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Austin Animal Services Office releases fiscal year statistical report and waives adoption fees

Due to consistent overcrowding, the Austin Animal Center has waived adoption fees for the foreseeable future. Numbers from the Austin Animal Services Office’s statistical report for Fiscal Year 2025 show a continued need for adoptions. Austin Animal Services Office released…

Council approves call for better coordination, planning among downtown projects

The city hopes to bring coordination to the many high-profile projects taking over downtown Austin in the coming years, with the city manager charged with determining the budgetary and planning resources needed throughout the district. On Thursday, City Council approved…

Austin ISD announces hiring freeze as budget deficit grows to $110 million

Lee esta historia en español Austin ISD will institute a districtwide hiring freeze on March 1 as the school district tries to claw its way out of a financial hole that has grown deeper since the 2024-25 budget was approved in…

How Trump’s federal funding freeze is beginning to affect Austin

On Jan. 31, a U.S. district judge granted a temporary restraining order prohibiting the Trump administration from implementing a slew of executive orders that would freeze federal funding programs that allow access to health care, housing, education and other basic…

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Evaluation will resume this month on proposal to consolidate and eliminate some boards and commissions

Discussions about a proposal from Council Member Ryan Alter to revamp the city’s citizen advisory boards are set to continue. In a City Council Message Board post on Wednesday, Alter provided an update on his December resolution (which Council unanimously…

Panelists explore AI's growing role in Austin's economy and policy space

With artificial intelligence quickly penetrating more facets of public and private life every day, policymakers and technology observers in Austin want the city to take advantage of the opportunities presented by AI while also safeguarding against the potential threats from…

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TipSheet: Austin City Council 2.13.25

Today, the Austin City Council will convene for a regular meeting with a manageable agenda that has some issues worth diving into. As usual, we’ve taken a minute to highlight those issues and, as usual, the whole agenda and backup…

Resource Management Commission recommends against proposed merge

Members of the Resource Management Commission voted unanimously to recommend against a resurrected proposal to merge the RMC with the Zero Waste Advisory Commission, or ZWAC, at a special called meeting on Feb. 3. In their resolution making the “no”…

Push to consolidate city boards and commissions draws criticism from UTC

The Urban Transportation Commission (UTC) voiced opposition to a City Council-backed proposal to consolidate several of Austin’s boards and commissions, including a plan to merge the Bicycle Advisory Council (BAC) and Pedestrian Advisory Council (PAC) into the UTC. The proposal,…

Study of arts, music grant programs finds gaps among award recipients

A new study examining how Austin distributes Hotel Occupancy Tax funds for arts and culture programs found that some groups and areas of the city are missing out on the progress being made in helping some historically underserved communities. The…

Council vows to make homelessness a top financial priority

City Council last week reaffirmed its commitment to tackling Austin’s homelessness crisis, pledging to use a recent data-driven report to guide housing and services investments over the next 10 years. City officials will work with Travis County, service providers and…

Arts Commission questions changes to Nexus’ $500K grant process

With the city’s next round of Nexus cultural arts grants open to applicants, members of the Arts Commission recently discussed how to improve the selection process for awardees so the program better serves emerging and disadvantaged artists. At last week’s…

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