BG Reads | News You Need to Know (October 29, 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* Announcing The Bingham Group Foundation
Today, we proudly announce the launch of The Bingham Group Foundation, our company sponsored 501(c)(3) nonprofit. With a board representing Austin’s diversity, the Foundation will contribute financially to inspiring nonprofits creating educational and economic access for underserved communities in the Austin Metro. Learn more here.
*NEW* BG Podcast Episode 112: Discussing Community Healthcare with Perla Cavazos, Deputy Administrator, Central Health (SHOW LINK)
On this episode we speak with Central Health executive Perla Cavazos about the agency’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and initiatives going into 2021.
[AUSTIN METRO]
Austin’s Prop A campaign turns ugly in final days (Austin American-Statesman)
In the waning days of this election cycle, the campaigns for and against Austin’s mass transit referendum Proposition A have turned decidedly ugly.
On Wednesday, a small gathering of Prop A supporters — including Mayor Steve Adler, Austin City Council Member Delia Garza and state Rep. Donna Howard — accused Prop A opponents of dirty campaigning, dark money financing and lying.
“They’re mostly status quo profiteers,” Garza said. “They’re climate, you know, climate change deniers, people that believe that (federal health official Dr. Anthony Fauci) is not telling the truth or is, you know, not someone that we should be believing in.”
Mailers from pro-Prop A campaigns have claimed that the financial backers of Our Mobility Our Future, the anti-Prop A political action committee, are backers of President Donald Trump, weapons manufacturers, oil executives and luxury car dealers.
“They send out all these very pretty brochures and propaganda,” former state Sen. Gonzalo Barrientos said Tuesday at a news conference denouncing the $7.1 billion transit plan that calls for downtown tunnels, multiple light-rail lines and rapid bus routes.
“The last one blew me away. It says, ‘Who opposes Prop A?’ Insulting our community, they say, luxury car dealers, oil and gas executives, weapons dealers and to many of us, Trump inauguration attendees. You talk about an insult. These are the people that want to pass Proposition A.”
The anti-Prop A campaign has remained focused on the tax impact of an 8.75 cent increase to the city of Austin’s property tax rate. Our Mobility Our Future and the nonprofit Voices of Austin refer to the tax hike as a 25% increase.
But that refers only to the potential increase to property taxes charged by the city of Austin. The majority of an Austin resident’s property tax is paid to the school district in which they live. When factoring in all the entities to which the average resident pays property tax — such as the Austin Independent School District, Central Health and Travis County — the tax impact of Prop A on the total bill of an Austin property owner would be closer to 4%.
“Republican tactics of misinformation,” said Garza, who will be Travis County’s next county attorney. “I’ve heard the quote, ‘The first lie wins,’ right? You see it all over the city, that false information about the tax hike.”
On Tuesday, Travis County Commissioner Margaret Gómez took umbrage with the assertion that the 25% figure that is being pushed by the anti-Prop A campaign was incorrect.
“To tell me that I miscalculated my taxes is a bit of an insult,” Gómez said. “I can read English. And I can read an ad.”
Adler was also critical of Voices of Austin, the nonprofit that says it makes no endorsements in elections, but has exclusively amplified anti-Prop A viewpoints and referred to how the tax increase would be administered as “not very smart” in an email Wednesday. Because the organization is not a political action committee, it is not required to disclose its donors… (LINK TO STORY)
Travis County breaking voting records; clerk expects turnout to climb as high as 80% (Community Impact)
With more than two days of early voting remaining, the number of Travis County voters who cast their ballot early in 2020 has surpassed the total number of voters from the presidential election in 2016. Before the end of the night Oct. 28, that total number is set to surpass the record set in 2018.
As of 12:10 p.m., the Travis County Clerk's office reported 486,206 total votes cast in the election, which blows past the 477,588 total mark in 2016 and is just a few hundred votes short of the 486,616 total in 2018.
Travis County Clerk Dana DeBeauvoir said she expects the numbers to continue to climb to record highs through Election Day.
"We believe we’re looking at at least a 77% turnout; about 650,000 people will vote. But at the rate of these numbers, it is also possible we’ll see our turnout go as high as 700,000, an 80% turnout," she said.
DeBeauvoir started her career as Travis County clerk in 1986. A final turnout percentage this year near 80% would approach the highest she has ever seen in her career, she said. According to the Texas Secretary of State's Office website, 78.3% of voters cast their ballots in Travis County in 1992. But at the time, the county's total number of registered voters was 352,737—less than half of what it is today… (LINK TO STORY)
Water-saving code amendments coming (Austin Monitor)
Years after the city’s Water Forward Committee recommended changes to require on-site water reuse systems for commercial development, an item to put the matter into city regulations appears headed for a City Council agenda in December.
Austin Water Assistant Director Kevin Crittendon told Council’s water oversight committee Wednesday that the department wants to make changes to water utility regulations governing cooling tower operations as well. Those changes, he said, would save “1,000 acre-feet a year by 2040.”
Crittendon told the Austin Monitor that the city wants to encourage commercial developers to use graywater, storm water and rainwater for what are called non-potable uses. For example, he said the downtown library uses reclaimed water to flush toilets.
The Water Forward Committee recommended a specific mandate for commercial buildings larger than 250,000 square feet, but it remains to be seen how that will be written into the code. Originally, this provision was supposed to be part of the new Land Development Code. However, since District Judge Jan Soifer enjoined Council from moving forward with zoning changes without a supermajority of Council approving the new code, Council has not taken up other proposed changes.
But Austin Water, with encouragement from the Council oversight committee, is now poised to move forward. Council Member Paige Ellis chairs the committee. Other committee members include Leslie Pool, who is vice chair, Alison Alter and Ann Kitchen. Pool, Alter and Kitchen all voted against adoption of the ill-fated Land Development Code.
On Wednesday, all three indicated strong support for bringing forward not just the two changes outlined by Crittendon, but a number of other water-saving regulations, instead of waiting for a final decision on the LDC. Ellis, the only member of the committee who voted in favor of the new land use code, expressed hesitation about adopting those other water-saving measures.
Pool argued that the meeting was posted in such a way that it would allow for the committee to adopt a resolution in favor of bringing more changes to Council in December. But Ellis asked a staff member if they were posted to take action, and the answer was no.
Pool, with backing from Alter and Kitchen, said the committee should have a special called meeting right away to consider the matter. Instead of trying to decide when all of their calendars would allow them to meet, Ellis promised she would get staff to find an appropriate date. The committee normally meets just four times a year, but if they wait for the next meeting, they will not be able to take action on moving the amendments forward for the December meeting.
Bobby Levinski, addressing the committee on behalf of the Save Our Springs Alliance, said it was important for the water utility to be able to require on-site water reuse in 2023. He said the city should adopt a voluntary program first so that the utility and other departments can “get up some speed and do some beta testing” before the program becomes mandatory. He said the idea of using graywater was “kicked off eight years ago. We don’t want putting this off further,” which might be the case if the mandatory part of the program is left out when Council adopts a voluntary program… (LINK TO STORY)
[TEXAS]
With alcohol delivery here to stay, TABC creates new certification for delivery drivers (Dallas Morning News)
The pandemic has brought few welcomed changes to the Texas restaurant industry, but alcohol delivery is one of them. The Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission now wants to make sure it’s done safely by offering a certification program for delivery drivers. The Texas Responsible Alcohol Delivery certification course is available to employees of businesses that hold a consumer delivery permit through the TABC.
Similar to the Safe Harbor law that offers protections to brick-and-mortar businesses if their employees break the law by serving alcohol to a minor or intoxicated person, the program could offer businesses liability protection if their delivery drivers violate the law but hold TRAD certifications. The 2-year certification is $25 per person, and the coursework, which covers processes like checking IDs and ensuring alcohol isn’t delivered to an intoxicated person, is offered online. “With delivery drivers going out across the state and making those deliveries as they do, the Legislature wanted to ensure that those folks have some sort of training to help prevent any sale or service of alcohol to minors or intoxicated persons,” says Chris Porter, a TABC spokesman.
“We hope it gives people who are looking for employment as delivery drivers an easy step to take before they begin work.” Employees who work as delivery drivers for businesses that hold consumer delivery permits will be required to obtain a TRAD certification in order to deliver alcohol… (LINK TO STORY)
Texas Republicans sound post-2020 alarm bells (The Hill)
Texas Republicans remain bullish that President Trump will repeat his 2016 win here next week. But they warn the party nonetheless has a lot of work to do in the coming years as Democrats continue to make inroads across the state, especially in suburban areas.
For two cycles now, Texas Republicans have watched as Democrats picked off long-held GOP House seats in the Dallas and Houston suburbs, with the minority party continuing to go on offense in a number of seats few saw as possible pick-up opportunities years ago. This has set off alarm bells for party leaders, who warn that they have to right the ship before it is too late.
"The party's got some work to do, and the reason they've got work to do is when you win the national championship every year — year after year after year — you get complacent," former Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) told The Hill in an interview.
"I think the Republican Party in Texas over the last ten years...got complacent," Perry continued, taking some responsibility for the situation, as he was governor from 2000 to 2014. "You didn't build the structure that you need. You didn't go recruit the bench that you need to continue to be a strong team… (LINK TO STORY)
Abbott says National Guard won’t interfere with voting, will be deployed to ‘address protests that could turn to riots’ (Houston Chronicle)
Gov. Greg Abbott answered questions for the first time Wednesday about the potential deployment of the Texas National Guard to cities around the state in the coming days. On Monday, Hearst Newspapers broke the news that the Texas National Guard was considering deploying hundreds of troops in major cities around the state to provide security in case disturbances break out after the Nov. 3 election.
“We want to make sure that in the event there are any after the elections are concluded, and that we will have adequate personnel in place to make sure that we will be able to address any protests that could turn to riots,” Abbott said, at a “Back-the-Blue” news conference held at the Houston Police Officers’ Union headquarters just west of downtown Houston.
He was joined by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, Texas House Speaker Dennis Bonnen, and numerous other Republican politicians or candidates running in the 2020 election. Asked whether he planned to send troops to Houston, Abbott said such decisions would be made on an “as needed basis.” He also said that any troops — wherever deployed — would play “no role whatsoever” in the electoral process, and would not be present at the polls.
“They will not be disruptive in the election process whatsoever,” Abbott said. “They have a goal, and that is to support the efforts that they would be called upon to support the Texas Department of Public Safety.” Some Texas Democrats previously criticized the move as a potential ploy to deter voters from heading to the polls. On Monday, for example, Austin City Councilmember Gregorio Casar said Abbott should “make clear why he is doing this,” and said “Texas voters will not be intimidated by Gov. Greg Abbott’s fear-mongering during this election.” The 2020 election has sparked unprecedented turnout in Texas, but few reports of violence or unrest… (LINK TO STORY)
All seven of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's whistleblowers have resigned, been fired or put on leave (Texas Tribune)
The last of the seven top aides who accused Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton of criminal violations has resigned from the agency.
Ryan Bangert, who served in one of the agency’s highest posts as deputy first assistant attorney general, resigned Wednesday, he told The Texas Tribune. The attorney general’s office did not respond to a request Wednesday seeking to confirm Bangert’s employment status.
“It has been my honor and privilege to serve alongside the men and women of the Office of the Attorney General,” Bangert said in a statement. The Dallas Morning News first reported the information.
Two of the other whistleblowers were fired last week, two more were put on leave, and two others have already resigned — leaving the sprawling agency without seven of its top officials. A spokesman for Paxton denied that the firings were retaliation, citing unspecified violations of agency policy.
Bangert and six of his colleagues alerted law enforcement weeks ago that they had a “good faith” belief that their boss had committed bribery and abuse of office by using the agency to serve the interests of a political donor, Austin real estate investor Nate Paul.
Paxton has called the employees “rogue” and their allegations “false.” But documents and media reports have shown several highly unusual instances when Paxton’s office got involved in separate legal matters that involved Paul… (LINK TO STORY)
[NATION]
President Donald Trump raised nearly twice as much money in Texas as Joe Biden (Houston Chronicle)
It’s still unclear whether President Donald Trump or Democrat Joe Biden is winning Texas at the ballot box, but when it comes to campaign fundraising there is no doubt who is dominating the Lone Star State. Trump has raised nearly twice as much money from Texas donors as Biden. Federal Election Commission records show Trump has raised $53 million from people in Texas, while Joe Biden has raised just over $28 million. Trump’s haul from Texas makes the state his second-best fundraising state in the nation after California, where he pulled in $58 million. And his Texas fundraising is light years ahead of what he did in 2016 when he raised almost $16 million from individual donors in the state.
“This isn’t surprising,” said Samantha Zager, the deputy national press secretary for the Trump campaign. “Texas is not in play for Joe Biden and never has been because Texans would never vote for Biden’s radical agenda, including a call to end the oil industry by 2025.”
Texans have made substantial contributions to Biden, but not anywhere close to what he’s getting in other big states. California has led the way with $127 million from individuals, according to the FEC. New Yorkers have given more than $63 million. Biden has now raised more in Texas than Hillary Clinton raised in 2016 when she pulled in almost $23 million from Texas. Democrats say all that Texas money Trump has been raising has been being shipped out of state, while the Biden campaign has been using some of its money on campaign ads and high profile visits to Texas — including Friday’s visit from vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris.
“Donald Trump has used Texas like an ATM piggy bank while governing against the interest of Texas time after time,” Texas Democratic Party spokesman Abhi Rahman said. “Look at the money Donald Trump has taken out of Texas and into other states.” The fundraising advantage for Trump doesn’t surprise Cal Jillson, a political science professor at Southern Methodist University. He said while the Texas electorate is becoming more diverse, there is still far more money in wealthy white communities. “So even as Texas becomes increasingly competitive, Republicans will continue to outraise Democrats,” he said… (LINK TO STORY)
Facebook missteps stoke fears of long political ad blackout online (Politico)
When Facebook and Google announced plans to ban new political ads around the end of the election, they left one key thing out of the new policies: an end date.
Now, as Facebook’s pre-election blackout on new ads begins and a total post-election freeze on Google and Facebook ads looms, digital strategists in both parties are worried that ads on the biggest digital platforms may never come back — or, at the very least, they’ll be down so long that they paralyze campaigns in major races set to stretch beyond Nov. 3.
Those fears spiked in recent days after Facebook’s blackout started Tuesday with the social media giant taking down ads that groups in both parties said had been pre-approved. A day and a half later, many groups said they are still struggling to resolve these inconsistencies with the companies’ advertising reps.
Democrats, in particular, are concerned that the undefined timeline for restarting online ads could hamper efforts to raise money and voter awareness around potential Senate runoffs in Georgia and Mississippi in January. Others noted that the policies will make it more difficult for campaigns to raise legal funds for recounts.
One Democratic operative affiliated with a Georgia Senate campaign reached out to Google’s representative for advice on budgeting advertising for the expected January runoff in the state, but Google advised that they should “not budget” for that spending at all — setting off “alarm bells” inside the party that the ban may extend well into 2021, according to a person familiar with the exchange… (LINK TO STORY)