BG Reads 5.31.2024

🗞️ Bingham Group Reads - May 31, 2024

May 31, 2024

Bingham Group Reads

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May 31, 2024

Today's BG Reads include:

🟣 Council adopts new two-minute rule for speakers (Austin Monitor)

🟣 Austin Council approves $1 billion for upgrades, expansion of 47-year-old wastewater plant (Austin Business Journal)

🟣 Texas runoff yields no clear winner among GOP’s warring factions, setting stage for power struggle (Texas Tribune)

🟣 Guilty: Trump becomes first former US president convicted of felony crimes (Associated Press)

Read On!

[BINGHAM GROUP]

[AUSTIN METRO NEWS]

Council adopts new two-minute rule for speakers (Austin Monitor)

Though City Council moved forward with new two-minute time limits, several speakers at Thursday’s Council meeting urged them to adopt a rule giving each speaker three minutes per item, the amount prescribed by Judge Madeleine Connor in April and Judge Daniella Deseta Lyttle in May. Prior to the court case brought by the Save Our Springs Alliance and its executive director, Bill Bunch, Mayor Kirk Watson had been allowing speakers only two minutes to address Council regardless of how many items they wished to discuss. With the court order making it clear that speakers should have three minutes per item, meetings have been proceeding a little more slowly.

While the ordinance Council adopted on Thursday states that the presiding officer will announce how much time each speaker is allotted at the beginning of each meeting, it clearly states that “at no time will the speaking time be reduced to less than two minutes per agenda item.” Council Member Alison Alter said she hoped that they would allow speakers addressing budget questions this summer to have three minutes per item… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Austin police knew 'less-lethal' rounds could seriously injure people. They used them anyway. (KUT)

Austin police officers shot scores of racial justice protesters in May 2020 with lead-pellet bags used to control crowds. Dozens of people were seriously injured by the so-called "less lethal" ammunition.

The city has paid out more than $20 million in civil lawsuits over the use of these rounds, and Austin Police vowed to stop using them.

Four years later, a summary of APD's internal investigation and a review of emails show the department had ignored earlier concerns about the ammunition.

While that now-published investigation sheds light on the department's oversight, attorneys representing injured protesters say the results of the investigation and the timing of its release shielded the city and APD leadership from being sued… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

City of Austin seeks community input on Police Chief search (CBS Austin)

The City of Austin is asking for input from community members regarding its search for its next Chief of Police.

Residents can share their thoughts through an online survey, accessible by clicking here. It is also available in Spanish

It asks questions relating to Austin’s safety, as well as important characteristics and priorities of the next chief… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Austin Council approves $1 billion for upgrades, expansion of 47-year-old wastewater plant (Austin Business Journal)

The Austin City Council on Thursday approved more than $1 billion in contracts to upgrade and expand the Walnut Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant in East Austin.

The plant is one of Austin Water's two major facilities that treat wastewater from the city's sanitary sewer collection system before sending it back into the Colorado River, according to the city of Austin.

The Walnut Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant has been expanded since it was first built in 1977 and is currently authorized to treat and discharge an average of 75 million gallons per day, according to a May 24 memo from Austin Water Director Shay Ralls Roalson to the mayor and City Council.

To stay in compliance with state regulations, the city is seeking to expand and upgrade the plant to treat 100 million gallons per day.

The expansion and other projects related to the plant come with a hefty price tag. Roalson in her memo called the projects, approved in several different contracts Thursday, a "generational investment" in the city's wastewater infrastructure… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

[TEXAS NEWS]

Texas runoff yields no clear winner among GOP’s warring factions, setting stage for power struggle (Texas Tribune)

On the morning of Tuesday’s runoff, new Texas GOP Chair Abraham George called for an end to the Republican civil war.

“Let’s all come together and row in the same direction,” he said, urging the warring factions of the party to “focus on defeating Democrats” once the primaries were over.

For George and his far-right allies, the call was contingent on GOP House Speaker Dade Phelan losing his runoff that evening, allowing Republicans to coalesce behind an even more conservative leader who would run the chamber by rejecting bipartisan compromise. Instead, Phelan eked out a win in his Southeast Texas district and vowed to keep control of the gavel next year — and the facade of unity dissolved.

Attorney General Ken Paxton, Phelan’s No. 1 enemy, quickly sent up a warning shot to Republicans in the House who might dare to support the speaker.

“My message to Austin is clear: to those considering supporting Dade Phelan as Speaker in 2025, ask your 15 colleagues who lost reelection how they feel about their decision now,” Paxton said in a statement. “You will not return if you vote for Dade Phelan again."… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

After bruising runoff, Dade Phelan pivots toward fight to remain Texas House speaker (Dallas Morning News)

Minutes after declaring victory in a bruising primary runoff, Dade Phelan confidently predicted that he would be reelected as the speaker of the Texas House in next year’s legislative session. “I’ve done it twice,” Phelan said as music blared at his election night watch party. “I’ll do it a third time.” Opposition quickly arose to Phelan’s quest for a third term leading the Texas House. Attorney General Ken Paxton issued a pointed threat to his fellow Republicans in the House shortly after Phelan celebrated his 1.4 percentage point runoff victory over David Covey. “My message to Austin is clear: to those considering supporting Dade Phelan as speaker in 2025, ask your 15 colleagues who lost reelection how they feel about their decision now,” Paxton said in a statement. “You will not return if you vote for Dade Phelan again.”

Phelan, with no Democratic opponent in the Nov. 5 general election, is ready to pivot toward the January contest when the 150 members of the Texas House kick off the 2025 session by choosing a speaker. One opponent has already announced a bid to lead the House, saying the conservative Republican majority is demanding a new speaker. Other speaker candidates may follow. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Paxton, who both endorsed Covey, said an insufficiently conservative Phelan was responsible for killing GOP priority bills and for putting the conservative agenda at risk by appointing Democrats to some leadership positions. His vote to impeach Paxton last year didn’t help. “The jig is up now, we know who he is,” Patrick told radio host Mark Davis on Wednesday. “We will be on his butt.”

Phelan’s top allies in the House are pushing back on the idea of a new Texas speaker. State Rep. Cole Hefner, R-Mt. Pleasant, predicted Phelan would return as speaker. In the two sessions Phelan has overseen the House, some of the most conservative bills in the state’s history have passed – from abortion restrictions in 2021 to a hard-line immigration bill last year, he said. “We’re supposed to be about results,” Hefner told The Dallas Morning News. “When a speaker comes in and we’ve got these legacy conservative issues that we have worked on passing for the last 30 years, and we pass those, that person deserves to keep the job and keep that momentum going forward.”… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

[US/WORLD NEWS]

Guilty: Trump becomes first former US president convicted of felony crimes (Associated Press)

Donald Trump became the first former American president to be convicted of felony crimes Thursday as a New York jury found him guilty of all 34 charges in a scheme to illegally influence the 2016 election through a hush money payment to a porn actor who said the two had sex.

Trump sat stone-faced while the verdict was read as cheering from the street below could be heard in the hallway on the courthouse’s 15th floor where the decision was revealed after more than nine hours of deliberations.

“This was a rigged, disgraceful trial,” an angry Trump told reporters after leaving the courtroom. “The real verdict is going to be Nov. 5 by the people. They know what happened, and everyone knows what happened here.”

Judge Juan M. Merchan set sentencing for July 11, just days before the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, where GOP leaders, who remained resolute in their support in the aftermath of the verdict, are expected to formally make him their nominee… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Blacklisted Chinese companies rebrand as American to dodge crackdown (Wall Street Journal)

In December, a new company registered in Michigan: American Lidar. Its planned home would be an easy drive from the big three U.S. automakers. The company behind American Lidar, and not mentioned in its registration, is China-based lidar maker Hesai Group, which the U.S. has labeled a security concern.

It is a familiar playbook: a company facing regulatory or reputational problems sets up a subsidiary or affiliate with a different name. Chinese firms trying to buffer themselves from Washington’s anti-China policies are rebranding and creating U.S.-domiciled businesses to sell their wares as the Biden administration expands the government entity lists that restrict Chinese companies’ business dealings in the U.S., say policymakers and national-security experts. The blacklisting has also created opportunities for American entrepreneurs who want to work with Chinese companies that are popular with U.S. consumers.

“Chinese firms take a blow but then adjust business strategy and are able to move in another direction,” said Derek Scissors, a former commissioner on the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission.

TikTok spent years trying to distance itself from its China-based parent, ByteDance, by establishing a U.S. headquarters and exploring ways to rebrand in America. Despite the moves, the video app faces a possible ban under a new law. TikTok has sued the U.S. government, accusing it of violating First Amendment rights. Chinese companies’ efforts to shift production, rebrand as American or set up subsidiaries with new names are legal, lawyers say. Still, such moves irritate regulators who can’t enforce laws when it isn’t clear who is behind a company. “As the U.S. government turns to blacklists as a means of identifying problematic Chinese companies and as a means for imposing restrictions, the shell game is going to intensify,” said a House of Representatives aide researching Chinese companies in the U.S… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Real estate agents are fleeing the field. Is that good for homebuyers? (Washington Post)

When real estate broker April Strickland looks at her local housing market in Gainesville, Fla., she sees a mismatch. Industry data shows that only a few hundred homes are sold each month, she said, yet there are more than 1,500 local Realtors. Strickland has seen the ups and downs of the housing market since 1995, when she started managing her parents’ rental properties as a teenager. But she says the business environment of the past two years is the most challenging she can remember — slower even than the years following the 2008 financial crisis. “Quite frankly, Realtors are running out of money,” Strickland said. An industry that swelled with newcomers in 2020 and 2021 has recently experienced a harsh slowdown — leaving the field no choice but to downsize, experts say. One widely cited analysis predicts that as many as 80 percent of the country’s real estate agents could find a new line of work.

“Many industry leaders think there are way too many agents and would like to reduce the number so the professionals can service more clients, thus allowing a reduction in commission levels in order to maintain current incomes,” said Steve Brobeck, a senior fellow at the Consumer Federation of America. By some measures, the exodus has already begun.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics recorded 440,000 full-time real estate agents and brokers in 2023, about 72,000 fewer than the year before. As of mid-April, the National Association of Realtors had about 1.5 million agents registered. That’s down more than 100,000 from 2022, according to Nick Gerli of the real estate data firm Reventure Consulting. The Realtor group, which recently stopped publishing its membership figures, declined to comment for this story. But earlier this year, Gerli, citing monthly reports that were published by the trade association, said NAR anticipates declines in Realtor membership for the next 24 months. With interest rates remaining relatively high, deals have become so scarce that many Realtors now sell only a few homes a year.

A survey of about 2,000 real estate agents conducted by the Consumer Federation of America found that 49 percent of them sold fewer than two homes in 2023. And Realtors will soon face new rules that could result in sweeping changes to how they do business and how they get paid. Under the new rules starting in August, real estate databases no longer will include offers of compensation for buyers’ agents. That means those agents can no longer count on a cut of the seller’s windfall. Investment bank Keefe Bruyette & Woods has estimated that as much as 30 percent of the total U.S. commissions revenue might be lost as a result… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

[2024 Austin City Council Race Watch]

This fall will see elections for the following Council Districts 2, 4, 6, 7, 10, and Mayor.

Declared candidates so far are:

Mayor

District 2

District 4

District 6

District 7 (Open seat)

District 10 (Open seat)

_________________________

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