BG Reads // July 23, 2025

Author

A.J. Bingham
July 23, 2025

Presented By

www.binghamgp.com

✅ Today's BG Reads include:

🟪 Austin City Council Budget Work Session - Today at 9AM (ATXN1) // Agenda

🟪 Affordable housing development still a critical need in Austin, expert says (Austin Business Journal)

🟪 FEMA search and rescue chief resigns after frustration with Texas flood response (CNN)

🟪 These Democrats could be targeted in the GOP's Texas redistricting push (San Antonio Express-News)

🟪 Texas Senate committee doubles down on THC ban, saying state and local governments don’t have the resources for regulations (Texas Tribune)

🟪 Fort Worth, Austin tied to police chief decision at Fort Worth Police Department (CBS News)

[CITY OF AUSTIN]

🏛️ Memos:

[AUSTIN METRO NEWS]

✅ Affordable housing development still a critical need in Austin, expert says (Austin Business Journal)

Plenty of attention has been put on the need for affordable housing in Austin in recent years, with some developers heeding the call. But a heightened focus and additional investments are needed to keep the momentum going.

That’s according to Mike Nellis, CEO of the Austin Community Foundation, which helps developers and housing organizations deliver affordable housing projects.  

“We still need affordable housing in a significant way,” he said. “The conditions have changed, but the need is still there.”

It's an issue that has ripple effects throughout the economy. Austin's affordability woes have driven a lot of people to the suburbs, where many can find lower costs of living and have more disposable income. For employers, a lack of affordable housing can make it difficult to attract and retain talent.

Nellis said it’s important for investments to continue in nonprofit housing developers, housing organizations and programs meant to build more and preserve affordable housing units. Having public money and bonds dedicated to affordable housing is also key for these projects to get off the ground… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ FEMA search and rescue chief resigns after frustration with Texas flood response (CNN)

The head of FEMA’s Urban Search and Rescue branch, which runs a network of teams stationed across the country that can swiftly respond to natural disasters, resigned on Monday.

Ken Pagurek’s departure comes less than three weeks after a delayed FEMA response to catastrophic flooding in central Texas caused by bureaucratic hurdles put in place by the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the disaster response agency.

Pagurek told colleagues at FEMA that the delay was the tipping point that led to his voluntary departure after months of frustration with the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle the agency, according to two sources familiar with his thinking. It took more than 72 hours after the flooding for Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to authorize the deployment of FEMA’s search and rescue network… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ Study names Austin and Round Rock among the best cities to rent (KVUE)

Austin and Round Rock are among the best cities in the U.S. for renters, according to a new study from RentCafe.

The Central Texas cities were praised for their relative affordability and quality of life, according to the study.

“As an established science and tech hub, Austin is home to major employers like Dell Technologies; NXP Semiconductors; Keller Williams Realty; and social media giants, like Facebook,” RentCafe said about Austin.

“Beyond its thriving job market, renters can enjoy access to top-tier educational institutions and the city’s natural beauty — from Lady Bird Lake to Barton Creek Greenbelt and countless parks that add to Austin’s outdoor charm.”.

The study said Austin was a great place for people looking to build their career, with the highest share of college-educated residents in Texas, strong job growth and “a high-end rental market where nearly 70% of apartments offer upscale features.” Space in Austin is tighter than in many Southern locations, with apartments an average of 866 square feet, the study showed.

Meanwhile, RentCafe said Round Rock offers more room (915 square feet on average) and a cost of living 8% below the national average, compared to 2.7% below in Austin. Nearly 78% of apartments were built recently, and renters enjoy access to top-rated schools, RentCafe said… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ What would it take for Austin to allow swimming in Lady Bird Lake? (KUT)

With the Austin summer coming in hot — literally — the cool waters of Lady Bird Lake in the scenic center of downtown look inviting to locals and tourists alike. But despite the many kayakers out on the water, you won't find many swimmers beneath the surface.

In 1964, after the drowning of two young sisters, the city of Austin banned swimming in Lady Bird Lake, then Town Lake. Today, it stands as a Class C misdemeanor, like public intoxication, often to the dismay and confusion of Austinites.

Many people question why the old, reactionary ban is still in effect and wonder what it would take to make the Austin hot spot swimmable.

“From the meetings I've attended, at least two of the council members were kind of getting pressure to open up swimming or give some concrete answers of why swimming is not open in the lake,” said Lt. Elijah Myrick, who leads Austin's lake patrol unit, a team of six police officers.

In short, Myrick said it would take a coordinated effort from multiple organizations before the city repealed its ban on any portion of the lake.

Experts and the public alike have theorized about the reasons swimming is not allowed: strong currents, dangerous debris and, more recently, the presence of blue-green algae… 🟪 (READ MORE)

[TEXAS/US NEWS]

✅ Special committee of Texas lawmakers meets to tackle flood relief, disaster preparedness (KUT)

It’s been less than three weeks since Texas’ devastating July 4 floods which led to more than 130 deaths. In the aftermath of the disaster, Gov. Greg Abbott said he’d put flood-related items at the top of the Texas Legislature’s packed special session agenda.

The Texas House and Senate quickly established special committees to focus on relief efforts and determine what preparations the state must make to be better prepared for future natural disasters.

Now, these panels of state lawmakers will meet for the first time. Legislators on the Select Committees on Disaster Preparedness and Flooding are expected to convene Wednesday morning to hear testimony from emergency management officials, weather forecasters, the Texas Water Development Board and other experts.

Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, is carrying a bill this special session focused on how to get a flood early warning system in place across Texas. He told The Texas Newsroom that he’s spoken with Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and believes they’re on the same page as Gov. Greg Abbot — especially when it comes to taking the burden off funding such a system off local entities.

“Let's just get money, get a solution, get it to them,” Bettencourt said in a Tuesday interview… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ These Democrats could be targeted in the GOP's Texas redistricting push (San Antonio Express-News)

President Donald Trump's push to redraw Texas's congressional districts ahead of next year's midterms has set off speculation about which Democratic seats Texas Republicans are going to target. The move, which would entail shifting GOP voters into Democratic districts, has riled some Republican incumbents, who have quietly complained of the potential damage to their own reelection prospects. But Trump is eager to maintain a Republican majority in the U.S. House, and appears willing to gamble to protect against a potential Democratic wave in the midterms. "It has the potential to go wrong," said Brandon Rottinghaus, a political science professor at the University of Houston.

"Gerrymandering could go wrong or things change and you redraw districts in ways that hurt you." A letter from the Department of Justice to Gov. Greg Abbott earlier this month cited legal concerns about four congressional districts now held by Democrats: TX-09 (Al Green), TX-18 (vacant, formerly Sylvester Turner), TX-29 (Sylvia Garcia), and TX-33 (Marc Veasey).

With a federal bribery indictment hanging over his head, veteran U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar of South Texas is believed to be among the most likely targets of Texas Republicans. District 28 has grown steadily more Republican in recent years, with Democrats only enjoying a two-point advantage among likely voters, according to an analysis of voting data by The Texan.

The GOP hopes to continue building on the rising support it has found from Hispanic communities along the border and in other parts of the state. Speculation that Cuellar specifically could be a target grew this week after the New York Times reported the Justice Department was going ahead with its bribery case against him.

That comes despite support earlier this year from Trump, who called Cuellar, who is among the House's most conservative Democrats, a "respected Democrat Congressman" in a Truth Social post in May. After eight years in the House, U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez is part of a shrinking group of centrist Democrats, serving as co-chair of the chamber's Blue Dog Coalition. Like Cuellar, his district has grown increasingly Republican since 2022, potentially opening the door to a pro-Trump candidate. In November, Gonzalez narrowly defeated former congresswoman Mayra Flores, whose campaign outspent his $6.9 million to $3.1 million. But shifting District 34's lines poses a risk for incumbent Republicans whose districts abut Gonzalez's, like De La Cruz and Rep. Michael Cloud, but Trump appears willing to gamble… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ Gov. Abbott: Texas must ban intoxicating THC products in special session (Community Impact)

Texas lawmakers must outlaw all intoxicating THC products and increase regulations on the hemp industry during the current special legislative session, Gov. Greg Abbott told Community Impact on July 22.

“My overall goal is to protect the lives of children while at the same time protecting the liberty of adults to use a nonintoxicating product,” Abbott said in a July 22 interview at the state capitol. “The way that we protect the lives of children is to completely ban any type of THC product, any type of hemp and any type of marijuana from [children] being able to use it.”

Texas’ special legislative session began June 21 and will last up to 30 days.

On June 22, Abbott vetoed a proposed THC ban that state lawmakers approved during the regular legislative session, citing “undeniable” legal defects in the legislation. In a veto statement, he urged lawmakers to “strongly regulate hemp” with stringent testing requirements and limitations on when and where products can be sold.

Abbott also noted June 22 that the proposal would have banned products with trace amounts of THC, which he said would invite “potential criminal entrapment” for hemp farmers.

One month later, state senators considered Senate Bill 5, by Sen. Charles Perry, R-Lubbock, during a July 22 committee hearing… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ Texas Senate committee doubles down on THC ban, saying state and local governments don’t have the resources for regulations (Texas Tribune)

The Texas Senate is doubling down with its attempt to ban hemp-derived THC, setting up another showdown with the House, where lawmakers are more amenable to regulating the substance than eliminating it from recreational use.

Senate Bill 5 by Sen. Charles Perry, R-Lubbock, would create a blanket ban on products containing any “detectable amount of any cannabinoid” other than cannabidiol and cannabigerol, better known as CBD and CBG, non-intoxicating components of cannabis. This bill would eliminate the majority of hemp products, including those that are legal under the federal definition.

The bill would make the manufacturing, delivering or possessing with the intent to provide consumable hemp products a third-degree felony offense, as well as create misdemeanor offenses for providing consumable hemp by courier, delivery, or mail service. Possession of hemp products will be considered a misdemeanor offense. However, a person caught illegally possessing the products for the first time will not face charges under the bill. The bill passed the Senate State Affairs Committee unanimously on Tuesday and advanced to the full chamber.

Perry said that the state has tried to regulate hemp, but it’s not being enforced… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ Fort Worth, Austin tied to police chief decision at Fort Worth Police Department (CBS News)

In less than a month, the citizens of Fort Worth will get a chance to know the three candidates vying to become the next police chief of the Fort Worth Police Department. Deputy Chief Emada Tingirides, a fourth candidate and the only female finalist, withdrew her name after being promoted at the Los Angeles Police Department.

With her departure, three men will try to sway those whom he will eventually serve and protect on August 14 at Fort Worth City Hall at 5:30 p.m.

Robert A. Alldredge, Jr. leads the Fort Worth PD as its Interim Police Chief. He was appointed after Chief Neil Noakes retired in May. Alldredge has been with the department since 1999. In that time, he has practically done it all: budgeting, patrol, strategic planning, crisis management, operational efficiency, and community engagement.

Vernon Hale is a former Deputy Police Chief of the Dallas Police Department, who has built a reputation for transforming police departments. He served as police chief in Gavelston and as Assistant Police Chief in Prince George's County, Maryland.

Eddie Garcia, the former Dallas Police Chief, is still in the honeymoon phase of being an Assistant City Manager in Austin… 🟪 (READ MORE)

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