Williamson County awards $800,000 from landfill tipping‑fee fund to four local nonprofits

Williamson County commissioners on July 14 approved four separate $200,000 awards from the county's Community Recreation Fund — funded by landfill tipping fees — to local nonprofit organizations advancing capital projects and community services.

Commissioner Cynthia Long described the fund's purpose and noted the awards are not taxpayer dollars but are derived from landfill tipping fees established in a prior landfill contract renegotiation. "This is not taxpayer dollars that are going into this. This is, from the tipping fees at the landfill," Long said while introducing the items.

The court approved $200,000 for Hope House Academy to help bring an educational and therapeutic facility onto the campus so students no longer face up to 90‑minute commutes to school. Commissioners noted the July floods had strained the organization and that the grant will aid its capital campaign.

The court also approved $200,000 for Operation Liberty Hill, which County officials said logged 17,000 volunteer hours and provided assistance to more than 67,000 people in 2025; an additional $200,000 was approved for Central Texas Table of Grace, which helps children aging out of foster care and reported having raised $10 million toward a $14.3 million goal; and $200,000 for Hill Country Community Ministries, which operates a food bank, thrift store and shelter and reported serving thousands in the last year.

Each grant was moved and seconded by commissioners and carried on unanimous 4–0 votes. Commissioners said the awards were consistent with the fund's purpose of supporting community recreation and related services and asked staff to ensure recipients meet market‑rate rental requirements described in the funding agreements.

Implementation: the awards will be administered through the county's Community Recreation Fund with standard follow‑up reporting required from recipients; commissioners asked that future seed funding be limited and that recipients pay market rent where applicable.