BG Reads | News You Need to Know (October 14, 2020)
[BINGHAM GROUP]
Early voting in Travis County runs through Friday, October 30 (Monday-Saturday, 7:00 AM-7:00 PM, Sunday 12-6 PM). Find early voting locations here (Travis County only).
***NEW*** BG Podcast Episode Episode 110: Discussing City Governments with Professor Sherri Greenberg, LBJ School of Public Affairs (SHOW LINK)
Overview: She and Bingham Group CEO A.J. discuss and weigh different local governance structures of cities and their implications on civic engagement. In July, Austinites for Progressive Reform launched with, among other initiatives, a call to adopt a mayor-council form of government, i.e. a strong mayor system. This would transfer the city manager’s duties to the mayor. They are currently gathering signatures for a city charter amendment (Austin’s constitution) vote in May 2021.
***NEW*** BG Blog: What is a County Judge? (Article Link)
[AUSTIN METRO]
35,890 voters cast ballots in person on Travis County's first day of early voting (Community Impact)
35,890 Travis County residents voted in person on Oct. 13, the first day of early voting for the November 2020 election. This turnout falls just shy of the first day of early voting in 2016, when 35,999 voters showed up to the polls.
However, the 22,577 mail-in ballots received Oct. 13 this year far outnumber those received on the corresponding date in 2016, when just 11,020 had been received. This year's drive-thru hand delivery option for ballot-by-mail voters new, and may account in part for this increase.
In total, 58,467 Travis County residents have voted so far, accounting for 6.84% of registered voters. At this point in 2016, 47,019 voters had cast ballots, which was 6.45% of registered voters at that time. A higher percentage of eligible voters are registered now—97% compared to just over 90% in 2016.
The in-person voting figures from both 2020 and 2016 include limited ballots cast by individuals who have recently moved from a different county in Texas and are limited to voting in state and federal races… (LINK TO STORY)See also: Williamson County surpasses first day of early voting in 2016 (Austin American-Statesmen)
Council refines SAVES proposal (Austin Monitor)
The city has not yet found the right balance in regards to distributing $15 million in financial assistance under Save Austin’s Vital Economic Sectors (SAVES). As City Council prepares to consider allocating $8.5 million in sales tax revenue to the program on Thursday, there is still no consensus on an administrative plan to best help local music and arts venues, restaurants and bars, and child care centers recover from the Covid-19 pandemic.
During a discussion over the SAVES effort at Tuesday’s work session, Council members raised a series of concerns both about the proposed eligibility criteria and use of the $15 million. In contrast to Council’s intention, Mayor Steve Adler said the city’s strategy – which divides relief dollars among a music venue preservation fund, a legacy business relief grant and a child care provider relief grant – does not yet articulate a plan to provide businesses with the tools necessary to survive in the long term, beyond the coming two or three months.
“At a high level, for me, I look at this and think that the program protocols may be too prescriptive and not give … the case management teams the ability to really fashion solutions that would, in a longer period of time, help us with the live music infrastructure in the city,” Adler said.
As proposed, SAVES would include three separate funds of $5 million each for live music venues, child care providers and service-industry businesses that have been established in Austin for at least 20 years. The city estimates that the plan could distribute the $15 million to approximately 83 legacy businesses with awards of either $40,000 or $60,000; 29 live music venues with awards up to $160,000; and a portion of the city’s 357 child care centers with grants ranging from $2,500 to $60,000… (LINK TO STORY)
Mozart’s to take reservations for ‘COVID cautious’ holiday light show (Austin American-Statesman)
For the past decade, lakeside coffee shop Mozart’s has been celebrating the holidays with festive holiday light shows. This year, the show will go on, with “COVID cautious” pandemic safety protocols.
“We realized that Mozart’s Light Show isn’t just about concert-like crowds. In 2020, it’s about giving our wonderful community a new COVID-safe way to celebrate the holidays and the joy of being together,” Mozart’s owner Ken Leonard said in a news release.
Preparations for coffee shop’s 11th annual light show were already underway when the pandemic shut down Austin in March.
“Just weeks before the pandemic began, we had already begun our journey around the world to find pieces of joy to share with Austin,” light show director Katrine Formby said.
In addition to being organized with “a thorough health and safety precaution plan,” Formby said “it will be absolutely beautiful.”
The cafe will open an advance ticketing system on Oct. 25. Holiday revelers will be able to book a socially distanced table or standing spot for one of six one-hour shows that will take place between 6 p.m. and midnight each night from Nov. 11 to Jan. 6.
Cafe owners encourage guests to book their visits early, as the shows will likely sell out before peak holiday season… (LINK TO STORY)
Austin Police Association believes recent 911 response time delays are the result of understaffing (KVUE)
The Austin Police Association (APA) believes the amount of time it's taking officers to respond to 911 calls has recently increased.
"What we're seeing is our priority twos and threes, which are, you know, criminal trespass assaults, other types of calls now that are waiting for anywhere from two to six hours. And that's just not acceptable," said Ken Casaday, president of the APA.
Casaday added that "priority zero" and "priority one" calls are more serious in nature and include shootings and stabbings that are being responded to.
Ultimately, Casaday believes the increased response times are a result of an understaffed police department.
"We've had Sunday shifts showing up on occasion with, you know, four, five officers and they should have eight to 10," Casaday said, adding that downtown shifts are of concern. "Don't get me wrong, the chief has authorized the overtime to be spent. But right now, people are just so exhausted that only five people showed up on a shift and trying to work Sixth Street in the downtown area is pretty rough when you only have that amount of officers."… (LINK TO STORY)
[TEXAS]
High turnout, sporadic problems reported at Texas polling places as early voting begins (Texas Tribune)
The first day of early voting in Texas saw long lines, a record number of voters in the state's most populous county and relatively few hitches as voters surged to polling places despite the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Voters in Harris County shattered the record for in-person ballots cast on the first day of early voting, with more than 128,000 people voting, according to the county elections office. The previous record was set in 2016, when about 68,000 people cast votes there.
More than 25,000 ballots were cast in Travis County by 4 p.m., said County Clerk Dana DeBeauvoir, adding that she was "tickled pink" by the number of people who showed up to vote. Nearly 33,700 people in the county voted during the first day of early voting in 2016.
"We knew today was going to be a really big day, but the voters have sent us the signal that they are really, really ready to vote," DeBeauvoir said… (LINK TO STORY)
Despite virus fears, Texas sends most voters to the polls (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
Early voting began Tuesday with long lines in Texas, one of the few places in the U.S. not allowing widespread mail balloting during the pandemic, and Jill Biden rallied supporters across the red state that Democrats are no longer writing off.
Texas is one of just five states that did not dramatically expand mail-in voting this year because of COVID-19. And hours before polls opened, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott's order limiting counties to one mail ballot drop-off box was upheld by a federal appeals court, stopping dozens of shuttered sites around Texas from reopening… (LINK TO STORY)
Fort Worth-area schools should go virtual as COVID cases surge, health official says (Fort Worth Star-Telegram)
Tarrant County health officials are recommending school districts consider switching to virtual learning, citing potential outbreaks if in-person learning continues. Vinny Taneja, the county’s public health director, told county commissioners on Tuesday that the guidance is non-binding, but if schools experience an outbreak there is no doubt they should go fully online. Almost every indicator is turning red on the county’s school guidance dashboard, Taneja said. This includes coronavirus hospitalizations, case trends and positivity rates.
COVID-19 cases at Tarrant County schools are up 33% this week, pushing the total to 1,148. Across Texas, there have been 12,847 cases reported among students and staff. Schools should stay one step ahead and consider going online before an outbreak occurs, Taneja said. The county is experiencing a surge in hospitalizations and people visiting a emergency rooms with COVID-like Illness, he said. The county’s positivity rate is at 11%, and has been between 9% and 11% since Aug. 1. It peaked at 20% on July 7. Coronavirus hospitalizations in the county are up to 11% of occupied beds and 8% of total beds, the highest rates since Aug. 16. The surge is attributed to the further reopening of the businesses, schools and sporting events, Taneja said. And people are starting to get comfortable. Taneja said he is not asking for schools to go online at the flip of the switch but to prepare because there is too much disease activity in the community that could lead to major outbreaks if in-person learning continues… (LINK TO STORY)
Cornyn ad exploits MJ Hegar-Royce West spat, drawing West’s ire for trying to ‘sow racial divisions’ (Dallas Morning News)
State Sen. Royce West, snubbed by fellow Democrat MJ Hegar since she beat him in the primary, slammed U.S. Sen. John Cornyn for sowing racial division by airing an ad Tuesday that exploits their intraparty spat. “I’m not voting for her. She’s had a problem all along with Black folks," West said late Friday, after the first and possibly only Cornyn-Hegar debate, at which the challenger struggled to explain why she hadn’t sought his support for a show of party unity since defeating him in the July 13 runoff. Cornyn’s campaign unveiled a 30-second TV spot featuring those comment, and a 60-second radio version. Aides wouldn’t say how much the campaign is spending on the ads but spokesman Travis Considine said it would be “substantial.”
Within two hours, West took the three-term Republican incumbent to task, though he continued to withhold explicit support for Hegar. Even after Texas news outlets pointed out the omission, West dug in with a general “Vote Blue" message, avoiding Hegar’s name and not repudiating his vow Friday night that he won’t cast any vote in her contest with Cornyn. “He’s done nothing for African Americans during his tenure in the United States Senate. He stands lock-step in unison with a white supremacist President. He doesn’t favor renaming bases named after Confederate generals, he doesn’t support serious policing reform in this country, and he doesn’t support legislation that would improve the lives of African Americans in Texas,” West, a Dallas Democrat, said in his statement, asserting that Cornyn has failed Texans of all ethnicities on health care, criminal justice reform and other issues… (LINK TO STORY)
[NATION]
Five takeaways from Barrett's Supreme Court grilling (The Hill)
Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett was grilled by members of the Senate Judiciary Committee for more than 11 hours on the second day of her confirmation hearings.
During the marathon session, senators pressed Barrett on a host of issues, including the Affordable Care Act (ACA), abortion rights, the Nov. 3 election and her broad judicial philosophy.
The committee will have another hours-long Q&A session with Barrett on Wednesday, her final day before the panel. Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) is paving the way for a vote in the committee on her nomination next week.
Here are five takeaways from Tuesday’s session… (LINK TO STORY)
Back from Covid, Trump pins hopes on a hectic comeback tour (Politico)
Three weeks until Election Day, President Donald Trump is on a frenzied comeback tour meant to re-energize his base, capture the attention of swing voters and demonstrate that he’s the living embodiment of America’s ability to survive the coronavirus pandemic.
Trump traveled here on Tuesday to Johnstown, a blue-collar town of fewer than 20,000, for the second night of rallying and the start of a marathon of daily campaign events that Trump advisers say will last until Election Day.
Lagging by double digits in some national polls, the incumbent is approaching the race like an underdog and has announced events in Pennsylvania, Florida, North Carolina, Georgia and Iowa — all states he won in 2016. But just like four years ago when Trump came back from the embarrassing fallout from the “Access Hollywood” tape, he has shown no sign that he plans to pivot from his message and is leaning into his freewheeling rallies in an effort to boost his core supporters.
Ahead of Tuesday night’s rally at John Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport, the Trump campaign signaled that it hoped the president would stick to campaign talking points, releasing excerpts of his prepared speech that hit on his Democratic opponent, Joe Biden, as a “servant of the radical globalists” who will let the “radical left” run the country.
“Joe Biden and the Democrat Socialists will kill your jobs, dismantle your police departments, dissolve your borders, release criminal aliens, raise your taxes, confiscate your guns, destroy your suburbs, and drive God from the public square,” Trump said… (LINK TO STORY)