The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating the city of Austin to see if it engaged in discriminatory employment practices based on race, sex, color and national origin. Discrimination based on these characteristics is a violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division announced the investigation […]
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Posted inCourts
Christopher Taylor murder trial to be rescheduled after mistrial
The trial of the Austin police officer accused of murder in the 2020 shooting of Mike Ramos ended in a mistrial on Friday. Travis County Judge Dana Blazey is working with prosecutors and the defense team to determine the date for a new trial, which is expected to be announced this week. Blazey declared a […]
Posted inPolice
Deadlocked on oversight, city and police union pause contract negotiations
After nearly nine months of negotiation sessions, the city of Austin halted bargaining with the Austin Police Association Thursday, citing disagreement about civilian oversight of police and raising questions about whether the two sides will agree to a new labor contract before the current one expires at the end of March. Sarah Griffin, the city’s […]
Posted inPolice
City pushes to open police personnel files to the public
The city of Austin proposed making portions of police officers’ personnel files public, including disciplinary histories, and raising salaries 6 percent over four years during its Thursday negotiation session. As the current contract’s Sept. 30 expiration date nears, the two bargaining teams have begun debating its most substantial – and contentious – provisions: transparency, oversight, […]
Posted inPublic Safety
Emergency alerts now available in American Sign Language
For the first time, community members who are deaf, hard of hearing or blind will be able to receive accessible emergency notifications. The city of Austin and Travis County launched the Accessible Hazard Alert System, or AHAS, on Oct. 4. The new program allows users to receive emergency notifications in the form of a video with […]
Posted inTravis County
Why Travis County is struggling to spend its federal rental assistance dollars
As we spoke by phone this week, Rakhi Agrawal glanced down at the stack of papers on her desk. “My eviction notice – it’s right here on my desk,” she said. It’s been a long journey for Agrawal, who moved to Austin to work in nonprofit development, to arrive at this eviction notice. At the […]
Posted inCity Hall
Council questions proposed arts funding change that emphasizes equity
City Council has asked Cultural Arts staff to look at revising or delaying its plan to significantly redistribute its limited pool of contracts toward groups that meet an increased focus on equity. At a Tuesday work session presentation, the proposed new funding structure was seen as too severe toward longtime recipients, especially legacy arts groups […]
Posted inLocal Government
Joint council mulls ‘once in a generation’ ARPA funding for region
The Commissioners Court joined City Council Tuesday to discuss the allocation of federal funding granted by the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act. Ralph Garboushian, a career municipal consultant, described the level of local funding from ARPA as “once in a generation.” While $424 billion of the $1.9 trillion total was directly distributed to individuals in […]
Posted inAustin
Hey, small businesses: The city wants to give you money
The city is seeking small businesses of all kinds that want to learn how to take home some of the tens of millions of dollars in city contracts for goods and services each year. Wednesday marks the second annual Small Business Contracting Forum, which takes place all day at Palmer Events Center and will give […]
Posted inAustin
Auditors say city’s website needs improvement
The Office of the City Auditor has found that although the city’s website, AustinTexas.gov, offers residents numerous online services, the website does not meet accessibility guidelines, so it is difficult for people with certain disabilities to find and use those services. The audit findings were released and accepted at Wednesday’s City Council Audit and Finance […]
Posted inCourts
Austin loses appeal of appraisal district lawsuit
Texas’ 3rd Court of Appeals on Thursday firmly rejected the city of Austin’s attempt to get a judicial ruling on whether the alleged disparity between appraisals for residential property and commercial property meets constitutional muster. Led by Mayor Steve Adler, City Council decided last year to file suit in district court against thousands of owners […]
Posted inElections
City wins lawsuit despite appearance of loss
On Wednesday, Federal Judge Lee Yeakel invalidated the city of Austin’s prohibition on collecting campaign funds outside the six months prior to a City Council election. However, the city’s outside counsel on the matter, Renea Hicks, says the city won on the most important issue in the suit filed by Council Member Don Zimmerman. “There’s […]