Public safety and jail spending

In short

In 2024-25 the county’s main fund spent $134.4 million on public safety.¹ That was $8.7 million less than planned.¹ The biggest parts were the jail and the sheriff. On Oct. 1, 2026, the jail held 684 people. It has room for 1,104.²

Where the money went (2024-25, main fund)

Part	Spent
Jail and law enforcement	$39.1 million
Sheriff	$35.0 million
Ambulance (EMS)	$25.6 million
Youth (juvenile) services	$12.9 million
911 call center	$8.0 million
Four constables	$7.9 million
Other parts	$5.9 million
Total	$134.4 million

Source: the county’s audited 2025 report.¹

Why it came in under plan

Many jobs were open and not filled. Across the whole main fund, not just public safety, about $20.6 million set aside for pay was not spent. The county says most of it was in the jail, the sheriff’s office and EMS.³ Because it covers the whole main fund, it is not the same number as the $8.7 million public safety gap above.¹ Some sheriff cars also did not arrive in time.³

Growth over ten years

• Public safety spending, all funds: $83.4 million in 2015-16. $140.9 million in 2024-25. That is up 69%.⁴
• Per person, it went from about $158 to about $194.⁴
• Public safety jobs: 989 in 2016. 1,080 in 2025.⁵

How full is the jail?

State counts on Oct. 1 each year:²

Year	People in jail	Room for	Full
2022	592	1,104	54%
2023	604	1,104	55%
2024	640	1,104	58%
2025	726	1,104	66%
2026	684	1,104	62%

In October 2026, 387 people were held on felony charges and not yet tried. That is 57% of the jail.²

Plans

In March 2026 the county agreed to pay $75.8 million for about 253 acres. It is for a future justice and jail center. The county planned to borrow for it.⁶

The other side

• The county grew fast. It has about 200,000 more people than in 2016.⁷ So more spending is expected.
• Room vs. usable room. “Room for 1,104” is the state’s count.² It counts beds, and not every bed suits every person.
• One day a month. The jail counts are a single day. They can change a lot day to day.
• Open jobs. Spending under plan is not only savings. It also means fewer staff than planned.

Questions to ask

• Where does the commissioners court post jail costs apart from other public safety?
• How does the county report jail population over time?

Changes to this page

• Nov. 2, 2026: We changed wording so it says no more than our sources show.
• Nov. 2, 2026: Added questions to ask.
• Nov. 2, 2026: We reworded a point about jail room so it no longer guesses how full the jail feels, and added its source.

Sources

What you can do or watch next

• Watch the sheriff and jail lines in next year’s county budget.
• You can speak at Commissioners Court during public comment.
• See county budget basics for the whole budget.

Footnotes

1. Williamson County, Annual Comprehensive Financial Report FY2025 (audited), General Fund budget vs. actual, public safety. Saved copy. Public copy: https://emma.msrb.org/P11938140.pdf (MSRB EMMA; same report). ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

2. Texas Commission on Jail Standards, jail population reports, Williamson County, Oct. 1 counts. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

3. Same report, management’s discussion and analysis, General Fund budgetary highlights (“approximately $20.6 million that was unspent for personnel, primarily in Jail and Law Enforcement, County Sheriff, and Emergency Medical Services”). ↩ ↩²

4. Same report, ten-year table of spending by function; per person uses the report’s own population math. Our math. ↩ ↩²

5. Same report, Table 15, jobs by function (unaudited; budgeted jobs). ↩

6. Same report, Note 21, later events. ↩

7. Same audited report, debt-per-person table. ↩