BG Reads // January 15, 2026

Author

A.J. Bingham
January 15, 2026

faustin a

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www.binghamgp.com

January 15, 2026

✅ Today's BG Reads include:

🟪 Austin City Council readies to launch citywide audit to address spending concerns (Community Impact)

🟪 Austin seeks dismissal of PAC lawsuit over rejected petition to block convention center expansion (Austin American-Statesman)

🟪 A new program aims to address complaints about Austin Police through conversation (KUT)

🟪 Austin police will change policy on ICE cooperation after detention of mother, daughter (KUT)

🟪 San Marcos council to once again consider data center (Community Impact)

🟪 San Antonio City Council to hold special session on increased ICE presence (KSAT)

🟪 In a win for Democrats, court allows California's redistricting plan to proceed (NPR)

🟪 Wall Street is suddenly on the defensive with the president (Wall Street Journal)

READ ON!

[FROM THE FIRM ]

[CITY OF AUSTIN]

🏛️ City of Austin Memos:

🏛️ Meetings this week:

🏛️ Meetings next week:

[AUSTIN METRO NEWS]

✅ Austin City Council readies to launch citywide audit to address spending concerns (Community Impact)

Austin's elected officials are preparing a new policy to govern spending by their offices, and readying a multiyear audit of all city operations and services.

Voters' rejection of Proposition Q, a tax hike to fund more than $100 million of public services and programs this fiscal year, led several City Council members to respond with commitments to new transparency measures and financial reviews.

Mayor Kirk Watson said the November tax election outcome reflected residents' concerns over affordability and government stability, leading to a call for initiatives like council spending reforms and a citywide audit. Those processes are now being prepared and could be implemented in the coming weeks.

A new council spending policy is now on the table and likely up for official adoption this month. And an ordinance requiring recurring, comprehensive citywide audits remains under review for passage as soon as early February… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ Austin seeks dismissal of PAC lawsuit over rejected petition to block convention center expansion (Austin American-Statesman)

The city of Austin is defending its rejection last month of a local political action committee’s petition to place an item on the May ballot that would temporarily block the city’s in-progress convention center expansion. 

The Austin United PAC sued the city in December after the city clerk deemed the charter amendment petition invalid, citing an insufficient number of signatures.

In a strongly worded court filing Tuesday, the city argued that the lawsuit should be dismissed because the city clerk followed the law and the city’s own longstanding procedure in reviewing the petition – and that the PAC was acting in bad faith because the old convention center has already been demolished and Austin voters rejected a similar ballot measure in 2019. 

Austin United’s “own conduct has been unconscientious, unjust, and marked by a want of good faith,” the city wrote in its response. “Plaintiffs have been on notice for years that the Convention Center Project was moving forward as planned. Rather than attempt again to halt or alter the project at any point before demolition commenced, Plaintiffs waited until after demolition of the old Convention Center was complete before submitting their Initiative Petition to the City.” 

The city proceeded with the $1.6 billion project “with the understanding that any citizen wishing to challenge the project would have done so prior to the commencement of demolition and construction activities,” the filing said.

The Austin United PAC has argued that the convention center project misuses public resources that would be better spent on local music and arts initiatives and has criticized the city for a lack of transparency both on the project and in rejecting its petition. 

The convention center project is funded by hotel occupancy taxes, which are taxes paid to the city by visitors and can only be used to fund certain items such as tourism and the hotel industry. 

City leaders have unanimously backed the project, arguing it will boost the city’s economy by creating more jobs and generating hotel occupancy tax revenue… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ Austin police will change policy on ICE cooperation after detention of mother, daughter (KUT)

The Austin Police Department will change its rules over how officers report people to ICE, after the detention and apparent deportation of a Honduran mother and her five-year-old daughter revealed the extent that local officers are cooperating with federal immigration authorities.

APD Chief Lisa Davis told The Texas Newsroom that she will create new department “general orders” that will explicitly state that local police can cooperate more fully with federal immigration officers in the execution of immigration warrants. She said the change reflects the fact that state law gives officers greater discretion in contacting ICE than is outlined in the department’s current policy.

“Officers may but are not required to call ICE,” Davis told The Texas Newsroom in an interview on Tuesday.

In a follow up email ahead of publication, APD spokesperson Anna Sabana said, “Chief Davis said the rule change comes after city legal advised her that current general orders should address administrative warrants and ensure mandates of SB 4 are adhered to.”… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ A new program aims to address complaints about Austin Police through conversation (KUT)

When someone files a complaint against an Austin police officer, Austin Police Oversight's new Complaint Mediation Program provides an opportunity for low-level issues to be mediated by a third-party. It will also give officers the chance to avoid a potential reprimand — or punishment — from Austin Police Department brass.

Gail McCant, director of Austin Police Oversight, said the free program aims to change hearts and minds of officers and the Austinites they serve.

Over the past few years, McCant's office has received an increase in complaints about behavior that may not be against the law, but is against APD policy; things like officers being rude or not showing up in a timely manner.

"To be rude is definitely a policy violation for officers, and so we really want officers to think through this process, be reflective ... [and] be able to accept some some feedback," McCant said.

About a quarter of complaints Austin Police Oversight received in 2024 were because officers were allegedly rude to complainants, according to the office's latest report.

The new program has been in the works for years. It's a byproduct of the Austin Police Oversight Act, a voter-approved measure to increase civilian access in the police complaints process… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ San Marcos council to once again consider data center (Community Impact)

The San Marcos City Council is once again considering zoning and map designation changes related to a potential data center that has received pushback from residents over potential high water and energy usage.

The council heard a presentation on a request to amend the Preferred Scenario Map designation for approximately 200 acres of land on the western side of Francis Harris Lane at a Dec. 16 meeting.

The San Marcos Planning and Zoning Commission, or PZC, approved a recommendation for the designation amendment at a Jan. 13 meeting. The PZC approved a recommendation for a zoning change from “Future Development” to “Light Industrial,” a less strict zoning district classification, as well. 

The recent request, submitted in October, is the second designation amendment application for the tract of land by owners Highlander SM One LLC, or John Maberry, and Donald and Germaine Tuff… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ CesiumAstro to officially move HQ to Bee Cave, create 500 jobs and invest $500M (Austin Business Journal)

Austin-based CesiumAstro Inc. is officially moving its global headquarters and high-tech advanced manufacturing facility to the West Austin Business Park near Bee Cave.

CesiumAstro officials and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced on Jan. 14 that the space communications technology company will invest more than $500 million and create more than 500 jobs over the next five years at the 270,000-square-foot, three-building campus near State Highway 71 and Sweetwater Village Drive. The business park has been caught in a legal battle between the developers and city for years.

"Our expansion in Texas marks a transformative step for CesiumAstro as we advance cutting-edge space and defense technologies in the United States,” founder and CEO Shey Sabripour said in a statement. “Texas is at the forefront of the new space economy, combining vision, top-tier talent, and powerful public-private partnerships. This is a project that could only be realized in Texas and will play a critical role in securing America’s future."… 🟪 (READ MORE)

[TEXAS/US NEWS]

✅ San Antonio City Council to hold special session on increased ICE presence (KSAT)

San Antonio City Council is planning to hold a special session on Jan. 22 about the increased presence of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials, according to a councilmember’s Instagram post.

District 1 Councilwoman Sukh Kaur announced that the meeting would take place at 1 p.m. to address community concerns around federal agents in the city, and how the San Antonio Police Department fits into that role… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ Hundreds of private schools are being shut out of Texas' voucher program (Houston Chronicle)

Hundreds of private schools have been shut out of Texas’ new school voucher program while the state comptroller’s office awaits a decision in its bid to block some Islamic and allegedly Chinese-linked institutions. Nearly all schools accredited by Cognia, the largest private school accreditor in Texas, have been unable to submit applications in the month since the state began accepting them. As of Tuesday, only 30 of the 600 schools accredited solely by the nonprofit were added to the list of approved vendors, most of them offering only pre-K and kindergarten.

The majority of those were added overnight on Monday, after Hearst Newspapers began inquiring about the issue. Applications for families are set to go live in just over three weeks. The hold-up appears to be linked to a request that acting comptroller Kelly Hancock made to the Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office on December 10, seeking a legal opinion on whether certain schools could be barred from the program for their alleged ties to the Chinese government or the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which Gov. Greg Abbott designated as a terror group.

Hancock’s letter states that each of the schools in question is Cognia-accredited. But the pause appeared to reach beyond those targeted institutions. The Texas Private School Association told its members in December that all Cognia-accredited schools would be on hold “until the Attorney General submitted an answer to this request, or more information was provided.” Almost a third of private schools eligible to participate in the state’s $1 billion voucher program are Cognia-accredited. Another 200 are approved by Cognia and another accreditor, and some began receiving access to apply on Friday, according to the private school association.

The Houston Quran Academy, a Cognia-accredited school, told Hearst Newspapers it applied in December but had not heard back. Beren Academy, a Jewish day school in Houston, said on Sunday it had not yet received an invitation to apply but was eager to be part of the new program. At least 15 Islamic-focused schools in Texas have received eligible accreditations, all from Cognia; none has been approved so far. A spokesperson for Cognia said the group was aware of a concern delaying its schools’ applications and it was working with the comptroller to find a resolution… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ In a win for Democrats, court allows California's redistricting plan to proceed (NPR)

A federal court has upheld the new congressional map approved by California voters last month, giving Democrats a chance to counter the nationwide redistricting effort led by President Trump and his Republican allies.

The court challenge to the redistricting plan had been brought by the California Republican Party and the U.S. Department of Justice. The court found that the new district map did not violate laws against racial gerrymandering.

The Republicans argued that the new map was motivated by a desire to increase the voting power of Latinos. The court, in a two-to-one ruling, rejected that claim, noting that voters approved the measure, called "Proposition 50" and there was no evidence they acted on racial grounds… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ US apologizes for mistake in deporting Massachusetts college student, but defends her removal (Associated Press)

The Trump administration apologized in court for a “mistake” in the deportation of a Massachusetts college student who was detained trying to fly home to surprise her family for Thanksgiving, but still argued the error should not affect her case.

Any Lucia Lopez Belloza, a 19-year-old Babson College freshman, was detained at Boston’s airport on Nov. 20 and flown to Honduras two days later. Her removal came despite an emergency court order on Nov. 21 directing the government to keep her in Massachusetts or elsewhere in the United States for at least 72 hours.

Lopez Belloza, whose family emigrated from Honduras to the U.S. in 2014, is currently staying with grandparents and studying remotely. She is not detained and was recently visiting an aunt in El Salvador.

Her case is the latest involving a deportation carried out despite a court order. Kilmar Abrego Garcia was deported to El Salvador despite a ruling that should have prevented it. The Trump administration initially fought efforts to bring him back to the U.S. but eventually complied after the U.S. Supreme Court weighed in. And last June, a Guatemalan man identified as O.C.G. was returned to the U.S. after a judge found his removal from Mexico likely “lacked any semblance of due process.”… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ Wall Street is suddenly on the defensive with the president (Wall Street Journal)

Wall Street thought it had an ally in Donald Trump. He’s becoming more of an adversary. The president largely delivered to investors last year, as his administration cut taxes, reduced spending and rolled back an aggressive tariff plan after it spooked markets. Now, after blindsiding Wall Street with a series of rapid-fire moves in the span of a week, Trump appears to be putting it on notice. He has sought to block large investors from buying houses, called for a cap on credit-card rates and announced restrictions on executive pay and stock buybacks.

Then came the most stunning move of all: The Justice Department’s criminal investigation of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell in what he said was an intimidation tactic to lower interest rates. “Investors thought after the April 2025 tariffs that uncertainty around policy would magically go away,” says Brad Golding, a hedge-fund manager at Christofferson Robb & Co. in New York. “Now, we’re seeing that midterm elections mean more than the profitability of banks and the stability of markets.”

News of the investigation, which prompted JPMorgan Chase Chief Executive Jamie Dimon and others in the banking world to defend the Fed, was an escalation in Trump’s pressure campaign on the Fed to lower rates. It was a clear message that voters’ concerns about the cost of living, and not investors, are now top of mind. On Monday evening, Trump issued his latest broadside against business on social media, saying he was working with Microsoft and other tech giants to make sure consumers don’t “pick up the tab” for higher electricity prices as heavy investment in artificial intelligence fuels power demand from data centers.

White House spokesman Kush Desai said in a statement that multiple record stock market highs and rising real wages show Trump can “unleash historic prosperity” for consumers and investors alike. Investors can’t say they weren’t warned. Administration officials have spent over a year saying they were going to try to help consumers and others, even at the expense of investors. “For the last four decades, Wall Street has grown wealthier than ever before…for the next four years, it’s Main Street’s turn,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told a group of bankers last April… 🟪 (READ MORE)

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