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Stories by Michael Kanin

Pressley campaign may have accepted illegal contributions

Place 2 City Council candidate Laura Pressley listed seven business entities and an out-of-state political action committee on her 30-day campaign finance election filing. Though a handful of the entities may qualify as legal contributors, at least two, U.S. Foods…

LCRA board set to consider changes to key policies, mission statement

The board of the Lower Colorado River Authority is set to approve changes to three of its key agency policies. If voted in, the policies affected include the Telecommunications policy, the Fuel and Energy policy, and the organization’s Mission Statement.…

Metered parking study reveals loss of $500,000 in additional revenue

According to a report from the Austin Transportation Department report, the extended parking meter hours approved by the City Council in August have been generally successful. However, the report also indicates that the city lost about $500,000 in additional revenue…

Council approves first charter amendment question on staff policies

In November, voters will have the chance to approve a change to the City Charter that would give the City Council the authority to hire and fire their own staff. If the measure succeeds, the offices of the city clerk,…

Leffingwell raises twice as much as opponent Brigid Shea

There were no huge surprises as the candidates for seats on the Austin City Council turned in their 30-day fundraising reports yesterday. Mayor Lee Leffingwell was out in front of all candidates with nearly $150,000 in contributions collected since January.…

Shea denies work with Austin Youth Hostel was lobbying

According to financial documents filed with the Austin City Clerk’s office as part of election law requirements, Austin mayoral candidate Brigid Shea earned between $10,000 and $20,000 for contract work that she did last year for American Youth Hostels, the…

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Questions linger over Travis County’s F1 road contributions

As fellow Travis County court members voted to take another step yesterday toward committing county funds for road projects needed by Austin’s Formula 1, Pct. 2 Commissioner Sarah Eckhardt continued to raise questions about the financial stability of the team…

Travis County Apple tax rebate could add up to 80 percent

The Travis County Commissioners Court is prepared to offer Apple, Inc. up to 15 extra percentage points in tax rebates if the firm can prove that it’s hired a to-be-determined specific number of low income employees for its new Americas…

Council postpones approval of Green Water Treatment site sale

Members of the City Council remain concerned about a host of details associated with the sale of the site of the city’s former Green Water Treatment Plant. As a result, they’ve pushed a vote on the agreement that will govern…

Formula 1 group wants Travis County to pay for road costs

Despite a promise to chip in for a portion of the road construction costs associated with the expected traffic impact of their Formula 1 event, officials with the Circuit of the Americas racetrack have asked Travis County for an economic…

Despite questions, Council members consider ‘decoupling’ for AE rates

Austin City Council members will consider employing an alternate approach to ratemaking as part of their deliberations about a potential Austin Energy rate hike. The tactic, known as “decoupling,” might allow the utility the flexibility to correct for revenue shortfalls…

Austin Water Utility division manager under investigation

An Austin Water Utility employee has been placed on administrative leave in the wake of accusations that he may have used his position to influence what was described in an email as a “personal matter.” In a March 1 email,…

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