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Tag Archives: Texas Legislature
Project Connect could be on the ballot again this November
Austin’s mayor is adopting a new strategy against a Texas bill that threatens to derail the city’s voter-approved transit expansion: Get the legislation passed as quickly as possible with overwhelming support in the Texas House and Senate. The approach seemed…
Transit • By Nathan Bernier, KUT • Apr 25, 2023
Austin tried and failed to rewrite its land code. Republican lawmakers might do it for them.
In Austin, 5,750 square feet is a magic number. It’s one-tenth of a football field. Half of an Olympic standard swimming pool. And precisely the size of the American dream. “If you’re driving around urban Austin, through Hyde Park, Clarksville,…
Land Development Code • By Audrey McGlinchy, KUT • Mar 22, 2023
Library legislative working group gets update on ‘bills of concern’
The Library Commission spent the majority of its regular meeting on Monday discussing proposed legislation viewed as potentially harmful to the mission of libraries in Austin and statewide. Commissioner Courtney Rosenthal, who is leading the commission’s legislative working group that…
Texas State Legislature • By Ava Garderet • Mar 3, 2023
Library Commission working group to track bills restricting access to library materials
Since the Texas Legislature reconvened for its 88th session in January, the city’s Library Commission has been tracking a number of bills concerning restriction of library materials. At last Monday’s regular meeting, commissioners expressed their concern about some of the…
Texas State Legislature • By Ava Garderet • Feb 1, 2023
Austin leaders brace for state lawmakers to take up bills restricting library content and resources
After Texas lawmakers placed limitations on how Texas teachers approach lessons on history and racism and passed anti-trans legislation in recent sessions, Austin leaders are preparing for further action on these fronts when the Legislature convenes for its 88th session…
Education • By Andrea Guzman • Nov 30, 2022
Legislation restricting open records requests likely to meet opposition
Legislation aimed at redacting personal information from city records subject to the state’s open record law faces an uphill battle at the Texas Capitol. This was the message in a Nov. 8 memo to Austin City Council from city staff.…
City Hall • By Emma Freer • Nov 17, 2022
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Legislative agenda passes with Kelly opposed
City Council approved a lengthy legislative agenda Thursday night, with only Council Member Mackenzie Kelly voting no. Though she had proposed an additional task for the city’s legislative team just a few minutes earlier, Kelly voted against adopting the agenda.…
City Council • By Jo Clifton • Sep 20, 2022
Celia Israel seeks to be a progressive voice for Austin
Celia Israel announced her run for mayor early, on January 11, almost a full 10 months before election day. She said her motivation to run was her desire to tackle the biggest issues facing Austin today: affordability and transportation. Israel…
Local Politics • By Sean Saldaña • Aug 12, 2022
Austin endorses tax exemption for menstrual products
City Council members approved a resolution Thursday endorsing the removal of sales tax for menstrual products and diapers. As the resolution states, “Menstrual products and diapers are necessary to daily life for millions of Texans, and these taxes create an…
City Council • By Veronica Apodaca • Jun 23, 2022
Public education advocates sound alarm on 'broken' school financing system
Fighting the compounding pressures of the Covid pandemic and decreasing enrollment numbers, public education advocates have been working hard to address the impact of Texas’ financing system on the chronically underfunded Austin Independent School District. Texas School Coalition Executive Director…
AISD • By Kali Bramble • Apr 4, 2022
Texas schools won’t lose funding for attendance drops during the pandemic
Gov. Greg Abbott and the Texas Education Agency announced Tuesday that public school districts may not lose funding because of low attendance rates caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. In Texas, schools are funded based on the number of students enrolled…
Education • By Brian Lopez, The Texas Tribune • Mar 31, 2022
Austin ISD paid hundreds of millions more than other districts in Texas' 'recapture' program
Lee esta historia en español. The Austin Independent School District is sending more taxpayer dollars than any other school system to the state’s so-called recapture program, a new study finds. The decades-old system, known commonly as Robin Hood, is meant to balance…
