KUT and the Austin Monitor wrapped up a series of forums this week with the candidates for five City Council seats. Among the issues discussed were the candidates’ stances on two transportation-related ballot measures. Proposition A asks voters to raise property taxes to help pay for Project Connect, the transit expansion plan. Proposition B would […]
November 2020 elections
Posted inElections
Money flows into quiet races for Council
All Austin City Council candidates are required to file a campaign finance report 30 days before the election. Most of the candidates for the Nov. 3 election filed their reports Monday or a few days before. Despite the pandemic, there is still a need to advertise, and Covid-19 has made it harder for candidates to […]
Posted inElections
Travis County officials plan to fight governor’s order limiting drop-off sites for mail-in ballots
Travis County officials say they plan to fight Gov. Greg Abbott’s order limiting the number of locations where voters may hand-deliver their mail-in ballots. Abbott announced the order Thursday, the same day local election officials opened the four drop-off sites. “Under this proclamation, beginning on October 2, 2020, mail ballots that are delivered in person […]
Posted inElections
AISD establishes 2020 Election Day as school holiday
Austin Independent School District students now have Election Day off this year following a decision by the AISD Board of Trustees to declare Tuesday, Nov. 3, a school holiday. The board voted to amend the 2020-21 school calendar at its Sept. 28 meeting, removing a previously established school holiday on Oct. 12 for parent conferences, […]
Posted inElections
Who’s running for Austin City Council? Join us for a series of forums to hear from the candidates.
Five seats on the Austin City Council are up for election this November. What do you want the candidates to be talking about as they try to earn your vote? We’re teaming up with KUT News for a series of virtual City Council candidate forums starting Monday, Sept. 21. Find a schedule of the forums […]
Posted inElections
Aquifer conservation district: Larsen ‘still not finished,’ Williams ready to start
“After 18 years I’m still not finished,” proclaims Robert (Bob) Larsen, who is running for reelection to the board of directors of the Barton Springs/Edwards Aquifer Conservation District in November. Challenging Larsen for the Precinct 4 seat is Christy Williams, a water and wastewater consultant who told the Austin Monitor, “I do think it’s time […]
Posted inElections
Travis County anticipates spending additional $3M for November elections
From social distancing restrictions to post office controversy, this year’s presidential election is facing unprecedented challenges. Despite the hurdles, Travis County has worked out a plan to ensure that the county’s 833,000 registered voters have access to safe and smoothly functioning voting options, both in person and through the mail. According to budget figures from […]
Posted inBonds & Propositions
Project Connect: Council to consider equity metrics
Included in the $7.1 billion Project Connect proposal for Nov. 3 is $300 million for affordable housing and neighborhood-level displacement prevention strategies along transit corridors. On Thursday, City Council will vote on a resolution further clarifying that impacted neighborhoods are to help establish the metrics to measure the success of those displacement prevention efforts. “We’re […]
Posted inElections
Travis County plans for drive-thru voting drop-off for mail-in ballots
November’s presidential election is fast approaching and the Travis County Clerk’s Office is working diligently to ensure county residents have safe and well-functioning access to voting, both in-person and by mail-in ballot. To provide the required safety measures and necessary infrastructure to capture all the votes cast in Travis County, County Clerk Dana DeBeauvoir told […]
Posted inElections
City Council candidates discuss growth, segregation and the land use code
The Nov. 3 election is set to shape the future of transportation in Austin, but it could also shift City Council’s 7-4 divide on housing and density in the Land Development Code rewrite. While the effort is now tied up in a legal battle over the right to protest specific rezonings in the context of […]
Posted inBonds & Propositions
Staff memo spells out options, tight time frame for Council’s push for active transit bond
City staff members have expressed concern to City Council over direction to put together a bond proposal for the November election that would look to generate $750 million to fund sidewalks, trails and other “active transportation” improvements. Last week Council approved on consent a resolution directing the city manager to give Council a plan to […]
Posted inBonds & Propositions
Council members consider merits of separate safe mobility bond
Responding to a concerted push from local mobility advocates, City Council has opened up the discussion about placing active mobility funds on the November ballot alongside the $7 billion-$10 billion public transit system Project Connect. Five weeks ago, a coalition of 36 organizations called Austin Outside launched a petition calling for a $750 million bond […]