxes change.
Why is this happening? Let's break it down.
A new state law
In 2023, state lawmakers passed a bill that requires the state's largest cities to allow some neighborhoods to vote on whether to leave the city limits.
The area must have been annexed between March 3, 2015, and Dec. 1, 2017. That’s when a handful of places were annexed just before a law was passed that could have stopped them.
Who would be impacted?
In Austin, six areas totalling nearly 2 square miles could disannex – the largest neighborhood being Lost Creek in West Austin.
The May 4 ballot lays out a proposition for each area. Voters must live in one of the areas to vote:
- Prop A: 738 acres of land in Lost Creek
- Prop B: 4 acres of land in the Mooreland addition in South Austin
- Prop C: 28 acres of land off Blue Goose Road in Northeast Austin
- Prop D: 40.48 acres of land at Lennar at Malone in South Austin
- Prop E: 104 acres of land in the Wildhorse/Webb Tract in Northeast Austin
- Prop F: 212 acres of land covering several parcels at River Place in West Austin
If residents vote to disannex, they could see changes to public services. For example, the Travis County Sheriff’s Office would respond to 911 calls instead of the Austin Police Department. There could also be changes to EMS and fire response. The city portion of residents' property tax bills also would disappear.
Why some want to disannex
The city annexed Lost Creek in 2015, expanding its tax base. Many residents say even though they are paying city taxes and fees, they are not receiving services like a library or bus stops.
Leslie Odom, who moved to Lost Creek 13 years ago, said she and her husband were looking for a neighborhood with access to good schools to raise their two sons.
Before they were annexed, she said, there were regular patrols by the Travis County Sheriff’s Office, helping to prevent crime.
Odom said she thinks the Austin police have not been as present.
“My car was broken into twice in one week,” she said. “I called the police and they basically said, 'Hey, we’ll get back to you.' ... It got me into pushing for this fight. Because I realized through more stories of my neighbors getting burglarized that something had to change.”
Several years ago, the neighborhood got together to hire additional patrols through the Travis County Sheriff’s Office, which is costing the neighborhood more than $100,000 a year for private security patrols.
Odom said she believes residents can expect better services and lower taxes if they vote to disannex.
Some residents from the other five neighborhoods have mixed feelings about disannexing. While it could result in cost savings, they say they're fine with the services they are receiving.
Correction: A previous version of this story said the Lost Creek neighborhood was annexed in 2017. It was annexed in 2015.
