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Tag Archives: Austin City Council Public Safety Committee

City identifies Downtown Community Court east side location

After considering the available options, the city is ready to make the first move to relocate the Downtown Austin Community Court across Interstate 35 into a planned three-story building at 1719 E. Second St. The city intends to bring a…

Public Safety Committee examines the use of police time, asks for more data

As the city of Austin looks into redefining the duties of its police department, staffers are reaching out to community members to hear feedback about what the next iteration of the Austin Police Department could look like. Simultaneously, city staff are…

Integral Care set to address most mental health emergency calls without involving APD

Last week, City Council approved an additional $1.3 million for the Integral Care-EMCOT program next fiscal year, increasing the budget for the Expanded Mobile Crisis Outreach Team by about 75 percent. With those extra dollars, Integral Care, the mental health…

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…

Report recommends major changes to 911 procedures

Last week, City Council’s Public Safety Committee heard a presentation on a report from AH Datalytics, paid for by the Austin Justice Coalition, assessing the Austin Police Department’s 911 calls for service. Overall, the report asserts that many of the calls…

Public Safety budget discussion wrestles with demands to defund APD

Chief Financial Officer Ed Van Eenoo gave the Public Safety Committee a public safety budget overview at its meeting on Monday. Much of the discussion centered around the Austin Police Department budget. Community members and some City Council members have…

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Public Safety Committee to hear testimony on changes to police tactics

City Council’s newly revived Public Safety Committee convenes today at 2 p.m. to discuss the Austin Police Department’s General Orders and tactics. It’ll be a different kind of committee meeting: Rather than lead the discussion, committee members will listen to…

City to give group auditing APD training materials more time

The next Austin Police Department cadet class is on hold indefinitely, City Manager Spencer Cronk reiterated Thursday during the Public Safety Committee meeting. The department will not proceed with the new cadet class, which it had hoped to begin in…

APD survey shows police officers are proud but frustrated

As the Public Safety Commission came back to a new year on Jan. 6, members began with a lengthy discussion about the state of the Austin police force. After receiving a presentation from the department highlighting the personal, professional and…

Public Safety Commission dives into building material safety

Fire unquestionably presents a risk to public safety. However, a less visible risk associated with a burning building are the toxic chemicals used in building materials that can damage the health of first responders and homeowners who inhale the fumes…

Should hotel taxes and festival fees contribute to public safety coffers?

Austin’s festivals are most certainly a tourist attraction. But does that mean the public safety costs associated with those events should be financed through money earmarked for arts and tourism? With Council’s vote to raise the Hotel Occupancy Tax by…

Public Safety Commission endorses police union contract

Rejecting the pleas of police accountability activists, the Public Safety Commission voted Monday night to recommend the approval of the proposed new union contract between the city of Austin and the Austin Police Association. Both Police Chief Brian Manley and…

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