Texas Sets $8 Billion Bond Deluge for Water Works After Drought
In November 2013, voters approved tapping the state’s reserves for the water program, following the onset of a drought that devastated its farms. Texas forecasts that the amount of available water will decline by about 10 percent by 2060, while its population will grow by some 20 million.
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The worst Texas drought in half a century has ended, with storms flooding downtowns and once-parched prairies. A deluge of $8 billion of bond sales for water works in the Lone Star state is just getting under way.
The Texas Water Development Board is planning to sell $800 million of municipal debt this year, beginning a decade-long borrowing spree for projects like reservoirs, pipelines and plants that make saltwater fit to drink.