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- BG Reads 10.7.2024
BG Reads 10.7.2024
🗞️ Bingham Group Reads - October 7, 2024
Bingham Group Reads
Presented by:
www.binghamgp.com
October 7, 2024
Today's BG Reads include:
🟪 Today is the deadline to register to vote in the Nov. 5 election. Learn More Here.
🟪 Travis County opens center to help keep people experiencing a mental health crisis out of jail (KUT)
🟪 APD chief: Christopher Taylor conviction 'raises questions that must be addressed' (Austin American-Statesman)
🟪 Dan Patrick calls for CenterPoint CEO to resign and for audit of company operations (Houston Chronicle)
🟪 One possible housing crisis solution? A new kind of public housing for all income levels (NPR)
Read On!
>>> See also, Austin City Council Regular Meeting Agenda (10.10.2024) <<<
[BINGHAM GROUP]
🟪 Last week’s three-day trip to Williamson County, Tennessee—specifically the city of Franklin—for the Round Rock Chamber’s Inaugural InterCity Visit was a fantastic experience. Bingham Group was proud to participate as a sponsor and attendee.
Shout out to Chamber President & CEO Jordan Robinson and the entire team for their efforts.
In 2024, Bingham Group embraced a regional focus and is dedicated to fostering proactive relationships and strategic investments within the Austin Metro for 2025 and beyond.
🟪 Bingham Group represents and has represented a wide range of clients in the Austin Metro and Texas Capitol at the intersection of government and business.
🟪 Learn more about Bingham Group’s experience here, and review client testimonials here.
[CITY OF AUSTIN]
🟪 The Austin Council has five (5) regular meetings left in 2024
District 6 - TODAY @6:30PM to 8PM
Hope Presbyterian Church, 11512 Olson Drive, Austin 78750
All forums will be streamed live and archived on ATXN.
📺 2024 UT LBJ School / Austin PBS Mayoral Forum (9.26.2024)
📺 City Council Candidate Forum: District 2 - Video (9.26.2024)
📺 City Council Candidate Forum: District 4 - Video (9.19.2024)
📺 City Council Candidate Forum: District 7 - Video (9.5.2024)
📺 City Council Candidate Forum: District 10 - Video (9.30.2024)
[AUSTIN METRO NEWS]
Austin post offices drop out of plan to host voter registration drive Monday [Today] (KUT)
Local post offices across Travis County have reversed a plan that would have allowed residents to register to vote on-site Monday. That's the last day for Texans to register for the Nov. 5 election.
With the help of U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, the county was all set to partner with the Postal Service to register people through midnight — the deadline. But late last week, the Postal Service rescinded its offer, citing "security concerns," Doggett told KUT.
He said the Postal Service had agreed to allow voter registrars in certain post offices, but then "changed their minds" at the last second.
"Texas is well known as the state that puts up the most obstacles in the way of people voting, worst of all the 50 states," Doggett said. "And one of those requirements is an early deadline that you have to be registered to vote."… 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Travis County opens center to help keep people experiencing a mental health crisis out of jail (KUT)
Travis County is set to launch a program Monday intended to provide an alternative to jail or the emergency room for people experiencing mental illness.
The Crisis Care Diversion Pilot Program comes in response to a county-commissioned report that showed at least 40% of Travis County’s jail population has a mental health diagnosis, with many of those individuals repeatedly cycling through the justice system.
The county, the City of Austin, Central Health and Integral Care are collectively committing more than $23 million to the pilot phase of the program over the next three years... 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)
APD chief: Christopher Taylor conviction 'raises questions that must be addressed' (Austin American-Statesman)
Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis and top department brass began an urgent review Sunday to prevent future similar incidents that led to conviction of Officer Christopher Taylor in the shooting death of a mentally ill man who had a knife, according to an internal memo.
Davis said in a department-wide email that, "This decision deeply affects all of us. It is unsettling, and it raises questions that must be addressed by APD leadership. We must ensure that all APD officers feel confident and prepared to encounter unpredictable and dangerous situations."
"Together, we will develop a strategic plan to address this verdict," she added. "We value your input, and it will help direct us as we take action to prevent similar tragedies in the future."
Davis began her job as Austin's police chief about four weeks ago after arriving from the Cincinnati Police Department and has not yet been officially sworn in. She takes over a department has never seen one of its officers convicted for an on-duty fatal shooting… 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Austin FC fires coach Josh Wolff after club misses MLS playoffs for 2nd straight year (Austin American-Statesman)
Austin FC will enter its fifth season with a new coach.
The club fired Josh Wolff on Sunday after Saturday night's 2-1 loss to the Los Angeles Galaxy. Austin FC was eliminated from MLS playoff contention and will miss the postseason for the second straight year.
Wolff, 47, is the only coach in Austin FC history after being hired to lead the team when it was announced as an expansion franchise in 2019. It was his first head coaching job after stints as an assistant with D.C. United, Columbus and the U.S. men's national team.
He spent four seasons at the helm, finishing with a record of 45-60-30. In 2022, he led the Verde & Black to a second-place finish in the Western Conference and an appearance in the postseason conference final, but the club struggled the past two seasons… 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)
[TEXAS NEWS]
Dan Patrick calls for CenterPoint CEO to resign and for audit of company operations (Houston Chronicle)
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has joined calls for CenterPoint CEO Jason Wells to resign after the company botched its response to Hurricane Beryl, telling the utility’s regulators in front of Wells and more than a hundred Houstonians: “This is not the CenterPoint that I know from the past.” “I believe at this point, the board of CenterPoint should ask for Jason Wells’ resignation, or I believe he should submit it,” Patrick said.
“It’s not personal, Mr. Wells, we’ve had good discussions. But CenterPoint needs to have a strong leader who will have foresight, not look back in the rearview (and say), ‘Oh, we’ll fix it now.’”
Patrick told the five-member board of the Public Utility Commission of Texas he expects the state agency to audit CenterPoint’s business operations to ensure the utility is not overcharging customers. He said CenterPoint must continue with a required review of its rates, which cities and consumer advocacy groups say is their avenue to fight for a rate decrease.
The lieutenant governor also reiterated his stance that ratepayers shouldn’t pay for CenterPoint’s $800 million lease for massive generators – most of which have never been used. “If the PUC allows CenterPoint to get away and try to PR their way through this, that will show the commission is not accountable,” Patrick said.
The five commissioners were appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott. Two commissioners, Chairman Thomas Gleeson and Courtney Hjaltman, have yet to be confirmed by the Senate, which Patrick leads. Patrick’s comments kicked off the PUC’s Saturday meeting in Houston hosted as part of the agency’s ongoing investigation into CenterPoint's response to Beryl and the May derecho.
The commission is also taking online feedback through Wednesday and is supposed to deliver its final report with suggestions for new legislation to the governor and the legislature by Dec. 1. A record 2.26 million CenterPoint customers lost power after Beryl, many for multiple days. More than 40 deaths have been connected to Beryl, including 10 from overheating and one from carbon monoxide poisoning due to a generator… 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Facing a tight race, Ted Cruz goes quiet on abortion (Texas Tribune)
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz has been a loud anti-abortion crusader throughout his political career.
But as reproductive rights loom over the election season as a key issue for voters, Cruz is uncharacteristically quiet.
The Texas Republican, running for a third term in the Senate, is locked in a tight race against U.S. Sen. Colin Allred, D-Dallas, who has made restoring access to abortion and blaming Cruz for the toppling of Roe v. Wade central to his campaign.
This past week, Allred’s campaign, boosted by an influx of cash from Senate Democrats, began airing an ad on TV and streaming platforms across the state that blasted Cruz for his anti-abortion record… 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)
[US and World News]
One possible housing crisis solution? A new kind of public housing for all income levels (NPR)
Montgomery County is a wealthy community, and it’s long focused on housing for lower-earning families. Still, it hasn't built nearly enough to keep up with demand, and the gap is growing. So a few years ago, it took an unusual step: It created a $100 million revolving fund to dramatically ramp up construction.
That means it can develop and finance its own projects “instead of waiting for Congress to give us a whole bunch more money,” says Zachary Marks, the senior vice president for real estate with the county’s Housing Opportunities Commission. The public agency owns the controlling stake in these apartments... 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Nobel Prize in medicine honors American duo for their discovery of microRNA (Associated Press)
The Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine was awarded Monday to Americans Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun for their discovery of microRNA, tiny pieces of genetic material that alter how genes work at the cellular level and could lead to new ways of treating cancer.
The Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute, which awarded the prize, said the duo’s discovery is “proving to be fundamentally important” in understanding how organisms develop and function.
MicroRNA have opened up scientists’ approaches to treating diseases like cancer by helping to regulate how genes work at the cellular level, according to Dr. Claire Fletcher, a lecturer in molecular oncology at Imperial College London.
Fletcher said microRNA provide genetic instructions to tell cells to make new proteins and that there were two main areas where microRNA could be helpful: in developing drugs to treat diseases and in serving as biomarkers… 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)
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Learn more about Bingham Group’s experience here, and review client testimonials here.
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