BG Reads | News You Need to Know (November 3, 2022)
[AUSTIN METRO]
Five seats on the Austin ISD school board are up for election. These are the candidates. (KUT)
This fall’s election is poised to have a significant impact on Austin ISD’s future. There is a $2.44 billion bond package on the ballot, which is the largest in district history. If voters approve the bond, the district will be able to rebuild and renovate schools, fix critical infrastructure issues, improve athletic facilities and invest in technology.
On top of the bond, voters will decide five of the nine seats on AISD’s Board of Trustees. The election comes at a crucial time for the district, because the school board plans to hire a permanent superintendent next year.
David DeMatthews, an associate professor at UT Austin’s College of Education, said one of the most important responsibilities school board members have is hiring and evaluating a superintendent. He said leadership is key right now as school districts face teacher shortages and the ongoing impacts of the pandemic… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Reports show Watson spending far ahead of the pack (Austin Monitor)
Mayoral candidate Kirk Watson, who wishes to claim the center seat again, has raised and spent far more money than any other candidate in his race – or any of the others up for election next week.
Watson, a former mayor and former senator, reported that he had spent more than $830,000 while receiving more than $113,000 in contributions during this reporting period. According to his report, he still had more than $113,000 in his campaign account last week. Watson also reported expenditures on his behalf by the Austin Firefighters Public Safety Fund.
Celia Israel, on the other hand, reported spending a little more than $89,000 after raising more than $58,000 during the month of October. Israel’s report indicates that she had a little more than $38,000 in the bank at the end of last week… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
CMT Music Awards will be held at Austin's Moody Center in April 2023 (Austin American-Statesman)
After 21 years in Nashville, the CMT Music Awards are moving to Austin next year. The show, which airs live on CBS, is set for April 2 at the Moody Center, with country star Kelsea Ballerini returning as host for the third year and a lineup of performers including Carrie Underwood.
The announcement was made Wednesday evening at the Moody Center a half-hour into Underwood's concert on her current "Denim & Rhinestones" tour. Ballerini, a surprise guest, came onstage at 9:15 p.m. and presented Underwood with a boxing-championship-style belt of denim and rhinestones… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Meta backs out of plan to occupy 589K sf in Austin (The Real Deal)
As Meta moves to shrink its office footprint, the Facebook parent is backing out of a plan to fill a new building in downtown Austin.
The tech giant plans to sublease rather than occupy the 589,000 square feet it leased at Lincoln Property Company’s Sixth and Guadalupe, The Real Deal has learned… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Participants receive first payments from Austin’s guaranteed income program (KXAN)
The people chosen to participate in Austin’s guaranteed income pilot program received their first payments in September, according to a newly-released memo from the city.
The Austin City Council approved $1.1 million to fund the program in May. These taxpayer funds will give $1,000 a month to 85 families or individuals facing extreme financial hardship. Now city leaders are sharing how the effort is progressing six months later. At least 81 of those who received the money participated in a survey, which shed light on their housing and economic circumstances.
The survey results showed slightly more than 30% of the pilot program’s participants have a household income below $10,000, while almost 52% said they made less than $15,000. Additionally, 64.2% said they received a public benefit of some kind, including medical assistance, SNAP benefits and housing support… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Austin community coalition says it has raised 90% of $515M goal to combat homelessness (KVUE)
FindingHomeATX, a private and public coalition group, said it has raised 90% of its $515 million goal needed to house 3,000 people experiencing homelessness.
The coalition said its goal will add new affordable housing units and build a "more advanced homelessness response system."
Funding from partners will help the coalition achieve its housing goal, with 1,300 people housed in newly-developed units and 1,700 people placed in existing rental units across Austin, according to a release. FindingHomeATX said it has already contributed to the creation of 1,400 new units in 20 projects in the development process, with 625 people already housed… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Buda Economic Development Corporation names Jennifer Storm as new executive director (Community Impact)
The Buda Economic Development Corporation named Jennifer Storm as its new executive director Oct. 28. Storm previously served as chair of the EDC board of directors and will assume her new role in January 2023.
“We are ecstatic that Jennifer has decided to serve the organization as a versatile leader,” Council Member Evan Ture said in a statement. “Not only does she bring a litany of pertinent talents and experience to the executive director position, but she is also already familiar with the interworking of the BEDC and business relationships in Buda, so she will hit the ground running.”
Storm will be responsible for day-to-day operations, building strategic relationships, managing incentive programs and more. Since 2008, she has worked to support associations, such as the Texas Retailers Association, the Texas Federation of Drug Stores, the Texas Association of Regional Councils and the South Texas Chapter of the Associated General Contractors in roles from association manager to executive director and more… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
[TEXAS]
Texas could get $276 million from opioid settlement with CVS Pharmacy (Texas Tribune)
Texas has joined a multibillion-dollar, multistate opioid settlement with CVS Pharmacy — the latest development in numerous lawsuits regarding the roles of manufacturers, distributors and consultants in the opioid crisis.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced Wednesday that the state is signing on to a $5 billion settlement with the retail giant, which was accused of inadequately monitoring opioid prescriptions. If other state, municipal and tribal governments accept, Texas could receive more than $276 million… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Collapse in Dallas-Fort Worth home sales worse than Great Recession (Dallas Business Journal)
The downturn in home sales in Dallas-Fort Worth exceeds the collapse in sales experienced during the worst of the Great Recession, according to just-released figures from North Texas Real Estate Information Services.
Closed home sales in October were down 37% in Dallas and Collin counties and 32% in Tarrant County compared to the same time last year, according to the latest figures from NTREIS based on Multiple Listing Services data.
During the worst impact of the Great Recession on North Texas’ housing market, from 2008 to 2009, closed sales dropped 23% in Dallas County, 26% in Tarrant County and 10% in Collin County year over year, from peak to trough… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
New Braunfels City Council approves first reading on construction fee increase (San Antonio Business Journal)
The New Braunfels City Council has approved a first reading of an amendment to a section of the city code that could potentially raise costs on new home construction and lead to higher home prices.
The amendment in question relates to impact fees, which are levied on developers to help offset the city's cost of extending water and sewer infrastructure to new developments.
Currently, impact fees cost developers $7,989 for water and $3,251 for wastewater infrastructure per residential unit, for a total $11,240. The new fees would bring water impact fees to $19,448 and wastewater impact fees to $6,244, bringing them to a combined cost of $25,692 per unit.
Should the new fee structure be imposed to the some 17,000 eligible lots in New Braunfels, the combined cost to developers would rise to about $460 million from $202 million based on the current fee structure… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
[NATION]
4 Senate races that could provide the key to control (NPR)
The fight for the Senate couldn't be tighter. The chamber is 50-50 and the top Senate contests are as close as they can get. Republicans need to net one pickup to take control.
As the election nears, it is coming down to only half a dozen seats or less with really four that could provide the key — Pennsylvania, Georgia, Nevada and Arizona.
Pennsylvania is so important to Democrats, because if Lt. Gov. John Fetterman can hold on against celebrity TV doctor Mehmet Oz, then Republicans would need to win two of three of Georgia, Nevada and Arizona… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Cherokees ask U.S. to make good on a 187-year-old promise, for a start (New York Times)
In 1835, U.S. officials traveled to the Cherokee Nation’s capital in Georgia to sign a treaty forcing the Cherokees off their lands in the American South, opening them to white settlers. The Treaty of New Echota sent thousands on a death march to new lands in Oklahoma.
The Cherokees were forced at gunpoint to honor the treaty, which stipulated that the Nation would be entitled to a nonvoting seat in the House of Representatives. But Congress reneged on that promise. Now, amid a growing movement across Indian Country for greater representation and sovereignty, the Cherokees are pushing to seat that delegate, 187 years later.
“For nearly two centuries, Congress has failed to honor that promise,” Chuck Hoskin Jr., principal chief of the Cherokee Nation, said in a recent interview in the Cherokee capital of Tahlequah, in eastern Oklahoma. “It’s time to insist the United States keep its word.”
The Cherokees and other tribal nations have made significant gains in recent decades, plowing income from sources like casino gambling into hospitals, meat-processing plants and lobbyists in Washington. At the same time, though, those tribes are seeing new threats to their efforts to govern themselves… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
[HEARINGS/MEETINGS]
[BG PODCAST]
Episode 168: Market Talk - Lobbying in Philadelphia with Mustafa Rashed of Bellevue Strategies
Today's episode (168) features a discussion on entrepreneurship and lobbying with Mustafa Rashed, Founder and President, of Philadelphia-based Bellevue Strategies.
He and Bingham Group CEO A.J. also discuss current municipal issues in the Philadelphia market.
Enjoyed this episode? Please like, share, and comment!