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Tag Archives: Public Safety Commission

Public Safety joins parks board effort to study crime in city parks

At its special called meeting Tuesday, the Public Safety Commission unanimously voted to send one of its members to a Parks and Recreation Board working group studying crime in city parks and tasked with coming up with recommendations for City…

APD responds to concerns about LRAD crowd control measure

At the Public Safety Commission’s special called meeting Tuesday, the Austin Police Department answered follow-up questions about its ongoing use of long-range acoustic device, or LRAD, technology as a crowd control method amid concerns it could damage the hearing of…

Public Safety Commission discusses APD's protest response

The Public Safety Commission heard from the Austin Police Department Monday about how it responds to protests, including how it uses the LRAD, a powerful speaker that some fear could damage protesters’ and police officers’ hearing. APD Commander Corey Wroblewski…

AFD on the front lines of effort to combat overdose crisis

The Austin Fire Department spoke about its use of naloxone to combat drug overdoses in its quarterly report at the Public Safety Commission’s July 5 meeting. The department’s report coincides with City Council’s declaration of opioid overdose deaths as a…

Public Safety Commission dives into data transparency at APD

The Austin Police Department gave a presentation on its efforts to improve data transparency at the Public Safety Commission meeting on Tuesday. The presentation, given by APD Research and Planning Division Manager Jason Matson, focused on how the public can…

Public Safety Commission debates police department software

The merits of Lexipol software as a tool for the Austin Police Department was the focus of the Public Safety Commission’s Tuesday meeting. The crux of the debate between the commissioners and APD representatives was whether the software was worth the…

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Public safety departments present budget proposals to Public Safety Commission

Austin’s public safety departments – police, fire and EMS – are preparing for the annual budget process in July and August by forecasting budgets and drafting wish lists, all of which include additional funding to fill vacant positions. Meanwhile, a…

City, police union negotiate new labor contract after eventful five years

The city of Austin and the Austin Police Association met for their sixth day of negotiations Monday as they work toward a new labor contract. The city’s bargaining team proposed changes to the contract’s drug-testing and promotion provisions, citing recommendations from…

Commission urges city to raise EMS pay

The Public Safety Commission approved a broad resolution Monday calling on the city to raise its offer to the Austin EMS union to pay salaries comparable to what other EMS agencies are paying. EMS salaries should be equivalent to what…

Chacon pledges more diverse police force

Austin Police Chief Joseph Chacon told members of the Public Safety Commission Monday that his department has signed the 30 by 30 pledge, a national initiative that agrees to diversify the police force by 2030. APD is one of 40…

Commission recommends moving APD forensics lab

With little fanfare, Austin’s Public Safety Commission voted unanimously Monday to ask City Council to move the Forensic Science Bureau out of the Austin Police Department, making it independent both in structure and budget. Commissioners signaled last month that they…

City seeks to separate forensics lab from APD while complying with state law

It’s never too soon to talk about the 2023 city budget, especially as it relates to the Austin Police Department and the divisions that were separated out from under APD before the state Legislature penalized cities for thinking outside the…

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