BG Reads 9.30.2024

🗞️ Bingham Group Reads - September 30, 2024

September 30, 2024

Bingham Group Reads

Presented by:

www.binghamgp.com

September 30, 2024

Today's BG Reads include:

🟪 Austin gets its first look at updated concepts for transforming I-35 (CBS Austin)

🟪 New city program aims to take the sting out of high rent costs for some Austin businesses (Austin Business Journal)

🟪 Travis County passes budget with a focus on justice reform (Austin Monitor)

🟪 Aviation, semiconductor manufacturers apply for Texas property tax breaks (Community Impact)

🟪 Disruption looms at East Coast ports as longshoremen prepare to strike (Washington Post)

Read On!

[BINGHAM GROUP]

🟪 We are proud to represent and have 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 seven (5) regular meetings left in 2024

  • District 10 - Tonight @6:30PM to 8PM

    • Dell Jewish Community Campus, Epstein Family Community Hall, 7300 Hart Lane, Austin 78731

  • Mayor - October 3rd

    • Austin City Hall Council Chambers, 301 W. 2nd St. Austin 78701

  • District 6 - October 7th

    • Hope Presbyterian Church, 11512 Olson Drive, Austin 78750

📺 City Council Candidate Forum: District 2 - Video (9.26.2024)

📺 City Council Candidate Forum: District 4 - Video (9.19.2024)

✅ All candidate forums will are scheduled from 6:30pm to 8pm.

✅ All forums will be streamed live and archived on ATXN. 

[AUSTIN METRO NEWS]

Austin gets its first look at updated concepts for transforming I-35 (CBS Austin)

The future of Interstate-35 came into sharper focus on Saturday. Austin residents got their first look at updated concepts for the $4.5 billion freeway expansion through Central Austin.

Our Future 35 is considered a once-in-a-generation project that not only adds traffic lanes and makes more space for pedestrians, but also beautifies what has long been an eyesore that runs through the heart of the city.An example of what the transformation can look like is Klyde Warren Park in Dallas.

“This is a transformational project that will literally change the landscape in Central Austin,” said Michelle Marx with the City of Austin.

An open house was held Saturday to present updated concepts that incorporate the public’s feedback on what amenities could be featured on reimagined spaces over I-35… 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Travis County passes budget with a focus on justice reform (Austin Monitor)

Last week, the Travis County Commissioners Court passed the Fiscal Year 2025 budget, totaling almost $2 billion – investments in the county’s mental health care services and legal defense apparatus mean the average homeowner will see an increase of about $162 in their property taxes, and could see more if a ballot measure increasing the county’s tax rate to fund improvements in child care services passes this November. 

The main investments in this year’s budget show a commitment to an overhaul of the county’s approach to its carceral system, which commissioners have been making moves toward prioritizing since County Judge Andy Brown’s election in 2020. After justice advocates convinced commissioners to drop an expansion of the women’s jail in 2021, commissioners turned their focus to diverting people away from the criminal justice system, instead of expanding the physical space to ease the county’s overcrowded jails.

That focus has culminated in nearly $70 million earmarked to fund a mental health diversion center that will provide treatment to people in mental health crises charged with low-level crimes. Commissioners hope the diversion program will end the cycle of recidivism that nonviolent people without access to mental health care often find themselves in. Next Thursday, Integral Care is set to celebrate the opening of a 24-hour psychiatric and respite facility, the first phase of this diversion program, and an alternative to incarceration or the emergency room… 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)

New city program aims to take the sting out of high rent costs for some Austin businesses (Austin Business Journal)

Some businesses in Austin soon may have an easier time finding good deals on rent.

That's because of a new program approved by the City Council at its Sept. 26 meeting — called the Place-Based Enhancement Program — that aims to incentivize developers and property owners to provide rent discounts for certain types of businesses, as well as to include infrastructure deemed to have community benefits in their projects.

Take, for example, the iconic Stars Cafe, which needs a new home soon. It may be possible for the low-margin but beloved business to find sanctuary in a new development.

Businesses eligible to get the rent discounts include those that promote creative and cultural uses for arts and music venues, those that have positive impacts, like grocery stores, nonprofits, co-ops and childcare centers, and legacy Austin businesses.

The program, which is expected to start by spring next year, is focused mainly on using tax incentives to encourage developers of new retail projects to provide the below-market rents, officials with the city's Economic Development Department said. Still, some existing developments also could be eligible for the tax incentives if they're located in areas where businesses face high displacement pressure… 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Austin FC to miss MLS playoffs for second straight year after draw with Real Salt Lake (Austin American-Statesman)

A valiant rally in the final 10 minutes Saturday night didn't save Austin FC's season.

The Verde & Black scored twice in the game's waning moments to garner a 2-2 draw versus Real Salt Lake at Q2 Stadium, but like the majority of their last nine league games, they couldn't record the result they needed.

Though Austin FC (9-13-9, 36 points, 11th West) hasn't been mathematically eliminated from playoff contention, in any realm of reality it is has been. It would have to make up a goal differential of 20 on the Portland Timbers while also winning all three remaining games as the Timbers lost all of their last three. Winning three games by 18 goals is beyond realistic.

Early second-half goals by Matt Crooks and Diogo Goncalves gave the visitors a 2-0 lead before Jáder Obrian and Guilherme Biro finished shots late to give Austin FC the draw.

The Verde & Black will play out the season with games Wednesday at Portland, next Saturday at the Los Angeles Galaxy and Oct. 19 against Colorado at home…  🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Dell has a rude awakening for employees over return to office (The Street)

Dell has officially hopped on a growing trend in corporate America that employees may not be too fond of.

The tech giant sent a memo to its global sales team members on Sept. 26 informing them that their days of working remotely will come to an end within the next few days, according to a new report from Business Insider.

“This Sales floor is a unique environment that combined high energy with a culture of collaboration and continuous improvement,” reads the memo.

“To harness this energy and grow skills, we believe our sales teams need to be together in the office. Additionally, our data shows that sales teams are more productive when onsite.”

Dell claims that sales employees will be expected to return to the office five days a week, starting on Sept. 30, “regardless of role.”

However, the company states in the memo that remote sales team members who are unable to work in a Dell office location should continue to work remotely, but “more communications pertaining to remote workers will be sent in the coming weeks.”… 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)

[TEXAS NEWS]

Aviation, semiconductor manufacturers apply for Texas property tax breaks (Community Impact)

Six companies have applied for Texas’ new business tax break program since it opened in February, according to the state comptroller’s office.Among the first applicants were a Fort Worth-based aircraft manufacturer, a sustainable aviation fuel company and a semiconductor manufacturer.Texas lawmakers passed the Jobs, Energy, Technology and Innovation Act with bipartisan support last year. Eligible manufacturing, research and development companies that launch new projects in Texas can apply to receive a 10-year reduction in the property taxes they pay to local school districts…

Abbott to host Texas Stock Exchange, business leaders at governor’s mansion (KXAN)

Gov. Greg Abbott is hosting the Texas Stock Exchange (TXSE) at the Governor’s Mansion as the group of financiers seeks entry into the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. He will be joined by TXSE Group Inc. Found and CEO James Lee and other state business leaders for a press conference to celebrate the state’s economy and “leading position in the financial industry,” according to a press release from the governor’s office.

Back in June, TSE Group Inc. announced plans to register with the SEC, already backed by major investing firms and raising about $120 million in capital. They previously announced plans for a physical headquarters in Dallas but will be a fully electronic national securities exchange… 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)

CenterPoint calls $800 million generators a good deal. Internal emails, court records raise doubts (Houston Chronicle)

Two months after CenterPoint Energy’s response to Hurricane Beryl caused a swarm of outrage — especially over its $800 million fleet of massive generators that sat mostly idle while Houstonians sweated without power for days — it’s not clear what consequences the utility will face, if any.

“This is a breach of the public trust,” wrote Arthur d’Andrea, former chair of the state commission that regulates CenterPoint, in a recent social media post about the generator deal. Phil King, a Republican state senator who championed legislation that allowed utilities to lease generators, has since accused CenterPoint of using “deceptive and misleading tactics.”

And a consumer advocacy group recently asked regulators to order the company to refund Houstonians for the costs of the generators so far. CenterPoint CEO Jason Wells has repeatedly defended the utility’s decision to lease the generators back in 2021, which have added $2.39 to the average household’s monthly electric bill.

He said the company wanted to protect against the possibility of rolling blackouts — a scenario on everyone’s mind after Winter Storm Uri earlier that year killed about 200 people — and that the utility selected the only vendor that could meet its needs quickly. “We secured the assets that we thought were needed at the time and still believe are needed,” Wells said at a legislative hearing.

But a review of internal emails, corporate documents and court filings by the Houston Chronicle raises doubts about whether CenterPoint really got the best deal for consumers. Many of the records have been public for years, buried in thousands of pages of submissions to state regulators or filings in lengthy court battles. They reveal that the company CenterPoint chose to lease its generators from, Life Cycle Power, had never worked on such a large contract before.

Yet CenterPoint still chose Life Cycle Power over a competitor with more experience that also provided a lower-priced bid for the equipment itself, the records show. After the deal was done, Life Cycle Power’s investors had to scramble to raise nearly $200 million to fulfill the contract – money that would later become the subject of a years-long court battle initiated by its former CEO... 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)

[US and World News]

Disruption looms at East Coast ports as longshoremen prepare to strike (Washington Post)

Thousands of longshoremen at ports from New England to Texas are set to strike early Tuesday in the first walkout of its kind in almost half a century, freezing commercial shipping on a massive scale and disrupting the national economy weeks before the presidential election. A strike would be the biggest disruption to the flow of goods in and out of the country since the height of the pandemic. Even a short-lived work stoppage would snarl shipping and create havoc in supply chains for weeks.

Cargo ranging from cars to electronics, from food to furniture, would be stuck on ships offshore. Each day a strike lasts could cost the U.S. economy up to $1 billion, according to analysts. Beginning five weeks before the election, a strike could also inject new uncertainty into the presidential campaign.

Fearful of the impacts, business groups and congressional Republicans have lined up to press the White House to invoke emergency powers and seek to block a strike, although so far President Joe Biden’s administration has not shown a willingness to intervene.

Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, and Donald Trump, the Republican nominee, have not weighed in on the potential strike, but the port shutdowns would begin the same day as Tuesday night’s televised vice-presidential debate.

Talks between the International Longshoremen’s Association, which has 47,000 members, and the U.S. Maritime Alliance, representing container carriers and port operators, have been all but stalled since the summer. The current labor contract expires Monday night, freeing the union to strike Tuesday as early as 12:01 a.m. as it presses for substantial raises and stronger guarantees that automated systems will not be used to replace workers. Longshoremen are responsible for loading and unloading cargo at ports.

The job includes working the cranes that haul containers on and off huge cargo ships as well as maintaining equipment. The impact would be concentrated on shipping containers, as well as the movement of new cars and trucks. Several dozen ports are expected to close to container shipments, including the major maritime hubs of New York, Baltimore, Norfolk, Savannah and Houston... 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Trump allies bombard the courts, setting stage for post-election fight (New York Times)

Republicans have unleashed a flurry of lawsuits challenging voting rules and practices ahead of the November elections, setting the stage for what could be a far larger and more contentious legal battle over the White House after Election Day. The onslaught of litigation, much of it landing in recent weeks, includes nearly 90 lawsuits filed across the country by Republican groups this year. The legal push is already more than three times the number of lawsuits filed before Election Day in 2020, according to Democracy Docket, a Democratically aligned group that tracks election cases.

Voting rights experts say the legal campaign appears to be an effort to prepare to contest the results of the presidential election after Election Day should former President Donald J. Trump, the Republican nominee, lose and refuse to accept his defeat as he did four years ago. The lawsuits are concentrated in swing states — and key counties — likely to determine the race. Several embrace debunked theories about voter fraud and so-called stolen elections that Mr. Trump has promoted since 2020.

In Montgomery County, Pa., the state’s third-largest county, the party is seeking to force local officials to count ballots by hand, evoking debunked conspiracy theories about corrupted voting machines. A case filed by the Republican National Committee in Nevada this month falsely asserts that nearly 4,000 noncitizens voted in the state in 2020, a claim that was rejected at the time by the state’s top election official, a Republican. If successful, the Republicans’ lawsuits would shrink the electorate, largely by disqualifying voters more likely to be Democrats.

They seek purges of voter rolls, challenge executive orders from President Biden aimed at expanding ballot access and create stricter requirements to voting by mail. Election experts, including some Republicans, say a vast majority of the cases are destined to fail, either because they were filed too late or because they are based on unfounded, or outright false, claims.

The volume and last minute timing of the cases, along with statements from party officials and Trump allies, suggest a broader aim behind the effort: Laying the groundwork to challenge results after the vote. The claims in the lawsuits may well be revived — either in court or in the media — if Mr. Trump contests the outcome… 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)

_________________________

We are proud to represent and have 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.

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