BG Reads | News You Need to Know (April 9, 2021)
[BINGHAM GROUP]
BG Podcast EP. 137: Q1 2021 Review: Austin Transit Partnership with Sam Sargent, Director, Program Strategy
This BG Podcast Episode (137) features a Q1 2021 review with Sam Sargent, Director, Program Strategy, at the Austin Transit Partnership (ATP).
Formed following the passage of Project Connect in November 2020 (an historic $7.1 billion comprehensive overhaul of Austin's transit system) ATP was established as an independent organization to guide the Project Connect investment with transparency and accountability throughout the program.
You can listen to all episodes on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and SoundCloud. New content every Wednesday. Please like, link, comment and subscribe!
[MEETING/HEARINGS]
[THE 87TH TEXAS LEGISLATURE]
LINK TO FILED HOUSE BILLS (5,489)
LINK TO FILED SENATE BILLS (2,518)
[AUSTIN METRO NEWS]
Council approves Rainey towers, pledges new LDC push (Austin Monitor)
On Thursday City Council approved increased floor area ratio for three new towers in the Rainey Street area, bringing 1,000 more homes – 55 of them affordable – to the area.
The approval of the towers may have consequences beyond Rainey. First, Council is set to increase the Downtown Density Bonus program’s community benefits requirements, which aims to increase the supply of market-rate and affordable housing built in downtown and around the city.
“I really look forward to that work being done swiftly,” Council Member Alison Alter said.
The towers also spurred broader discussion on the urgent need to tackle the citywide housing and affordability crisis.
“We owe an obligation to the community to finish the Land Development Code work,” Mayor Steve Adler said.
The approved towers include the East Tower at 82 and 84 Interstate 35; River Street Residences at 61 and 69 Rainey St. and 60 East Ave.; and 9092 Rainey at 90 and 92 Rainey St. Council had to approve the projects because they exceeded the Downtown Density Bonus program’s 15:1 FAR cap, requesting 21:1, 22:1 and 32:1 FAR, respectively.
In exchange for the increased FAR, the projects will provide a combined 30 ownership units at 80 percent median family income, 25 rentals at 80 percent MFI, over $3 million in affordable housing fees-in-lieu, and hundreds of thousands of dollars in parkland dedication fees, much of which will be spent on improvements to the Ann and Roy Butler Hike-and-Bike Trail.
Though many Council members thought that the community benefits required of the projects were too low, only Council members Kathie Tovo and Ann Kitchen opposed the towers. The votes were 9-2, with all others in favor. Tovo and Kitchen cited not only the projects’ inadequate benefits but also the area’s mobility problems.
“The infrastructure in that area has not kept up with the incredible pace of development and redevelopment in that area,” Tovo said. Rainey, in addition to much of downtown and Central Austin, lies within Tovo’s District 9.
Dozens of Rainey residents spoke out against allowing the extra FAR, arguing that Rainey’s infrastructure could not handle the influx of new residents.
Upal Barua, Austin Transportation Department acting assistant director, said that the department is working on the area’s mobility challenges. Negotiations are in progress for purchasing right-of-way to extend Red River Street south, connecting it to the Mexican American Cultural Center, and extending Rainey Street north, connecting it to Cesar Chavez Street and Sabine Street.
Barua also mentioned that some “quick fixes” are in the works. The city will use the 2019 Rainey Mobility Study as the area’s main transportation planning document.
Mayor Pro Tem Natasha Harper-Madison argued that Rainey’s density makes it one of the most livable places in the city. “It is one of the few neighborhoods in Austin where people can live comfortably without having to own a car, especially once the Blue Line is completed,” she said.
“The more housing we can build here gives more people access to the benefits of living in a walkable, complete community, which means so much to our future goals,” Harper-Madison said.
Multiple Council members took the opportunity to address the city’s housing crisis.
“I just want to reiterate,” Council Member Greg Casar said, “how important it is for us to continue to work through these Land Development Code and housing issues together. We’ve had a housing crisis that’s been impacting people for a long time.”
“As we get into May and June, July, August,” Adler said, “my hope is that in that time frame, we’re able to fashion a step forward with respect to the Land Development Code – one that moves us forward and maybe doesn’t bring into the discussion the issues with respect to notice and petition rights.”
A judge halted Austin’s comprehensive new Land Development Code last year. Changes to the existing code are still possible, though other priorities have taken precedent – the pandemic, Winter Storm Uri and homelessness.
Casar said it is “intensely important for us to address both the housing supply issues and getting as much affordable housing subsidy for people the market isn’t going to serve.”
“We’re all here, understanding what you said, Council Member Casar,” Kitchen said. “I think it’s really important for us to remember that every single one of us cares about affordability, and every single one of us cares about housing and density. Our votes here do not mean that we are either against or for density.”… (LINK TO STORY)
Austin Police Department names new leadership, including city's first Asian American assistant chief (Austin American-Statesman)
The Austin Police Department on Thursday announced multiple new leadership appointments, including the city's first assistant chief who is of Asian descent.
Acting Austin Police Chief Joe Chacon's appointments, which went into effect Friday, come at a time during which the department is facing multiple lawsuits related to officer-involved fatal shootings, and a rise in reports of hate incidents against the Asian American and Pacific Islander community nationwide.
Additionally, the promotions come in the wake of widespread public debate among the city's social justice groups and government officials regarding major changes to the police department funding and training procedures.
In a written statement Thursday, newly named Assistant Chief Jerry Bauzon, said he looks forward to strengthening the department's relationship with the local Asian community.
“I’m thankful for the opportunity to serve both our officers and our community in the role of Assistant Chief. As an Asian American, I am proud to represent our dynamic culture and I look forward to strengthening APD’s relationship with our AAPI community,” Bauzon said.
Under his new role, Bauzon will manage Central Bureau operations, which includes downtown patrol as well as special events. He will also manage the Austin Regional Intelligence Center.
The intelligence center is responsible for fighting and investigating violent extremism within ten different Central Texas counties, including Travis, Williamson, Bastrop and Hays, according to the department website.
Bauzon, who has been with the department since 1993, most recently served as the department's commander over professional standards and led its internal affairs and risk management operations. He also led the department's patrol operations in Southwest Austin, according to the department's Thursday news release… (LINK TO STORY)
Snippet of data highlights how LA, Bay Area are pushing Austin's population into overdrive (Austin Business Journal)
Austin and Dallas-Fort Worth are top markets for people moving from the Los Angeles area, according to a new Zillow report that analyzed moving-company data.
The Covid-19 pandemic has caused many Americans to rethink the meaning of home and their living arrangements, thanks partly to the rise of remote work, according to Zillow’s first Mover’s Report.
Some 11% of Americans have already moved in the past year, some by choice and others by necessity, according to the survey. Austin is a beneficiary of what the Zillow report terms the Great Reshuffling, which is causing millions of additional households to enter the real estate market as a result of the pandemic.
Austin and the Dallas area are part of a Sun Belt surge, as movers with the ability to work remotely seek out relative affordability and warmer weather.
Austin ranked No. 3 and DFW ranked No. 4 on Zilllow’s list of Top 5 Metros for Net Inbound Moves. Phoenix ranked first, Charlotte ranked second and Sarasota, Florida, ranked fifth.
According to the report, Los Angeles is the top origin of movers who land in Austin, followed by San Jose and San Francisco. Dallas' top three, in order of origin, are pegged are Los Angeles, Chicago and New York.
But it's important to note that this is just a snippet of total relocation data. Zillow based its numbers on SIRVA/North American Van Lines data for moves in the first 11 months of 2020.
The fact of the matter is, wider data from the Texas Demographic Center indicate that the majority of people, by far, who move to the Austin area are coming from other parts of Texas — and most of them don't use the moving service cited by Zillow. U-Haul, for instance, has its own migration numbers here but dissects its data differently than Zillow.
The latest U.S. Census Bureau numbers, reported about a year ago, combined with anecdotal data since the pandemic that shows population growth has accelerated since, indicates the Austin area could be adding roughly 200 people a day at this time — babies included.
Zillow research finds the pandemic could bring an additional 2.5 million households to the surging U.S. real estate market, in addition to the more than one in 10 people who have already moved in the past year.
The data from North American Van Lines also finds some of the country’s largest and most expensive housing markets saw the highest net outbound moves, including New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Chicago. Zillow saw for-sale inventory in these metros climb, while inventory nationally hit new lows.
“The pandemic brought an acceleration of trends we were seeing in 2018 and 2019,” Zillow senior economist Jeff Tucker said in the report. “More affordable, medium-sized metro areas across the Sun Belt saw significantly more people coming than going, especially from more expensive, larger cities farther north and on the coasts. The pandemic has catalyzed purchases by millennial first-time buyers, many of whom can now work from anywhere.”
For an in-depth report on Austin's housing market and expected viability for the coming years, click here… (LINK TO STORY)
Round Rock City Council votes to end local coronavirus mask mandate, rule expires April 22 (Austin American-Statesman)
The Round Rock City Council on Thursday voted to officially end the citywide face covering requirement to fall more in line with Gov. Greg Abbott's executive order last month ending the statewide mask order. The council had voted to extend the city's emergency ordinance requiring face coverings through April 29 in businesses and other locations as part of the effort to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus. However, the ordinance will now expire at midnight on April 22. The ordinance, which first passed unanimously during an emergency meeting on June 29, required those 10 and older to wear face coverings in public places when social distancing is not possible. It also required businesses to display a notice of the requirement.
"No one is going to be 100% happy, but this will allow businesses and our citizens more time to get vaccinated, for our businesses to prepare ... and let individual choices be made," said Mayor Craig Morgan. The requirements to wear face coverings did not apply to several situations, including when exercising or engaging in physical activity, while eating or drinking, and when outside with a group consisting of only members of a single household. City spokesman Will Hampton said that once the ordinance expires, businesses will no longer be required to display a notice of the requirement. Those who spoke in favor of rescinding the mandate expressed that in recent months, new reports of coronavirus cases have been on a steady decline across the state.
"The data that we have learned in the last year has changed," said Council Member Matt Baker. "We didn't know what we were dealing with a year ago and we've learned a lot how to better prepare and social distance. Going back to the numbers for me has always been what I've been looking at — infections are down, hospitalizations are down and I think it's time to end the mask ordinance… (LINK TO STORY)
[TEXAS NEWS]
Texas could lose billions if voter restrictions become law, study finds (Forbes)
The Texas economy could take a massive hit if the state enacts new voting restrictions—potentially costing the state's economy tens of billions of dollars and tens of thousands of jobs—according to a study from the Texas-based economic research firm the Perryman Group, as the Texas legislature Thursday moved one step closer to making the proposals. The potential loss of conventions, major sporting events and tourism could cost the state $16.7 billion in annual gross product by 2025, and nearly 150,000 jobs, according to the study. Internal factors, like decreased business activity and lower wages in the state, could lead to the loss of $14.7 billion in household purchasing power by 2025, according to the Perryman Group.
Retail trade would take the biggest hit, according to the study, losing more than 50,000 jobs from drops in tourism and economic development alone. The Texas legislature is considering two omnibus bills to enact new voting restrictions, which include proposals making it harder to vote by mail, encating new rules on where polling places can be located in the most populous counties and outlawing drive-through voting—a popular option for the 2020 presidential election. One of the bills—House Bill 6—passed the Texas House Committee on Elections Committee by a 5-4 party-line vote Thursday, and will now be considered by the full Texas House.
"If you strip away all of the emotion and all of the politics and say 'this is just what happens in the economy,' that is what we're analyzing," Dr. Ray Perryman said in an interview with Forbes. Perryman said his firm’s modeling relies on 40 years worth of data and academic research, which has consistently shown voting laws that are restrictive or have "the appearance of discrimination" lead to negative economic impacts… (LINK TO STORY)
Texas Senate OKs sweeping protections against COVID-19 lawsuits for businesses, health care providers (Dallas Morning News)
With strong bipartisan support, a sweeping bill that would bar lawsuits over COVID-19 deaths and injuries – if Texas businesses, health care providers and institutions made good faith efforts to follow governments’ pandemic protocols – flew out of the Senate on Thursday. The proposed liability shield would be retroactive to the start of the coronavirus crisis and lift once it ends, meaning the protections could last for months or even years. Senate Bill 6, approved 29-1, now goes to the House. It “allows Texas to continue reopening safely and will bolster the global economy-leading [state] economy by giving businesses the assurance that they will not be forced to spend their hard-earned resources fighting frivolous lawsuits,” said bill author Sen. Kelly Hancock, R-North Richland Hills.
While some opponents have said such immunity is unnecessary because a flood of lawsuits has yet to materialize, Hancock said failure to provide it could impede the Texas economy’s rebound from the pandemic. Gov. Greg Abbott made the topic an emergency topic this session. The legislation enjoys strong backing from GOP leaders such as Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Speaker Dade Phelan of Beaumont. Sen. Roland Gutierrez, D-San Antonio, said he originally intended to oppose the measure.
“I’ve switched my vote,” he said, citing assurances from Hancock that the bill only would protect businesses that followed proper guidelines, not bad actors. Said Gutierrez, “If the local Wendy’s or the local taqueria ..., if they are short on cooks and they know that the line cook that they have has COVID, they would not get protection?” Hancock replied, “Senator Gutierrez, we have no desire to protect those people that are not following health and safety guidelines. … This bill protects the people that deserve to be protected and absolutely does not protect those individuals who do not deserve this protection.” By 29-1, the Senate tabled a proposal by Edgewood GOP Sen. Bob Hall to allow lawsuits only if, as he put it, “you intentionally intended to infect someone.”
That would have scrapped the bill’s requirement that to receive immunity, a business or institution must have tried to comply with governmental COVID-19 protocols. Hancock noted that different layers of government sometimes issued different guidance… (LINK TO STORY)
Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush "seriously considering" run for attorney general, lays out case against Ken Paxton (Texas Tribune)
Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush said Thursday he is "seriously considering" running for attorney general in 2022 — and detailed how he would challenge the incumbent, embattled fellow Republican Ken Paxton.
"There have been some serious allegations levied against the current attorney general," Bush said in an interview with Dallas radio host Mark Davis. "Personally I think that the top law enforcement official in Texas needs to be above reproach."
Bush, the grandson of former President George H.W. Bush and nephew for President George W. Bush, went on to say a Paxton challenge would not be centered on "conservative credentials" but how the incumbent has run his office. "I think character matters and integrity matters," Bush said.
The land commissioner, currently in his second term, has for months kept open the possibility of running for another statewide office in 2022 — including attorney general — but his remarks Thursday offered the starkest indication yet that he is focused on Paxton. Bush did not give a timeline for a decision on the race beyond saying he is currently focused on the legislative session and will visit with voters afterward. The session ends May 31.
Bush has given other interviews in recent days in which he has also made clear his interest in challenging Paxton, telling Fox News earlier this week that he is "taking a very serious look" at the contest.
Paxton has repeatedly said he plans to seek a third term next year despite a series of new and old scandals. Last year, seven of Paxton's top aides accused him of accepting bribes and abusing his office to assist a wealthy donor. Those aides were subsequently fired or resigned, and it has since come out that the FBI was investigating the claims against him. And for almost his entire time as attorney general, he has been under indictment on state securities fraud charges.
Paxton has denied wrongdoing in both the FBI investigation and the securities fraud case.
"Attorney General Paxton is focused on keeping the Texas border secure, holding the Biden Administration accountable, and taking on Big Tech," Paxton campaign spokesperson Ian Prior said in a statement responding to Bush's interview. "It is unfortunate, but not surprising, to see a potential opponent more interested with the narrative being set by the liberal media than on the real and important issues facing Texas families and small businesses."
Bush did not let up on Paxton in the Davis interview, saying the attorney general "has been in public service now for 20 years, and I'm not sure another four years is gonna bring Texas anything better."
"From my perch in Austin, I've seen some high-quality attorneys leave that office," Bush said. "I've visited with many conservative attorneys general throughout the country. They're embarrassed by the conduct, and I think Texans deserve better."
Bush said Texans "need a top cop that the law enforcement of our great state" can trust and added that sheriffs across the state have told him the same thing. Asked by Davis to identify sheriffs who have told him that, Bush declined to do so, saying he promised the sheriffs "confidentiality."
ormer President Donald Trump would undoubtedly be a point of discussion in any Bush-Paxton showdown. Paxton has closely aligned himself with Trump as attorney general, most notably asking the Supreme Court late last year to overturn Trump's reelection loss in four battleground states. Paxton then spoke in January at the pro-Trump rally that preceded the deadly U.S. Capitol riot. And Paxton has stayed in touch with Trump since he left office, visiting him at his Mar-a-Lago Club in Florida in late February.
Bush is the most prominent member of his famous political family to have backed Trump, getting behind him in the summer of 2016 after he officially became the GOP nominee.
Speaking with Davis, Bush argued there is "no separation" between himself and Paxton when it comes to being conservatives and supporting Trump.
"When you pick up the paper, yes, there's good lawsuits, there's good ideology and filings, but it's about how you run an office, it's about how you lead and it's about how you're a role model for our children and for members of the Texas bar," Bush said… (LINK TO STORY)
M. Katherine Banks, Texas A&M’s incoming president, says she’s planning for a campus in “normal mode” this fall (Texas Tribune)
When M. Katherine Banks became the new engineering school dean at Texas A&M University in 2012, an associate dean drove her to the Zachry building, the heart of the university’s engineering program in College Station.
He pulled into the basement-level garage and honked the horn twice — a preventive measure to scare off skunks that infested the aging facility.
Above them, the building reeked of mold. Engineering students not-so-lovingly dubbed it the “Zachry Smell.” Inside the building's lecture hall, a once-impressive revolving stage, was broken.
Ten years later, the skunks are gone. Banks raised $76 million in private donations that helped build a state-of-the-art engineering building that boasts multiple high-tech labs and collaborative meeting spaces.
She commissioned 10 original art pieces, all inspired by science, technology and engineering, for the half a million square foot building that now enrolls more than 21,000 students — nearly twice the number of students from when she started. Many leaders within Texas A&M point to the center as a physical testament to her success running the college, which now enrolls nearly a third of all of Texas A&M’s student body.
“The house that Banks built,” an assistant vice chancellor joked last week during a tour of the facility, causing Banks to cringe.
“I don’t know where that [phrase] came from,'' she said modestly.
Banks is not typically one to seek out attention, but starting June 1 she’ll enter the spotlight as the 26th president of Texas’ biggest university, the second woman to ever run the flagship campus.
She takes over as Texas A&M faces multiple challenges, including how to navigate a return to “normal” campus operations after the COVID-19 pandemic upended learning and campus life. She’ll also take the reins of a diversity and inclusion plan meant to increase students and faculty of color after a year where conversations about racial injustice and inequality on campus took center stage.
The Board of Regents last week approved her as the next president of Texas A&M, with a $925,000 annual salary over the next five years. Banks ended up negotiating her salary down $350,000 less than she was initially offered due to the current economic situation brought by the pandemic.
“If she can do for the rest of the university what she did for engineering, it's gonna be a hell of a show to watch” said System Chancellor John Sharp, who said he had tried to convince Banks to apply for president six years ago, but she wasn’t ready to leave the engineering school. “She's a visionary and an executioner…[but] at the core of it all, it’s giving opportunities to the students that are here. I think that's what makes her tick.”…(LINK TO STORY)
[NATIONAL NEWS]
Asa Hutchinson: Why I vetoed my party’s bill restricting health care for transgender youth (Washington Post)
(Asa Hutchinson, a Republican, is the governor of Arkansas.) For over 40 years, I have been fighting to build the Republican Party by advancing the principles of limited government and individual liberty. Thanks to that focus, the GOP has become the majority party in Arkansas. Now, I am being attacked by some of my Republican colleagues for not being pure enough on social issues and for vetoing a bill that limited access to health care for transgender youth. Make no mistake: I am pro-life. I believe there are some issues where the stakes are so high that government must play a role in private life. I have fought my share of battles in defending the role of faith in our society. At the same time, while governor, I have lowered taxes, balanced the budget and defended the Second Amendment. Yet the reaction of some of my conservative friends now makes me wish they would remember President Ronald Reagan’s admonition that if someone agrees with you 80 percent of the time then they are your friend and ally — not the enemy.
I vetoed this bill because it creates new standards of legislative interference with physicians and parents as they deal with some of the most complex and sensitive matters concerning our youths. It is undisputed that the number of minors who struggle with gender incongruity or gender dysphoria is extremely small. But they, too, deserve the guiding hand of their parents and the counseling of medical specialists in making the best decisions for their individual needs. H.B. 1570 puts the state as the definitive oracle of medical care, overriding parents, patients and health-care experts. While in some instances the state must act to protect life, the state should not presume to jump into the middle of every medical, human and ethical issue.
This would be — and is — a vast government overreach. Leadership is acting not just on your convictions but also on your compassion. Parents are doing their best to guide the young person God entrusted to them. As they seek medical help, it is important to understand the trauma, emotional challenge and love involved in making difficult decisions. The leading Arkansas medical associations, the American Academy of Pediatrics and medical experts across the country all oppose this law. Their concern is that denying best practice medical care to transgender youth can lead to significant harm to the young person — from suicidal tendencies and social isolation to increased drug use. Given these risks, we have to ask whether the state action helps or unjustifiably interferes… (LINK TO STORY)
'New strategy': Politicians in crisis refuse calls to resign (Associated Press)
The mere whiff of a scandal once unraveled political careers with stunning speed. Not anymore. Suddenly embroiled in a federal sex trafficking investigation, Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida has denied the allegations, rebuffed suggestions that he resign and sent fundraising appeals that portray him as a victim of a “smear campaign.” He's expected to make a high-profile appearance Friday at former President Donald Trump's Doral golf club in Miami. The congressman joins a growing list of politicians from both parties — almost exclusively men — who are defying the traditional response to controversy. Rather than humbly step back from public life, they barrel ahead, insisting they did nothing wrong and betting that voters will forget alleged misdeeds once the news cycle eventually shifts.
“Clearly this is a new strategy people are employing in crisis response,” said Brent Colburn, a Democratic strategist and veteran of President Barack Obama’s administration. “It is a new chapter in the playbook.” Gaetz’s political future remains in question and could fully disintegrate, depending on how the federal probe unfolds. But after spending the past several years as one of Trump’s fiercest public defenders, Gaetz’s game plan strongly mirrors the former president’s approach. After a video emerged in the final weeks of the 2016 campaign of him boasting of grabbing women by the genitals, Trump apologized “if anyone was offended” and dismissed the episode as "locker room talk."
He refused calls by some in his own party to leave the presidential ticket and won the election just weeks later. As president, Trump would respond to one burgeoning scandal after another by constantly moving ahead, making it harder for the public to linger on one issue for too long, even if that meant stirring up fresh controversy on another topic. The pressure on Gaetz is mounting. A hearing Thursday revealed that one of his political allies, Joel Greenberg, is working toward a plea deal with federal investigators, which could add to Gaetz’s legal jeopardy… (LINK TO STORY)