Nov. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Texas voters authorized $4 billion of bond authority to help Texas veterans buy and improve homes and land.

The proposal, an amendment to the state’s constitution, gives the Texas Veterans Land Board permanent bonding authority to issue as much as $4 billion in outstanding debt without having to seek a new constitutional amendment to replace expired authority. The board previously had to seek new authority every time it wanted to raise additional capital.

Voters approved the proposal by a 66 percent to 35 percent margin, with 83 percent of precincts reporting, according to data from the Secretary of State. The proposal could lead to as much as $2 billion of new issuance because the authority already has $2 billion of outstanding debt.

Texas, when it was an independent republic, awarded land to military veterans. After World War II it set up the land board to provide low-interest, long-term loans to veterans to buy property. The program was expanded to home purchases and improvement loans.

To contact the reporter on this story: Darrell Preston in Dallas at dpreston@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: November 4, 2009 00:09 EST