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August 25, 2023

In today's BG Reads:

Leading News

💡 Is an independent Austin Energy board possible?

🔥 Texas State Senators fell the heat in AG Paxton impeachment

✖️ Trumps booking and return to social media

Bingham Group Content

🎙️  BG Podcast Ep. 212 (Also available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify)

👔  Bingham Group‘s policy and government affairs job board (updated weekly)

🗒️  BG Blog: Tracking City of Austin Leadership Changes

[AUSTIN METRO NEWS]

Accountability at Austin Energy? Historic documents reveal potential for independent board (KXAN)

Historically and currently, the elected members of the Austin City Council oversee the budget, rate and policy decisions for Austin Energy.

The city manager selects the general manager of Austin Energy, who then hires the utility’s executive team, but citizens can communicate their concerns about the utility directly to their elected city leadership.

Some other municipally-owned utilities operate differently, reporting to an independent board of directors focused solely on the utility’s operations. A KXAN analysis showed the majority of the 10 largest municipally-owned utilities in the country report to appointed or elected boards of governance.

According to city documents and media coverage dating back decades, Austin’s leadership considered creating this kind of independent board several different times… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

And in other Austin Metro News:

➡️ Pilot program to give small, local businesses preferences for city contracts -> FULL STORY HERE

➡️ Tesla's push into Kyle signifies suburb's 'rising economy,' mayor says (Austin business journal) -> FULL STORY HERE 

➡️ Private Companies based locally Ranked by Total revenue 2022 (Austin Business Journal) -> FULL STORY HERE 

Also:

🌳 Weigh in on the future of Palm Park at two upcoming community events (Community Impact) -> FULL STORY HERE

[TEXAS NEWS]

Pressure mounts on Texas senators ahead of Ken Paxton impeachment trial (Texas tribune)

Political pressure is intensifying around Republican state senators who will serve as the jurors in the impeachment trial of suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton.

Paxton’s allies are singling out a half dozen senators for lobbying. A mysterious entity is airing TV ads targeting certain senators.

And an influential establishment group, as well as former Gov. Rick Perry, are urging senators to oppose efforts to effectively stop the trial before it starts.

“Anyone that votes against Ken Paxton in this impeachment is risking their entire political career and we will make sure that is the case,” Jonathan Stickland, who runs the pro-Paxton Defend Texas Liberty PAC, said Thursday in a media appearance… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

OTHER TEXAS NEWS:

💰 Greg Abbott raised an astonishing $15.6 million in 23 days (Texas monthly) -> FULL STORY HERE

 ⚖️ Impeachment lawyers plan to call Texas AG Ken Paxton to witness stand in Senate trial (NBC DFW) ->  FULL STORY HERE 

[NATIONAL NEWS]

For Trump, X marks the spot for his social media return. Why that could really matter (NPR)

Donald Trump – who was booted from mainstream social media platforms because of his continued spreading of lies, falsehoods and misleading claims, including incendiary tweets during the violent and deadly insurrection at the Capitol that he inspired and was carried out by his supporters – posted to X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, for the first time since his expulsion from the site.

And he did it to post his mugshot… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

OTHER NEWS:

➡️  Maui Alleges Hawaiian Electric Caused Lahaina Wildfire (Wall Street Journal) -> LINK TO FULL STORY)

 ➡️ John Warnock, Inventor of the PDF, Dies at 82 (New York Times) -> LINK TO FULL STORY 

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