BG Reads | News You Need to Know (July 17, 2020)
[BINGHAM GROUP]
It was over two ears ago that we started the BG Podcast. We have done 100 interviews with leaders and experts at the intersections of business, community, and politics. It all began with the now Council Member Natasha Harper-Madison. It’s worth a listen. We’ll resume the show with episode 101 on Wednesday, August 5th.
BG Podcast Episode 1: Natasha Harper-Madison, East 12th Street Merchants Association President, on Austin's East Side Corridors Development (SHOW LINK)
Note: Show also available on iTunes, Spotify, Google Play, Sound Cloud, and Stitcher
[AUSTIN METRO]
PAC readies to oppose rail bond (Austin Monitor)
The political action committee Our Mobility Our Future, whose backers plan to oppose a proposition on the November ballot to fund the Project Connect transit system, reported this week that they had collected more than $98,000 during the reporting period that started in January. The PAC also reports $75,000 in pledged contributions.
City Council has not yet voted to put the $9.8 billion project on the November ballot, but is expected to do so in August.
Travis County Commissioner Gerald Daugherty, a longtime opponent of rail, contributed $14,000 to the effort during the latest reporting period. He told the Austin Monitor that he has actually given $20,000 total to the effort, counting a contribution he made last fall.
Businessman John Lewis contributed $24,000 during the five months covered by the report, and got $5,000 back, according to the PAC report. Daugherty explained that he, Lewis and Jim Skaggs had agreed to put in $20,000 each last fall. However, Lewis gave more than that and Daugherty convinced him to take some of the money back, which he may give to another organization. The report also shows that Skaggs gave the organization $14,000 during this time period.
Vicki Roberts of Austin, who is described as “retired” in the PAC document, has pledged $50,000 and John McCall of Spicewood, also described as retired, has pledged $24,000. Additional pledges include $10,000 from the Charles Maund Toyota dealership and $10,000 from Stejo Investments LP… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Austin ISD says online learning will “not look like it did” this spring (Community Impact)
In the district’s latest Summer Vision newsletter, which was released July 16, Austin ISD said district staff are continuing to evaluate federal, state and local guidelines and requirements regarding education during the coronavirus pandemic as they plan for the upcoming 2020-21 school year.
Earlier this week, the district announced that although school will begin Aug. 18, classes will be held virtually for at least the first three weeks of the year. In-person classes could start Sept. 8 at the earliest.
“We are in a very difficult time right now—a very challenging time—as we’re dealing with COVID-19 and the impact of COVID-19,” Superintendent Paul Cruz said in a video update July 15. “We still will begin classes Aug. 18, but all classes will be 100% virtual for the first three weeks.”… (LINK TO STORY)
Coronavirus budget impact: Austin airport expansion delayed (Austin American-Statesman)
While Austin property owners likely celebrated the smaller-than-expected tax rate increase proposed in the city’s 2021 budget Monday, multiple city departments and services that have historically thrived on dollars from out-of-town guests suffered blows.
The economic beating inflicted by the coronavirus is particularly noticeable for Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, which will put on hold an expansion that was designed to double the airport’s travel capacity in the next five to 10 years in anticipation of increased passenger volume. The airport, staring at a 43% decline in passengers this fiscal year and a $70 million decline in year-over-year revenue, will delay the project until those figures return to normal.
The timeline for recovery, like most economic projections during this financial crisis, is uncertain. The city’s budget office is estimating the delay at a “couple of years.”
The project “was driven by customer expansion, so we’re reworking the time of the expansion,” Austin deputy chief financial officer Ed Van Eenoo said.
Planned additions include the construction of a north terminal that would double the length of departure and arrival lanes, plus increasing parking spaces from 13,882 to 24,982. The airport set a record in 2019 with 17.3 million passengers; it expects 31 million by 2037.
The expansion work is supposed to be done by 2040… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
[TEXAS]
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott says "there is no shutdown coming" as coronavirus cases surge (Texas Tribune)
As the number of new coronavirus cases in Texas continues to rise and hospitals grow more crowded, Gov. Greg Abbott said Thursday there is no statewide shutdown looming.
Abbott said last week that if the spread of the virus didn't slow, "the next step would have to be a lockdown." But in a television interview Thursday, he said that there have been rumors of such a move and stressed that they were not true.
“Let me tell you, there is no shutdown coming,” he told KRIV-TV in Houston.
Abbott pointed to measures he’s taken in recent weeks, including a statewide mask mandate and an order shutting down bars, to slow the spread of the virus. It will take a few weeks to see a reversal in coronavirus case surges, he said… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich calls Texas leaders 'cowards' over handling of coronavirus (The Hill)
San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich tore into Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick (R) Wednesday over their handling of the coronavirus pandemic, saying “they’re all cowards and they’re all afraid.”
Popovich spoke with reporters during a video call while wearing a shirt that read: “Vote — Your Life Depends On It.”
“We have a lieutenant governor who decided he doesn’t want to listen to [Anthony] Fauci and those people any more,” Popovich said before adding sarcastically, “That makes a lot of sense. How safe can that be? The messaging is ridiculous.”
Patrick earlier this month lambasted Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, over the doctor’s assessment of the recent surge in Texas coronavirus cases, saying he would no longer listen to him.
"He has been wrong every time, on every issue,” Patrick said. “I don’t need his advice anymore. We’ll listen to a lot of science, we’ll listen to a lot of doctors, and Greg and myself and other state leaders will make the decision. No thank you, Dr. Fauci."
The NBA coach then turned his criticism toward Abbott, saying the governor “goes back and forth based on whether he has to satisfy [President] Trump or listen to the numbers.”
“Politics show maybe he better do this because the virus has done that. But no overall policy, no principle,” Popovich said. “It’s all about politics. It’s all about what’s good for them. And ‘them’ means Trump. Because they’re all cowards and they’re all afraid.”… (LINK TO STORY)
[NATION]
'Meaningless' FDA certificates are used to tout dubious face masks (NPR)
When the order of 100,000 masks arrived at an unnamed factory for use in protecting workers against COVID-19, they were covered in dirt, dust and mysterious stains. In short, they were "not fit to be used," according to a complaint filed with the Food and Drug Administration in late March.
The masks came from Shenzhen Newstar Optical Electronic Technology, a company in Shenzhen, China, that appears primarily to make LED displays. Because the report was filed in the FDA data.. (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp sues Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms over face mask order (NPR)
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp is suing the Atlanta City Council and Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms following her efforts to require face masks in public places as the number of COVID-19 cases continues to skyrocket across the nation.
The lawsuit, filed Thursday, asserts that Kemp alone "leads the State of Georgia in its fight against the worldwide novel coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic" and adds he has the power "to suspend municipal orders that are contradictory to any state law or to his executive orders."
"As the Mayor of the City of Atlanta, Mayor Bottoms does not have the legal authority to modify, change or ignore Governor Kemp's executive orders," the document says.
The suit follows an order this week in which Kemp forbade municipal officials from setting mandatory face-covering policies… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
The Bingham Group, LLC is an Austin-based full service lobbying firm representing and advising clients on municipal, legislative, and regulatory matters throughout Texas.
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