Texas voters approved Proposition 4, a constitutional amendment that will establish a new National Research University Fund using about $500 million in existing Higher Education Fund monies. The new fund will provide a dedicated and independent source of funding for UNT and Texas' other emerging research universities when each institution qualifies.
Today's (Nov. 4) unofficial vote tally by the Texas Secretary of State shows these results from Texas’ 254 counties:
- For: 591,183
- Against: 450,819
- Total votes: 1,042,002
- Number of voters: 12,952,562
- Voter turnout: 8.04 percent
Election results show the measure passing in Denton, Dallas and Tarrant counties, home to UNT, the University of Texas at Dallas and the University of Texas at Arlington, respectively. County vote totals were:
• Denton County, approved 9,742 to 9,071
• Dallas County, approved 40,923 to 22,852
• Tarrant County, approved 35,557 to 26,186
Voters in home counties of other emerging research universities also approved Proposition 4. These are Harris County, home to the University of Houston main campus; Lubbock County, Texas Tech University; Bexar County, the University of Texas at San Antonio; and El Paso County, University of Texas at El Paso.
Legislation creating support for the creation of more national research universities in Texas was introduced by Dallas Rep. Dan Branch and Laredo Sen. Judith Zaffirini during the 81st Texas Legislature. Gov. Rick Perry signed the measure into law in June.