Former Austin City Council Member Don Zimmerman outraised four other Republican candidates vying for the chance to meet Democratic state Rep. Vikki Goodwin in the House District 47 race next year. Zimmerman reported raising nearly $37,700 in his July 15 filing with the Texas Ethics Commission, but what set his report above the others was […]
Elections
Posted inLocal Politics
Save Our Springs backers among major supporters of anti-convention center PAC
Campaign finance reports filed Monday showed that longtime members and financial supporters of the Save Our Springs Alliance have pledged the bulk of the funding that is supporting a political action committee attempting to force a public vote on the proposed expansion of the Austin Convention Center. The report for Unconventional Austin, the PAC that […]
Posted inElections
Reports: Running for office is expensive
Mayor Steve Adler’s campaign still owes him more than $449,000 from loans he has made to his campaign starting when he first ran in 2014. When that race was over, the Adler campaign reported owing the candidate more than $418,000. Now, nine months after the November 2018 race against Laura Morrison, Adler owes himself a […]
Posted inLocal Politics
PAC files petition to put Austin Convention Center expansion to a public vote
The city’s proposal to expand the Austin Convention Center could be on the ballot in November. A group opposing City Council’s decision to build out the center says it submitted a 30,000-signature petition calling for a referendum that would force a public vote as the city moves ahead with the plan. The political action committee […]
Posted inBonds & Propositions
Music Commission eyes minority populations in allocating $12M for creative spaces
Leaders from the arts and music communities appear to be leaning toward splitting up $12 million in city bond funds for creative spaces based on the city’s racial and gender demographics, in a move to emphasize equity and inclusion. At Monday’s meeting of the Music Commission, discussion on how the city will opt to spend […]
Posted inUncategorized
Ethics commission finds Prop J PAC violated campaign finance laws
After hours of politically caustic testimony, the Ethics Review Commission found at its May 8 meeting that the No on Prop J political action committee had violated city ethics codes by failing to disclose a $10,000 donation in a timely manner. The case, which came before the commission in March, was filed by Fred Lewis, […]
Posted inBonds & Propositions
MACC supporters enter the fray for $12M in creative space funding
Members of the Latino and Mexican American communities are pushing for arts spaces representing those groups to receive money from the $12 million approved by voters to preserve and create arts spaces. Monday’s meeting of the Music Commission featured several speakers concerned that Tejano music and other Mexican American artists are being overlooked by the […]
Posted inElections
Ethics Commission looks into omission of PAC donation
How does one forget to report $10,000? That was the question of the evening for the Ethics Review Commission at its March 13 convocation. In a complaint filed by Fred Lewis last November, he accused the No on J political action committee of failing to report its largest and most controversial contribution from the Real […]
Posted inBonds & Propositions
Council OKs full $12M for creative space preservation, creation
The city’s creative leaders will have a full $12 million in bond money as their conceptual modeling clay later this month when the community begins to consider how best to protect Austin’s shrinking stock of arts spaces and music venues. City Council on Thursday unanimously approved a slate of four resolutions related to funds approved […]
Posted inBonds & Propositions
City begins process of spending $925 million in bonds
Spending money is not always easy. Four months after voters approved $925 million in bonds to fund housing, parks, transportation, fire stations and a wide assortment of other municipal priorities, city staff and City Council are beginning the process of appropriating the money to various departments. To kick off the process, staffers are asking Council […]
Posted inLocal Politics
House Speaker Pelosi says attempted voter purge in Texas shows need for stronger federal protections
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi made a visit to East Austin on Tuesday to promote sweeping voting reform legislation currently before Congress. Among other things, House Bill 1 would ensure online voter registration or automatic registration for citizens across the country. The bill would require paper trails for electronic voting machines and prohibit states from removing […]
Posted inBonds & Propositions
Groups eyeing $12M for creative spaces learn ‘process is complicated’
Organizations with designs on how best to use the $12 million the city has pledged to preserve creative spaces will likely have to clear a complicated set of legal requirements before any of the money is released this fall. That was the takeaway from Monday’s meeting of the Arts Commission, where members of a working […]