The Austin Police Department currently has 69 vacancies, Assistant Chief Troy Gay told City Council Tuesday, but with so many officers retiring each month it is nearly impossible to catch up. In addition, the Matrix Consulting Group recommended in 2016 that APD hire 144 new patrol officers, and in 2017 APD proposed adding 329 new […]
city budget
The city’s plan for expenditures based on income.
Posted inReporters' Notebook
Reporter’s Notebook: Reasons for beauty
Where the sidewalk bends… Austin badly needs to fill in the large gap of missing sidewalks across the city, but simply making each stretch of sidewalk longer than it has to be probably isn’t the most efficient solution. On Saturday, a loyal Austin Monitor reader surfaced on Twitter a photograph of a new zigzagging sidewalk […]
Posted inBudget
Council tries ‘outcome-based’ budgeting
Last year, City Council talked about the idea of doing “outcome-based” budgeting. 2018 is the first year that it is giving it a try. The idea is based on six strategic outcomes that Council developed last year: Having economic opportunities and resources that enable us to thrive in our community. Getting us where we want […]
Posted inMusic & Entertainment
After a successful first year, the Art Space Assistance Program will not continue
The Art Space Assistance Program that is aimed at assisting creative-focused nonprofits facing permanent displacement, those previously displaced, or those facing lease renewals at substantially higher rates did not receive funding from City Council for 2018. Council approved $200,000 of General Fund money for the new program in June. The program was intended for organizations […]
Posted inBudget
How much do Council members spend on travel?
Late last Wednesday, as City Council neared the end of its wrangling over the Fiscal Year 2017-18 budget, Council Member Ellen Troxclair made what she framed as a modest request of her colleagues. The budget presented by staff included a $6,000 increase in the office budget of every Council member and a $10,000 increase to […]
Posted inBudget
Council approves $3.9 billion budget
Twelve hours after kicking off its final day of budget deliberations, City Council gave approval to a roughly $3.9 billion budget, including approximately $1 billion of General Fund spending. Council approved a 7.9 percent tax rate increase, just below the 8 percent “rollback rate” that would allow taxpayers to challenge the rate via referendum. As […]
Posted inBudget
Council faces hard choices on final budget day
City Council went through another meandering, confusing and at times tense all-day budget discussion Tuesday and still has tough decisions left to make today, when it is scheduled to give final approval to the Fiscal Year 2017-2018 budget. The Council debate has generally not centered on major changes to the roughly $4 billion budget proposed […]
Posted inBudget
Council begins final slog through budget today
After hours and hours of budget work sessions, including two such sessions last week, today City Council must at least start to make the hard decisions of what to fund and what to leave for another year. Today is the first of three days set aside to finalize the budget. Although several Council members have […]
Posted inBudget
Austin sales tax revenue lower than expected
City Council has known for months that it would struggle to come up with the money needed to cover many of the programs its members hope to put in place in the coming year. However, the most recent data on sales tax revenue suggests things might be even worse than anticipated. In June, the most […]
Posted inBudget
City Budget: Austin weighs in
For the past month or so, City Council has been working through the details of this year’s proposed budget. At their most recent meeting, Council members heard from Austinites in a 2 1/2-hour public hearing that focused on the shape Austinites would like to see this year’s city spending take. On Thursday, Council held a […]
Posted inCity Hall
City employees likely to see raise in 2018
Good news for city employees: City staff wants to give them a raise, and some members of City Council are interested in pushing for an even bigger pay hike. On Wednesday, the city’s human resources director told Council members that she is recommending a 2.5 percent across-the-board pay raise for all permanent city employees. In […]