Later this week, the Austin City Council is expected to adopt its budget for the coming fiscal year, which includes how it plans to tax property owners. Some institutions that collect property taxes, like the Austin Independent School District, have already adopted their budgets. If you own property, this will affect how much you owe […]
Austin City Council
The Austin City Council is the body with legislative purview over the City of Austin. It offers policy direction, while the office of the City Manager implements administrative actions based on those policies. Until 2015, the body contained seven members, including the city’s Mayor, all elected at-large. In 2012, City of Austin residents voted to change that system and as of 2015, 10 members of the Council are elected based on geographic districts. The Mayor continues to be elected at-large.
Posted inBudget
Council set to modify, adopt city budget
Mayor Steve Adler is proposing a raise for City Council members and the next mayor starting in 2023 after he has left office. His proposal will be considered as part of the City Council budget adoption process, which starts tomorrow – although it’s hard to know whether they will complete the job the same day. […]
Posted inPlanning
Planning Commission forwards heavily amended commercial parkland dedication ordinance
The Planning Commission recommended approval of an ordinance last Tuesday that would require park space in commercial developments or otherwise charge developers a fee to fund parks nearby. The purpose of the ordinance is to “account for the impact of job growth to our park system so that we’re keeping up proportionally with new parkland […]
Posted inElections
District 9 Council candidates chat with the ‘Monitor’: Part II
Read Part I of the series here. Linda Guerrero brings to the table an institutional knowledge of parks and environmental issues, along with expertise on affordability and transportation more broadly. In addition to being an AISD teacher for nearly three decades, she’s also spent time on the Environmental Commission and the Parks and Recreation Board, two […]
Posted inLocal Politics
District 9 City Council candidates chat with the ‘Monitor’: Part I
Read Part II of the series here. With Council Member Kathie Tovo term-limited and six candidates who have raised more than $25,000 so far, District 9 is thought to be one of the more competitive races this local election season. One consequence of that competition: It can be difficult for voters to differentiate the candidates, […]
Posted inPolice
Council to consider budget amendment for sexual assault investigations
The city’s Fiscal Year 2022-23 budget could include more than $850,000 in additional funding for sexual assault investigations, building on a yearslong effort to reform how the Austin Police Department investigates and processes such cases. Mayor Pro Tem Alison Alter proposed a budget amendment Friday that would allocate ongoing and one-time funds to implement recommendations […]
Posted inPreservation
No end in sight for decadelong Sneed House debacle
The perennial saga over a cluster of ruins in the Dove Springs neighborhood of Southeast Austin continues, as the all-too-familiar Sneed House case resurfaced at the Historic Landmark Commission last Wednesday. The remains of the Civil War-era estate have been on the city’s radar since 2007, when property owners introduced plans to develop the surrounding […]
Posted inAustin
Proposal to audit animal shelter fuels debate about choice of auditor
Austin’s Animal Services Office, which runs the Austin Animal Center, will soon be audited, per a recent resolution approved by City Council. The Office of the City Auditor will report on the department’s effectiveness and bring in an expert on no-kill shelter policies to help advise the facility’s operations. Members of the public chimed in […]
Posted inCity Hall
Kitchen seeking more funding to house the homeless
It’s budget time, and although City Manager Spencer Cronk’s team has put together its proposed budget for the 2022-23 fiscal year, each City Council member will be presenting their ideas for making the city a better place in the form of budget amendments or riders. Council Member Ann Kitchen has presented the first budget rider […]
Posted inCity Hall
Decision to hike pay to $22/hour will cause future budget deficits
The upcoming wage increases for city staff will cause budget deficits in coming years and force leaders to identify new revenue sources, according to analysis by the Human Resources Department. A memo released last week presents a number of scenarios prompted by City Council’s recent direction to increase the minimum wage for all workers to […]
Posted inParks
Harper-Madison argues against increasing parkland fees
Austin’s residential parkland dedication fees, which the city uses to buy parkland, more than doubled last year as the price of land increased. Now city budget writers are proposing to double those fees again for 2023. Council Member Natasha Harper-Madison posted a message to her colleagues on the City Council Message Board Tuesday, notifying them […]
Posted inCity Council
City eyes September start for guaranteed income program
The city’s taxpayer-funded guaranteed income program is expected to begin sending payments to its enrollees in September, marking a major step in the first-of-its-kind initiative by a Texas city. A city memo released Monday detailed the progress made since May, when City Council OK’d the creation of the program and directed the city manager to […]