Tag Archives: Public Safety Commission
Public Safety Commission recommends budget requests – with one exception
The Public Safety Commission “wholeheartedly” recommended City Council adopt all budget items requested by Austin’s police, fire and EMS departments for Fiscal Year 2022 – with the exception of money for a new police helicopter. The budgets await review by…
Budget • By Jonathan Lee • Apr 6, 2021
Racial inequity at APD front and center at Public Safety Commission
Public Safety commissioners took a closer look at racial issues in the Austin Police Department, diving into a recent report on the subject at their Monday meeting. A survey of over 1,000 APD officers and staff about their attitudes toward…
Police • By Jonathan Lee • Feb 2, 2021
Committee reviews EMS response times
Jasper Brown, chief of staff for Travis County Emergency Medical Services, spoke before the Public Safety Commission on Jan. 4 to report the quarterly incident response times for the county. The goal response time for all priority-one calls – a…
EMS • By Seth Smalley • Jan 11, 2021
Commission moves to bring transgender voices to public safety table
A discussion on providing support to victims of anti-transgender violence quickly gravitated toward the work of the city’s “reimagining public safety” initiative at this week’s meeting of the Public Safety Commission. In line with repeated requests from local LGBTQ community…
Public Safety • By Ryan Thornton • Dec 10, 2020
Police department sees trend in violent crime uptick
Breaking from typical practice, the Austin Police Department presented the Public Safety Commission with a monthly crime report for the month of October as part of its routine quarterly update on Monday afternoon. While department representatives said the crime report…
Police • By Ryan Thornton • Dec 8, 2020
Assistant chief talks APD headquarters
The movement for racial justice combined with the Covid-19 pandemic may be reshaping the future of the Austin Police Department and the use of the department’s headquarters at 715 E. Eighth St. While the conversation about reimagining the headquarters grew…
Police • By Ryan Thornton • Oct 6, 2020
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Public Safety Commission considers a new vision for APD headquarters
A conversation on the future of the Austin Police Department headquarters is following on the heels of City Council’s reformulation of Austin’s police budget last month. On Sept. 9, the Public Safety Commission articulated a new vision for the current…
Police • By Jessi Devenyns • Sep 10, 2020
Public Safety Commission considers how to restructure its partnership with Council
The Public Safety Commission is working with City Council Member Jimmy Flannigan to offload some of its oversight duties in favor of becoming more of an advisory body. “We are particularly ill-suited for oversight,” Commissioner Rebecca Webber said at the…
City Hall • By Jessi Devenyns • Aug 7, 2020
SAFE Alliance reports escalating domestic violence is 'another public health pandemic'
Between April and June, the SAFE Alliance recorded a 25 percent increase in calls to its 24/7 SAFEline compared to the same time period in 2019. This spike in calls coincides with a reduction in visits from survivors of sexual…
Public Safety • By Jessi Devenyns • Aug 4, 2020
Public Safety Commission gives EMS a boost, criticizes APD
On Monday the city’s Public Safety Commission unanimously recommended an additional $2.3 million for Austin-Travis County EMS to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic, while rejecting almost every request from the police department for additional funding. The commission also voted to…
Public Safety • By Jo Clifton • May 19, 2020
Public Safety Commission postpones budget recommendation, calls emergency meeting
Budget recommendations from boards and commissions are due to city departments at the end of May. However, the Public Safety Commission did not feel there was ample review time since its April meeting was canceled, so commissioners postponed their recommendation…
Police • By Jessi Devenyns • May 8, 2020
Public Safety Commission requests updates on APD’s response to Tatum investigation
At its May 4 meeting, the Public Safety Commission discussed the findings of a report by outside investigator Lisa Tatum that examined accusations of racism and homophobia leveled against APD’s top brass in recent months. While the report was unable…
