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Local Government

Mayoral candidate Doug Greco sues city to overturn campaign finance rule

Mayoral candidate Doug Greco and his campaign, along with Ramon Duran – a Bexar County resident who supports Greco’s candidacy – filed suit in federal court on Tuesday, challenging the provision of the Austin City Charter that prevents City Council…

Austin to argue city’s immunity from suit at Supreme Court

Attorneys for the city of Austin will attempt to convince the Texas Supreme Court this morning that two Austin police officers chasing a suspect did not act with “reckless disregard” during an emergency so that the city is still immune…

Austin ISD settles lawsuit over delayed special ed evaluations, creates fund for affected students

A federal court signed off on a settlement Wednesday between Disability Rights Texas and Austin ISD over its backlog of special education evaluations. The settlement requires the district to establish a fund to help cover the cost of services for students who…

State court rules Austin must release files on police complaints. Here's what that means.

Austin police must release records of officer complaints previously kept in house to the police oversight office, a state district judge has ruled. The personnel files – known colloquially as “g-files” – were a cornerstone of the Austin Police Oversight Act,…

Judge’s order halts Nov. 5 charter election

Travis County District Judge Maya Guerra Gamble on Thursday ordered the city of Austin to eliminate 13 proposed charter amendments from the Nov. 5 ballot because City Council violated the Texas Open Meetings Act in setting a hearing on the…

Class action lawsuit targets Austin taxes over Project Connect

A new class-action lawsuit is seeking to block the city from collecting any property taxes, potentially starving Austin’s municipal government of almost all revenue, until it kills a tax approved by voters in 2020 to fund the largest public transit expansion…

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Save Our Springs Alliance files another lawsuit against City Council over Open Meetings Act

Claiming that City Council has again violated the Texas Open Meetings Act, the Save Our Springs Alliance on Monday filed a lawsuit seeking to block the city’s placement of 13 proposed charter amendments on the November ballot. It is the…

Commissioners advance program to provide legal counsel at bail hearings

The Travis County Commissioners Court voted Tuesday to move forward on implementing a program to provide legal representation to arrested individuals during magistration, when a judge determines probable cause for arrest and sets bail. Commissioners will first need to authorize…

Travis County wrestles with equity in last phase of its hybrid work pilot

At its meeting Tuesday, Aug. 6, the Travis County Commissioners Court heard an update on one of its most successful initiatives of the last few years: the countywide teleworking policy. After the pandemic forced workers home, Travis County won a…

New ruling clears the way for public comment at City Council work sessions

Thursday morning, Mayor Kirk Watson kicked off a planned budget work session in an unusual way.  “Late yesterday, we received a copy of a court order related to one of the lawsuits and, as a result of that, we are…

children at day care

Affordable child care investment for Travis County may be on November ballot

At its June 25 meeting, the Travis County Commissioners Court took a step toward expanding access to early childhood care and after-school services for low-income residents, setting Aug. 13 for a public hearing on a proposed 2.5-cent property tax rate…

Travis County grand jury decides against charging Christopher Taylor with murder again

Austin police officer Christopher Taylor will no longer face prosecution for the fatal shooting of Mike Ramos in 2020. The shooting was a month before the murder of George Floyd, and Ramos’ name was invoked in racial justice protests in…

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