Amidst an aggressive push from activists to reduce arrests and incarceration, Travis County leaders highlighted two important initiatives Tuesday as evidence that the county is a leader in progressive criminal justice policy. First, the Travis County Commissioners Court quickly approved a request from Sheriff Sally Hernandez to close down four buildings at the Travis County […]
Jack Craver
Posted inPremium Types
TipSheet: Travis County, 2.11.20
The Travis County Commissioners Court meets every Tuesday at 9 a.m. To help our readers stay informed, each week we offer a selection of interesting items from the voting session agenda. The entire agenda is available at the Travis County website. 16. Consider and take appropriate action on a request from the Travis County Sheriff’s […]
Posted inTravis County
Babies, immigrants fueling Travis County growth
Contrary to public perception, Travis County’s population would be booming even without newcomers from California. That was one of the main takeaways from a presentation to the Travis County Commissioners Court on the most recent population data from the American Community Survey. In 2018, the most recent year for which figures are available, the population […]
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TipSheet: Travis County, 2.4.20
The Travis County Commissioners Court meets every Tuesday at 9 a.m. To help our readers stay informed, each week we offer a selection of interesting items from the voting session agenda. The entire agenda is available at the Travis County website. 9. Receive an update on the FY 2019 Community Impact Report. (Commissioners Shea & […]
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TipSheet: Travis County, 1.28.20
The Travis County Commissioners Court meets every Tuesday at 9 a.m. To help our readers stay informed, each week we offer a selection of interesting items from the voting session agenda. The entire agenda is available at the Travis County website. Today will be an unusual one for the Commissioners Court. The commissioners expect to […]
Posted inTravis County
New nonprofit seeks to boost census participation
With six weeks until the 2020 census kicks off, the local effort to boost participation hopes to raise additional money for outreach efforts. Census Program Manager John Lawler, who is overseeing the Austin/Travis County Complete Count Committee, which both the city and county chipped in $200,000 to fund, told the Travis County Commissioners Court on […]
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TipSheet: Travis County, 1.21.20
The Travis County Commissioners Court meets every Tuesday at 9 a.m. To help our readers stay informed, each week we offer a selection of interesting items from the voting session agenda. The entire agenda is available at the Travis County website. 16. Consider and take appropriate action to: A. Receive update on recruitment for Intergovernmental […]
Posted inBudget
Travis County confronts tricky process in reforming pay for law enforcement
Travis County leaders are determined to reform the pay scale for the county’s 1,450 public safety employees, but they’re not quite sure how to do it. The county has long had separate pay scales for civilian employees and law enforcement workers, including sheriff’s deputies, park rangers, corrections officers and constable officers. Those on the Travis […]
Posted inTransit
County puts more money into Manor ride-hailing program
In response to higher-than-expected ridership, Travis County is putting more money into a six-month-old ride-hailing program in Manor. The Commissioners Court voted Tuesday to authorize up to $25,000 to help purchase a third bus for the Manor Pickup service, which is funded jointly by the county, Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the Capital Area Rural […]
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TipSheet: Travis County, 1.14.20
The Travis County Commissioners Court meets every Tuesday at 9 a.m. To help our readers stay informed, each week we offer a selection of interesting items from the voting session agenda. The entire agenda is available at the Travis County website. 11. Receive update on “The Steep Costs of Criminal Justice Fees and Fines” report […]
Posted inWater
Travis County takes action to eliminate ‘water colonias’
While it’s accurately referred to as an urban county, roughly half of Travis County does not fall within the limits of any municipality. The population in these rural, unincorporated areas is growing rapidly, driven in part by a lack of affordable housing in urban areas, particularly within the city of Austin. In some cases, groups […]
Posted inAustin
County sets up new committee to put pressure on city leaders over Expo Center
Travis County leaders want to put pressure on the city of Austin to help them rebuild the aging exposition center. On Tuesday the Commissioners Court voted unanimously to set up a nine-member committee tasked with “engaging and educating Travis County residents and community leaders about the value of redeveloping” the facility on Decker Lane. Rob […]