Where does Williamson County keep its cash? (DRAFT – not published)

In short

• The county held about $1.28 billion in investments on Sept. 30, 2025 (our math).¹²
• U.S. Treasury bonds were the biggest part, about $505 million, or 39% (our math).¹²
• Five pools for local governments held about $564 million, or 44% (our math). The county can take money out of them with one day’s notice.¹²
• The county earned $54.6 million on its investments in its government funds in fiscal 2025.³

Numbers marked “our math” are our estimates, not official figures. The notes show the inputs and the steps.

What the numbers show

Investment, Sept. 30, 2025	Amount	Average days to maturity
U.S. Treasury bonds	$505,115,243	330
Texas CLASS pool	$242,336,221	43
TexPool pool	$128,754,756	41
U.S. agency securities	$84,108,417	791
TexPool Prime pool	$76,722,290	52
Commercial paper	$72,120,935	118
Texas CLASS Government pool	$70,564,991	17
Money market fund	$49,266,631	45
LOGIC pool	$45,194,711	42
Bonds of other local governments	$5,474,989	812
U.S. Treasury bills	$4,860,476	282
Total (our math)	$1,284,519,660

Source: the county’s fiscal 2025 annual report, Note 6.¹²

• State law sets what the county can buy. It lists types such as U.S. government notes, certificates of deposit, pools and money market funds.¹
• County policy requires a rating of at least A. All rated holdings were rated A-1+ (short-term), AA+ or AAA.¹
• The pools let the county take money out daily, with one day’s notice. They may limit withdrawals only in an emergency such as a market shutdown.¹

The other side

• Earnings fell from the year before. The report says investment earnings in its countywide statements dropped $11.6 million because interest rates fell.³
• A big balance is not a surplus. In the county’s countywide statements, $678.9 million of its net position (what it owns minus what it owes) is restricted for building projects. Its unrestricted net position is below zero, about −$1.03 billion.⁴
• Why it is below zero. The audit gives its own reason. The gap comes mainly from bonds the county sold to build infrastructure that it then handed to other governments. The county still owes about $506 million on those bonds, but no longer owns what they built. Property taxes set aside for debt will pay them in the future. See county net position below zero.⁵
• The audit’s numbers do not fully match. Its note gives a gap of about $890 million, while its main statement shows about $1.03 billion. The audit does not explain the difference.⁵⁴
• The report does not tie those amounts to this cash list. So we cannot say how much of the $1.28 billion is already set aside.
• Some holdings run longer. Agency securities and local bonds averaged more than two years to maturity.¹

What you can do or watch next

• The county’s investment reports are public. Ask for the latest one to see how the mix has changed since Sept. 30, 2025.

Questions to ask

• How much of the county’s cash is set aside for road bonds and other building projects?
• How does the county choose the mix of its investments?

What we still don’t know

• How the mix changed from fiscal 2024. We have not saved that year’s full report.
• How much of the total each county fund owns.

Changes to this page

• Nov. 2, 2026: Rewrote the questions to ask so each is open, neutral and addressed to the public body.
• Nov. 2, 2026: Explained why the county’s unrestricted net position is below zero, using the audit’s own words.
• Nov. 2, 2026: Added a note that the balance is not a surplus, and what the report does not break out.
• Nov. 2, 2026: New page.

Footnotes

1. Williamson County, Texas, Annual Comprehensive Financial Report for fiscal 2025, Note 6, “Deposits and Investments,” pp.48-51: investments Sept. 30, 2025 (amount, weighted average maturity in days): TexPool $128,754,756, 41; TexPool Prime $76,722,290, 52; LOGIC $45,194,711, 42; Texas Class $242,336,221, 43; Texas Class Government $70,564,991, 17; money market fund $49,266,631, 45; U.S. Treasury bills $4,860,476, 282; commercial paper $72,120,935, 118; municipals $5,474,989, 812; U.S. agency securities $84,108,417, 791; U.S. Treasury bonds $505,115,243, 330. Column totals $612,839,600 (amortized cost), $594,084,136 (Level 1), $77,595,924 (Level 2). Pools: one-day redemption notice; restrictions only for a general suspension of trading, banking moratorium or emergency. Credit policy: not less than A; ratings AAAm/AAA (pools, money market fund), AA+ (agency), A-1+ (commercial paper). Statutory list of authorized investments. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸

2. Our math. Total: 612,839,600 + 594,084,136 + 77,595,924 = 1,284,519,660. Treasury bonds: 505,115,243 ÷ 1,284,519,660 = 39.3%. Five pools: 128,754,756 + 76,722,290 + 45,194,711 + 242,336,221 + 70,564,991 = 563,572,969, or 43.9%. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

3. Same report, management’s discussion: “Investment earnings decreased by $11.6 million, reflecting lower returns compared to the prior year as interest rates on invested assets have decreased compared to 2024”; governmental funds: “Investment earnings for the year were $54.6 million.” ↩ ↩²

4. Same report, Statement of Net Position at Sept. 30, 2025: restricted for capital projects $678,909,630; restricted total in Financial Highlights $864.7 million; unrestricted $(1,031,561,292). ↩ ↩²

5. Same report, Note 5, “Deficit Unrestricted Net Position,” p.47: “A deficit unrestricted net position of approximately $890,331,634 exists in governmental activities as of September 30, 2025. This deficit is primarily the result of the County issuing bonds to finance the construction of infrastructure contributed to other governmental entities”; bonds outstanding for assets transferred to another government about $506,000,000, “paid with future property tax revenues restricted for debt service.” ↩ ↩²