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Bastiat & Liberty Watchdog Index
Texas Local Government Freedom Index
Objective, empirical rankings grading 6,167 Texas local governments and 31,351 elected officials on fiscal restraint, tax burden, private property rights, and regulatory overreach. Zero peer normalization.
Top Ranked Governments (Highest Liberty)
Showing 1–25 of 207 matching jurisdictions
28-Year Freedom & Budget Trend Benchmark (FY 2000 – FY 2027)
Cohort Average Across Visible Page (25 Ranked Entities)5-Yr Freedom Trend (FY 22→27)
▼ -0.1 pts
27-Yr Liberty Shift (FY 00→27)
▼ -3.3 pts
Annual Budget Growth (YoY)
+4.0% YoY
5-Yr Budget Expansion
+26.9% (CAGR +3.8%/yr)
#600
State Rank
City of Rio Vista
CITY • Johnson County • Pop: 1,008
FY 27 Tax Rate: $1.006118Fiscal: 39.6Regulatory: 86.6Debt: 95▲ +1.8 pts (5Y)Budget: +4.7% YoY (+25.4% 5Y)
Grade C(69.9/100)
#599
State Rank
City of La Villa
CITY • Hidalgo County • Pop: 3,179
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.8111Fiscal: 51.3Regulatory: 86.6Debt: 76.1▲ +0.7 pts (5Y)Budget: +6.2% YoY (+22.1% 5Y)
Grade C(69.9/100)
#598
State Rank
City of Alamo
CITY • Hidalgo County • Pop: 20,694
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.6295Fiscal: 62.2Regulatory: 72.9Debt: 78.1▼ -0.6 pts (5Y)Budget: +5.0% YoY (+30.0% 5Y)
Grade C(69.9/100)
#597
State Rank
City of Luling
CITY • Caldwell County • Pop: 5,752
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.4065Fiscal: 75.6Regulatory: 50.9Debt: 87.3▼ -0.3 pts (5Y)Budget: +2.8% YoY (+24.6% 5Y)
Grade C(69.9/100)
#596
State Rank
City of Piney Point Village
CITY • Harris County • Pop: 3,143
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.25514Fiscal: 84.7Regulatory: 39.1Debt: 89.2▼ -0.9 pts (5Y)Budget: +4.1% YoY (+26.9% 5Y)
Grade C(69.9/100)
#601
State Rank
City of Alton
CITY • Hidalgo County • Pop: 22,907
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.4398Fiscal: 73.6Regulatory: 56.5Debt: 81.8▼ -0.8 pts (5Y)Budget: +4.2% YoY (+30.1% 5Y)
Grade C(69.7/100)
#603
State Rank
Village of Vinton
CITY • El Paso County • Pop: 2,013
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.657857Fiscal: 60.5Regulatory: 86.6Debt: 60.2▼ -0.3 pts (5Y)Budget: +4.4% YoY (+19.1% 5Y)
Grade C(69.6/100)
#602
State Rank
City of Tolar
CITY • Hood County • Pop: 1,339
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.5000Fiscal: 70Regulatory: 86.6Debt: 45.1▼ -1.9 pts (5Y)Budget: +2.8% YoY (+29.2% 5Y)
Grade C(69.6/100)
#606
State Rank
City of Haskell
CITY • Haskell County • Pop: 3,095
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.464888Fiscal: 72.1Regulatory: 44.7Debt: 100▲ +0.7 pts (5Y)Budget: +2.4% YoY (+31.9% 5Y)
Grade C(69.5/100)
#605
State Rank
Town of Fulton
CITY • Aransas County • Pop: 1,612
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.262205Fiscal: 84.3Regulatory: 41.6Debt: 85▼ -1.0 pts (5Y)Budget: +3.2% YoY (+20.9% 5Y)
Grade C(69.5/100)
#604
State Rank
Town of Highland Park
CITY • Dallas County • Pop: 8,764
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.192042Fiscal: 88.5Regulatory: 25.9Debt: 100▲ +0.2 pts (5Y)Budget: +2.0% YoY (+17.1% 5Y)
Grade C(69.5/100)
#607
State Rank
Town of Tioga
CITY • Grayson County • Pop: 1,288
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.493155Fiscal: 70.4Regulatory: 82.8Debt: 49.2▼ -1.5 pts (5Y)Budget: +2.7% YoY (+17.6% 5Y)
Grade C(69.4/100)
#608
State Rank
Village of Iowa Colony
CITY • Brazoria County • Pop: 17,240
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.5200Fiscal: 68.8Regulatory: 60.1Debt: 82.1▼ -0.4 pts (5Y)Budget: +3.5% YoY (+31.8% 5Y)
Grade C(69.1/100)
#609
State Rank
City of Dickinson
CITY • Galveston County • Pop: 21,941
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.3682Fiscal: 77.9Regulatory: 43.9Debt: 89.8▲ +0.4 pts (5Y)Budget: +2.9% YoY (+3.8% 5Y)
Grade C(69/100)
#610
State Rank
City of Mount Pleasant
CITY • Titus County • Pop: 16,238
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.423648Fiscal: 74.6Regulatory: 79.9Debt: 44.8▼ -2.1 pts (5Y)Budget: +4.1% YoY (+18.5% 5Y)
Grade C(69/100)
#613
State Rank
Town of Edgewood
CITY • Van Zandt County • Pop: 1,752
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.565262Fiscal: 66.1Regulatory: 68.6Debt: 73.9▼ -0.2 pts (5Y)Budget: +4.2% YoY (+20.8% 5Y)
Grade C(68.9/100)
#612
State Rank
City of New Summerfield
CITY • Cherokee County • Pop: 915
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.497201Fiscal: 70.2Regulatory: 45.1Debt: 100▲ +0.6 pts (5Y)Budget: +6.4% YoY (+54.0% 5Y)
Grade C(68.9/100)
#611
State Rank
City of Beverly Hills
CITY • McLennan County • Pop: 1,835
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.452942Fiscal: 72.8Regulatory: 42.2Debt: 100▲ +0.6 pts (5Y)Budget: +4.2% YoY (+23.0% 5Y)
Grade C(68.9/100)
#614
State Rank
City of Caldwell
CITY • Burleson County • Pop: 4,970
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.42993Fiscal: 74.2Regulatory: 40.3Debt: 100▲ +0.4 pts (5Y)Budget: +3.9% YoY (+27.0% 5Y)
Grade C(68.8/100)
#615
State Rank
City of Uhland
CITY • Caldwell County • Pop: 1,885
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.1801Fiscal: 89.2Regulatory: 67.2Debt: 37.5▼ -3.3 pts (5Y)Budget: +1.9% YoY (+77.4% 5Y)
Grade C(68.6/100)
#616
State Rank
City of Munday
CITY • Knox County • Pop: 1,213
FY 27 Tax Rate: $1.05125Fiscal: 36.9Regulatory: 85.4Debt: 95.7▲ +2.4 pts (5Y)Budget: +5.5% YoY (+37.4% 5Y)
Grade C(68.6/100)
#617
State Rank
Town of Springlake
CITY • Lamb County • Pop: 138
FY 27 Tax Rate: $1.0988Fiscal: 34.1Regulatory: 85.4Debt: 100▲ +2.7 pts (5Y)Budget: +6.0% YoY (+28.4% 5Y)
Grade C(68.5/100)
#620
State Rank
City of Karnes City
CITY • Karnes County • Pop: 3,620
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.608079Fiscal: 63.5Regulatory: 68Debt: 76.7▼ -0.4 pts (5Y)Budget: +6.6% YoY (+27.2% 5Y)
Grade C(68.4/100)
#619
State Rank
City of Odem
CITY • San Patricio County • Pop: 2,265
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.515151Fiscal: 69.1Regulatory: 49.8Debt: 93.4▲ +0.8 pts (5Y)Budget: +2.4% YoY (+17.6% 5Y)
Grade C(68.4/100)
#618
State Rank
City of Jefferson
CITY • Marion County • Pop: 1,996
FY 27 Tax Rate: $0.411288Fiscal: 75.3Regulatory: 61.3Debt: 67.2▼ -0.7 pts (5Y)Budget: +3.5% YoY (+9.8% 5Y)
Grade C(68.4/100)