After hearing expressions of both support and concern, the City Council Audit and Finance Committee voted Wednesday to send Council Member Leslie Pool’s resolution to alter city lobby regulations to the Ethics Review Commission for further vetting. The vote was 3-0-1, with Council Member Ellen Troxclair abstaining. Members of the land use professions expressed dismay […]
City of Austin Ethics Review Commission
The Ethics Review Commission is charged with review of, among other issues, ethics complaints leveled against City of Austin boards and commission members. They meet quarterly.
Posted inCity Hall
Pool proposes changes to rules for lobbyists
If City Council Member Leslie Pool and her cadre of ethics reformers have their way, any number of people who are currently working to persuade city officials to take action, or not, will have to register under a revised city lobby ordinance. And there may be a shakeup at city commissions as well. At a […]
Posted inCity Hall
Ethics complaint filed against HLC commissioner
Less than one month after the first meeting of the new Historic Landmark Commission, ethics question are flying and a formal complaint has already been lodged. Kent Anschutz filed a complaint against Commissioner Arif Panju earlier this month, alleging conflict of interest in the Bluebonnet Hills Local Historic District case. Panju told the Austin Monitor that […]
Posted inAustin, City Hall, Elections
Ethics panel considers campaign finance reform
Now that the dust has settled after Austin’s busiest local election season to date, the city’s Ethics Review Commission is taking a hard look at Austin’s current campaign finance laws. On Tuesday night, the Ethics Review Commission took input on the city’s Fair Campaign Finance law as well as campaign finance laws in general. Many […]
Posted inAustin, City Council, Local Politics
Ethics complaint against APD Chief moves forward
An ethics complaint against Austin Police Chief Art Acevedo is moving forward. The complaint, which was filed by Jermaine A. Hopkins, alleges that Acevedo failed to file a public financial disclosure statement for 2012 by the April 2013 deadline, as is required under city code. Hopkins is a former Austin Police officer who was fired […]
Posted inAustin, Development, Parks
Anti-lobby complaint filed on Long Park golf plan
A complaint filed Thursday with the City of Austin alleges violations of the city’s No-Contact Rule between the developers of the proposed Walter E. Long Park golf courses and city employees. Community activist Brian Rodgers filed the complaint after obtaining copies of emails between the developers and city staff through a public information request. Rodgers, […]
Posted inCity Hall, Local Politics
Ethics panel wants last word on complaint inquiries
Austin’s Ethics Review Commission voted unanimously this week to recommend City Council ensure the commission has the last word in ethical complaints against the mayor, members of City Council and all of its appointees, city executives, and assistant city attorneys. “The main issue is the lack of due process,” said commission Vice Chair Peter Einhorn. […]
Posted inElections, Local Politics
Ethics Commission gives candidates slap on wrist
Some City Council candidates are having trouble following Austin’s campaign finance laws. The Ethics Review Commission addressed three complaints against candidates in Districts 6, 8 and 10 Tuesday night. Each candidate admitted wrongdoing, and none of them walked away with major sanctions. After spending more than an hour discussing the complaints behind closed doors, the commission […]
Posted inLocal Politics
Council to do double-take on ethics complaints
Today’s City Council agenda features two items that deal with the city’s conflict-of-interest policy as it applies to those who serve on the city’s many volunteer boards and commissions. The resolutions — one sponsored by Council Member Mike Martinez, and one sponsored by Council Member Bill Spelman — were sparked by recent allegations against former […]
Posted inLocal Politics
Ethics complaints could get a clearer path
City Council Member Mike Martinez is working on a resolution that could change how the city deals with ethics complaints against those who serve on its boards and commissions. The changes come after Martinez’s Zero Waste Advisory Commission appointee, Daniela Ochoa Gonzalez, was accused of violating the city’s conflict-of-interest policy by an anonymous person through the Auditor’s […]
Posted inElections
Ethics Review Commission reprimands Almanza
The Ethics Review Commission has issued a reprimand to District 3 City Council candidate Susana Almanza for violations of the city campaign finance law. The panel, acting on a complaint filed by Austin activist Stephan Wray, found at a special meeting Friday that Almanza violated city code by failing to disclose employer and occupation information […]
Posted inLocal Politics, Uncategorized
Ethics Review Commission dismisses complaint against Neslund
The Ethics Review Commission dismissed a complaint Tuesday night that Melissa Neslund should have registered as a lobbyist, after a hearing that chair Austin Kaplan called perhaps the board’s most contentious. A special called meeting of the commission weighed whether Neslund, a Land Development Code Advisory Group member, is a lobbyist. Austin Neighborhoods Council president […]