#NEWS // BG Reads | January 30, 2023
[AUSTIN METRO]
CapMetro set to choose Dottie Watkins as new president and CEO (KUT)
A bus driver who rose through the ranks of Capital Metro over three decades is now poised to take the top job at the transit agency.
Dorothy "Dottie" Watkins started driving buses in 1994 when she was 19 years old. Now 48, Watkins has served as interim president and CEO of CapMetro since May. On Monday, the agency's board of directors is?scheduled to vote?on making the appointment permanent.
Watkins — an Austin native and University of Texas graduate — earned praise from the president of the union representing some 1,600 front-line transit employees who work for CapMetro contractors MV Transportation, BMR Transport and MTM Transit.
"She's homegrown, somebody who started out as a [bus] operator," said Brent Payne, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1091. "I think she's the most experienced person dealing with our situations."
Watkins' selection as the top pick follows a search by the executive recruiting firm Krauthamer and Associates. The Maryland-based company was hired by CapMetro in July for a two-year $400,000?contract?to provide ongoing headhunting services…?(LINK TO FULL STORY)
ABOR disputes Zillow's 'ice cold' assessment of Austin housing (Austin Business Journal)
Around the same time the Austin Board of Realtors said the local housing market?was starting to "rebalance,"?Zillow Group Inc. released a much harsher outlook: the Austin market is now "ice cold."
The characterization was in Zillow's (Nasdaq: ZG)?December 2022 market report, published Jan. 19.
"Year over year comparisons are helpful in understanding where we were and where we are now in terms of raw numbers, but comparing our market to the past two years of anomaly conditions isn't a true comparison," ABOR CEO?Emily Chenevert?told KXAN News. "To write off Austin as an ice cold market is not painting an accurate picture of the state of our market and misrepresents the facts on the ground that there is still incredibly high demand, not enough inventory and a looming affordability crisis."…?(LINK TO FULL STORY)
Affordability calculator helps to demystify financing realities for low-income units (Austin Monitor)
The complicated math involved in planning and financing affordable housing projects in Austin has become a little easier, thanks to a first-ever affordability calculator intended to help political leaders and housing advocates better research how developments are assembled.
The calculator, which is free and?available here, was created in a partnership between education nonprofit HousingWorks Austin and Urban Land Institute Austin. Using basic inputs in an online spreadsheet, it allows users to adjust variables such as number of units, affordability levels and subsidy amounts to determine how feasible a project is based on real estate trends in the ZIP code where it is located…?(LINK TO FULL STORY)
[TEXAS]
San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg files for fourth — and final — term (San Antonio Express News)
Mayor Ron Nirenberg has filed to campaign for a fourth — and final — term. “We’re going to protect our families, keep more money in your pockets, and get our neighbors into great jobs through Ready to Work,” he posted on Twitter Thursday evening. Though the race for mayor already has drawn challengers — Christopher Longoria, Ray Adam Basaldua and Diana Flores Uriegas — none appear to be a serious threat to Nirenberg, who has over $330,000 headed into the campaign season. The mayor’s office and all 10 city council seats are up for grabs every two years in San Antonio. The council is limited to four terms. Candidate filing for the May 6 election ends Feb. 17.
The last few months on council have been marked by upheaval, with council taking the rare vote of no confidence for two of their members in a one-week span in November: District 1 Councilman Mario Bravo for violating city anti-harassment and anti-violence standards when he berated District 7 Councilwoman Ana Sandoval in September, and District 10 Councilman Clayton Perry for his alleged involvement in an alleged drunken driving incident. The Northeast Side councilman is facing charges of driving while intoxicated and fleeing the scene of an accident, both Class B misdemeanors. Sandoval announced her resignation Jan. 17, effective Sunday, leaving an open seat on the dais until early March, when council will appoint an interim replacement for the remainder of her term. Unlike previous elections, the race for mayor will likely be an afterthought for most voters who will be focused on the more competitive district seats…?(LINK TO FULL STORY)
The rise and fall — and rise again? — of bitcoin mining in Texas (San Antonio Express News)
Cryptocurrency miners began flocking to Texas in the past five years, drawn by the state’s low energy costs and relaxed regulations. As they began setting up shop, lawmakers and local officials were touting the boom as an economic lifeline for the state’s struggling rural communities where many landed. Nearly 30 crypto mines set up shop in Texas, big data centers that consume tremendous amounts of energy to run banks of computers humming away to mine new bitcoins. But now, many — if not most — are struggling to stay afloat amid the plummeting value of the commodity they create and soaring electricity costs.
“Bitcoin miners are operating under the very slimmest of margins right now,” said Lee Bratcher — president of the nonprofit Texas Blockchain Council. “There are not many bitcoin miners that are making profits similar to what we would have seen. The bitcoin mining industry, as a whole, is tightening the belt.” That’s a big turnaround from 2021, when bitcoin’s value peaked at $68,000 and miners collectively earned more than $60 million a day, according to data from Blockchain.com. By the end of 2022, the value had plummeted to less than $17,000 — and miners’ take was $10 million a day. As a result, mining companies that borrowed millions to set up during the bull run now are facing uncertain futures. Several have gone bankrupt. Others are trying to sell off assets. Some have started returning equipment to bankers who financed it. Shares in Riot Platforms Inc., which operates the state’s largest bitcoin mine northeast of Austin, are down about 60 percent from this time last year. They closed Thursday at $6.13. Still, many in the crypto mining industry and those who support it remain optimistic it can weather the downturn, saying that it provides a side benefit for Texas as a means of managing the state’s electrical grid, which can also be an occasional source of substantial revenue for the mining companies…?(LINK TO FULL STORY)
Harris County report highlights struggles, language barriers for home-based child care providers (Houston Chronicle)
As families struggle to access affordable child care, a recent report commissioned by Harris County officials found that many home-based child care providers are foregoing state support even as they struggle to meet basic needs. The report, introduced earlier this month at a commissioner's court meeting, found that many home providers are missing out on state subsidy and quality rating programs because of language barriers, burdensome enrollment processes and lack of awareness surrounding the programs. Only a quarter of home-based child care providers in Harris County participate in the Texas Workforce Commission child care subsidy program, according to the report. Meanwhile, nearly two-thirds of child care centers participate in the program, which allows them to serve families receiving financial aid from the state.
"We see home based providers participate at a lower level," said Sara Mickelson, director of early childhood initiatives at Harris County's administration office. "It's not because the need is less, it's because the supports are less tailored and less accessible to home-based providers." By and large, children in the state's subsidized child care program are enrolled in child care centers that serve larger numbers of children in more formal settings, according to the Texas Workforce Commission. Their parents can choose from participating home-based or center-based child care options, although there are far fewer home-based providers who accept children on subsidy, according to the agency. Across the state, the number of registered child care homes participating in the state subsidy program has dropped 45% since 2015, according to the state agency. The drop correlates with an overall decline in the number of home-based providers in Texas…?(LINK TO FULL STORY)
Ex-legislator tests lobbying revolving door law by repping big energy companies (Dallas Morning News)
A former Texas representative is testing a state law meant to crack down on the revolving door between the Legislature and lobbying firms. Chris Paddie, a Republican who represented parts of far East Texas for a decade, chaired one of a House’s powerful committee that held hearings to demand answers from energy firms after 2021?s deadly winter storm. Now, he has registered to lobby for a handful of the same power companies he was previously tasked with scrutinizing. Paddie has 11 clients, including Irving-based firms Vistra Corp. and TXU Energy, which have pledged to pay him up to $622,000 to advance their interests this session. Last month, he filed his first spending report, confirming he is now officially lobbying on behalf of his clients. His activities come despite a law that bans state legislators from becoming lobbyists within two years of using their own campaign cash to donate to other politicians.
Paddie declined to be interviewed by The Dallas Morning News, instead choosing to reissue a statement from last year defending his lobbying. His last expenditure from his campaign account was less than a year ago but, after an accounting maneuver, says he’s in the clear to start lobbying immediately. Questions about the law’s constitutionality were raised last year at the Texas Ethics Commission, the agency charged with enforcing it. How Paddie fares this session could test the strength of what’s arguably the toughest lobbying restriction enacted here in the last decade, and will either inspire or discourage similar behavior. But Paddie also increasingly finds himself in the crosshairs of one of the state’s most powerful men. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who criticized Paddie’s stewardship of energy legislation last session, has banned the former legislator from his office after he took on big energy companies like Vistra as his clients. He did not answer questions about whether he thinks Paddie is violating lobbying laws. “His actions last session on ERCOT grid failures were disingenuous & unprofessional, some say underhanded,” Patrick tweeted in December. “Vistra leadership & shareholders should know he’s lost his credibility & not welcome in my office.”…?(LINK TO FULL STORY)
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick takes aim at two Republicans who crossed him (Texas Tribune)
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s pugnacious leadership style was on display this month as he took public aim at two fellow Republicans who crossed him, sending an early message in this year’s legislative session that anyone — friend or foe — who gets in his way will face his wrath.
State Rep. Steve Toth, a fellow conservative from The Woodlands, learned that lesson earlier this month when Patrick unleashed a spirited attack against him in the form of multiple press releases from his campaign that were sent to news organizations and posted on social media. Patrick criticized Toth over comments he reportedly made suggesting the Senate shared blame for the Legislature’s failure to pass a bill that would have banned gender-transitioning medical care and surgery for children. Patrick denounced Toth as a “fraud” who was using misdirection and revisionist history to cast blame on the Senate, which Patrick presides over.
A few days later, Patrick ratcheted up an older feud when he took to Twitter and essentially demanded that several companies and organizations drop former state Rep. Chris Paddie as their lobbyist. Patrick has had a vendetta against the Marshall Republican since 2021, when the Senate clashed with the House over the policy response to the power grid failure. At the time, Paddie chaired the powerful House State Affairs Committee, which was a major clearinghouse for grid reforms…?(LINK TO FULL STORY)
Southwest Airlines leaders defend tech, schedules and staffing after holiday meltdown (Dallas Morning News)
Southwest Airlines’ top executives say the company’s technology, staffing and scheduling plans didn’t fail in late December, even after a holiday meltdown in which 16,700 flights were canceled and the carrier forced the shutdown of two-thirds of its operations. Facing a Department of Transportation inquiry for “unrealistic scheduling of flights” and a slowdown in bookings to start the year, Southwest CEO Bob Jordan defended the company’s maligned technology systems and operating plans. He also tried to assure travelers that a breakdown of the magnitude that happened in December won’t “ever happen again.” “Based on what we know at this point, our processes and technology generally worked as designed,” Jordan said during the company’s year-end financial results call Thursday in which Dallas-based Southwest announced a $220 million loss for the last three months of 2022.
That includes an $800 million hit from the operational meltdown and another $300 million to $350 million revenue loss from fewer bookings in January and February “associated with the operational disruptions in December 2022.” Southwest also refused to back down on calls to reduce the number of flights to start 2023 while it steadies its operational issues, saying it will hold with plans to fly about 10% more in the first quarter than it did a year ago. While Southwest’s cancellation problems have settled since December, Southwest is still outpacing other carriers, said Cowen analyst Helane Becker. “We are surprised to see that capacity growth expectations have not changed significantly for FY23 or the March quarter,” Becker wrote in a note to investors. “This could be a cause for future concern given the severe operational issues previously experienced in their network over the holiday season and in the months prior.” Southwest has been under pressure to deliver solutions to the problems behind December’s cancellation event in which its crew rescheduling software was unable to keep up with a large number of flight cancellations caused by a winter storm that hit important airports in Denver and Chicago…?(LINK TO FULL STORY)
[NATION]
领英推荐
Tyre Nichols case revives calls for change in police culture (Associated Press)
An unarmed Black man dies after a videotaped beating by police. The officers involved are fired. After a thorough review of the evidence, criminal charges are swiftly filed against the offending officers.
Investigation, accountability and charges.
This is often the most Black citizens can hope for as the deaths continue. Nationwide, police have killed roughly three people per day consistently?since 2020, according to academics and advocates for police reform who track such deaths.
Tyre Nichols’?fatal encounter with police officers in Memphis, Tennessee, recorded in?video made public Friday night, is a glaring reminder that efforts to reform policing have failed to prevent more flashpoints in an intractable epidemic of brutality…?(LINK TO FULL STORY)
California Has More Than 100 Gun Laws. Why Don’t They Stop More Mass Shootings? (Wall Street Journal)
California bans guns for domestic violence offenders. It bans them for people deemed a danger to others or themselves. There is a ban on large-capacity magazines, and a ban on noise-muffling silencers. Semiautomatic guns of the sort colloquially known as “assault weapons” are, famously, banned.
More than 100 gun laws —?the most of any state?— are on the books in California. They have saved lives, policymakers say: Californians have among the?lowest rates of gun death in the United States.
Yet this month, those laws failed to stop the massacres of at least 19 people in back-to-back mass shootings. The tragedies in Monterey Park and Half Moon Bay have confounded Americans who regard California as a best-case bastion of gun safety in a nation awash with firearms.
Inside the state, gun rights proponents say the shootings show that California’s strategy is a failure. Gun safety groups, meanwhile, have already begun mobilizing for more laws and better enforcement. As details emerge in the investigations, numerous shortcomings have been highlighted, even with California’s voluminous law…?(LINK TO FULL STORY)
[MEETINGS/HEARINGS NEXT WEEK]
MONDAY, January 30
WEDNESDAY, February 1
TUESDAY, February 7
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9
[BG PODCAST]
Bingham Group Associate Hannah Garcia and CEO A.J. review the week in Austin politics including:
The Austin Councils first full meeting of 2023 (held on 1.26):?bit.ly/3Y2dFrR?; and
Austin Parks and Recreation Board's discussion on the Zilker Park Vision Plan:?bit.ly/3wyCrUO
Episode 182
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Episode 182
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