🟪 Today’s 10AM Austin City Council Budget Meeting agenda and livestream

🟪 Austin Staff Recommends $5.35 Million Reduction to Social Service Grants for FY27 (City of Austin)

🟪 Inside Austin ISD’s talks to avoid a state takeover as three schools await ratings (Austin American-Statesman)

🟪 CapMetro Bikeshare is coming back in August after fire-induced hiatus, but service will be limited (Austin American-Statesman)

🟪 New report finds rising ownership costs threaten Austin-area homeowners (Austin American-Statesman)

🟪 New police drones to assist law enforcement in Kyle (Community Impact)

🟪 ERCOT: Texas’ power grid meeting record demand now, but could falter when it doubles by 2032 (Texas Tribune)

🟪 Corpus Christi City Council rejects $60,000 community gift to benefit water desalination plant (Texas Tribune)

READ ON!

🏛️ COUNCIL MEETINGS:

💰 Review the Fiscal Year 2026-27 budget documents here

🏛️ MEMO: Fiscal Year 2026-2027 Budget Adoption Timeline

🏛️ MEMO: Austin Staff Recommends $5.35 Million Reduction to Social Service Grants for FY27

🎙️ The BG Podcast is back! Episode 269 features my conversation with former San Antonio Mayor and HUD Secretary Henry Cisneros about the Austin–San Antonio mega region.

The discussion comes as the new Central Texas Alliance seeks to build consensus across 13 counties along and around the I-35 corridor.

Listen on:

🟪 BG Blog: Texas State or Austin Municipal Lobbyist? How to Hire the Right Firm

✅ Inside Austin ISD’s talks to avoid a state takeover as three schools await ratings (Austin American-Statesman)

With the possibility of a state takeover looming, Austin Independent School District officials are exploring options that would avert intervention, according to three people familiar with behind-the-scenes discussions.

After the Texas Education Agency in May rejected a district bid to buy more time for three struggling campuses to improve academically, state intervention became a more serious threat to Austin ISD’s local control than ever before.

The state will release new campus grades on Aug. 14, and if any of the three chronically under performing North Austin middle schools scores another failing grade, TEA will have the power to take over the entire district. Under a state takeover, TEA sidelines elected trustees in favor of a board of state appointees and often ousts the sitting superintendent.

Despite recent developments, Austin ISD leaders have been unwilling to speculate publicly on the possibility of a takeover. They have declined to comment on or answer questions about the possibility of state intervention. Instead, officials have touted student growth on recent state tests in high school-level courses, elementary math and eighth grade.

But behind the scenes, district officials are scrambling to avoid the intervention, according to three people who were not authorized to speak publicly about the discussions. Among the considerations: requesting TEA re-score thousands of failed state tests for a new grade and evaluating the possibility of a campus closure or other options as an alternative to a complete district takeover.

Top city officials, lawmakers and education consultants have been involved in the discussions… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ CapMetro Bikeshare is coming back in August after fire-induced hiatus, but service will be limited (Austin American-Statesman)

Capital Metro’s electric bicycle rental service is set to return in August, more than two months after a fire forced it offline, but the Bikeshare service will still be limited through at least the end of the year as agency leaders work to replace uninsured equipment.

The phased return will prioritize stations around the University of Texas, which represents about 60% of the service’s demand, according to CapMetro Chief Operating Officer Andrew Skabowski. All Bikeshare stations will reopen beginning Aug. 11, but only about 150 e-bikes — less than a third of the fleet — will return to the racks by Aug. 18.

The May 23 fire significantly damaged a CapMetro operations facility in South Austin, wiping out the batteries and charging infrastructure that powered the city’s shared bicycle fleet. Skabowski said CapMetro will restore service using a temporary charging solution while the agency works to replace the damaged equipment.

Instead of charging the bikes at the central facility, CapMetro workers will move the bikes to electrified docking stations that charge the batteries in the field as needed. Customers can still dock bikes at any station, but because of the limited availability, the agency is encouraging them to check the Bikeshare app before heading out… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ New report finds rising ownership costs threaten Austin-area homeowners (Austin American-Statesman)

In one of Texas’ most expensive metro areas, rising insurance costs, property taxes, utility bills and mortgage payments are putting increasing pressure on Austin-area homeowners. Now, a new report from the Austin Board of Realtors and Unlock MLS examines how those costs are reshaping affordability.

New data from Unlock MLS suggests that every $100 increase in monthly homeownership costs pushes about 9,800 Central Texas households across the federal cost-burden threshold, meaning they’re spending more than 30% of household income on housing.

The report lands as Austin leaders are debating a proposed budget that would increase property taxes and utility costs by nearly $346 annually for the average homeowner.

“The story in the data is clear. While home prices across the region have stabilized since their 2022 peak, the true monthly cost of homeownership has continued to climb,” Emily Girard, Unlock MLS and Austin Board of Realtors CEO, said in the report. “None of these pressures directly appear in the sales price of a home. All of them show up in a family’s monthly budget.”… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ Redevelopment of Old West Austin's Nau's Enfield Drug takes shape (Austin Business Journal)

Plans are crystallized for the redevelopment of the beloved but closed Nau’s Enfield Drug store in Old West Austin — and several other sites nearby are poised for a new life, too.

Austin-based Zydeco Development Corp. has unveiled fresh details of the project, including its vision of how it could fit into the existing fabric of the community. The Westlyn, as the Nau's redevelopment project is called, is set to break ground next year. The five-story condo and retail development at 1115 West Lynn St. is a big pivot from what exists now at the property and the type of development typical of Zydeco, which is perhaps best known for its massive MetCenter business park in Southeast Austin.

In addition to 27 condo units, The Westlyn plans to bring more than 13,400 square feet of retail space. Approximately 4,700 square feet would be reserved for food and beverage. The developer envisions between four and seven tenants fitting into its retail space with neighborhood-friendly options.

The retail component has already generated some interest, but Zydeco is still searching for tenants to fill the space. John Heffington and Nicole Wimberly of Shop Companies will oversee leasing at The Westlyn, but Zydeco declined to provide lease rates for the retail component. Possible uses include a bodega, fitness and any amenities for the neighborhood… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ New police drones to assist law enforcement in Kyle (Community Impact)

At the beginning of 2025, the city of Kyle Police Department began considering implementing a “Drones as First Responders,” or DFR, program.

The Kyle City Council approved the purchase of two drones for the Police Department, partially funded through a Motor Vehicle Crime Prevention Authority grant, or MVCPA, in October 2025.

The program utilizes remotely controlled drones to observe and report information during active crimes, pursuits or emergencies to first responders and law enforcement.

“They’re designed to respond first and foremost to any situation in which they can help improve life safety of our citizens and our first responders,” Kyle Police Chief Jeff Barnett said. “There’s really a pretty wide variety of situations in which we can fly the drones.”

The drones provide a live feed to dispatchers, allowing them to communicate directly with first responders and provide direction and situational insight.

“The drones help put our people in the right spot, so it’s not always about the immediacy,” Barnett said. “That drone’s not going to go and land and save somebody’s life, but it can help our responding police, fire and EMS personnel get to the right location with the right equipment and the right people."

In addition to the DFR program, the city of Kyle operates 38 Flock Safety automated license plate reader cameras, or ALPRs, and 12 live feed cameras. Since their tentative implementation in March, the drones have seen success in their operations, Barnett said.

The Kyle Police Department has used the drones in a variety of situations, including the tracking of a suspect fleeing from the Kyle Public Safety Center into a nearby wooded area, Barnett said.

DFRs can be utilized in tandem with ALPRs in the city, Barnett said. If a license plate triggers a criminal activity alert, a drone can be deployed to that vehicle to observe the situation and provide information to officers… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ ERCOT: Texas’ power grid meeting record demand now, but could falter when it doubles by 2032 (Texas Tribune)

The demand on Texas’ energy grid by 2032 will be nearly double a record that was set last week, and state regulators say they will need more varied electrical generation to meet that demand. 

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) forecasts the statewide electric demand will reach roughly 175,000 megawatts — one megawatt can power 250 residential customers during peak hours — in six years, driven by a massive influx of data centers, along with Texas’ growing population and other industrial projects as the economy continues to boom, the council’s CEO Pablo Vegas told the state’s Senate Business and Commerce Committee on Wednesday. 

Regulators said they are confident the grid will meet that demand thanks to an influx of solar power and battery storage, but also cautioned that the state needs more natural gas power generation to keep the lights on when the sun goes down and solar quits generating electricity… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ Texas virtual schools expand as new law opens online opportunities (Dallas Morning News)

Last year, Texas lawmakers passed a bill overhauling the state’s framework for virtual schools. Senate Bill 569 makes it easier for public school districts and charter schools to offer individual courses or entire programs online.

State Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, the bill’s author, said it’s intended to replace "a patchwork of outdated virtual learning laws with a clear structure." Among other changes, the bill allows school districts to count students in their virtual and hybrid programs toward their average daily attendance, meaning they receive state funding for those students at the same rate as for in-person students. That provision in the bill was critical in getting Grand Prairie ISD’s new virtual program off the ground, said Felicia Layne, chancellor of the district’s Grand Prairie Collegiate Institute.

The new program, called Grand Prairie Collegiate Institute: NEXT, launches this fall. District leaders had discussed the possibility of launching a virtual school for years, Layne said. After schools reopened during the pandemic, some of the district’s students transferred to virtual programs, she said. So district leaders got to work building a virtual program that would allow Grand Prairie ISD students to take some or all of their classes online.

The idea was to give students and their families another option for their education and, in doing so, avoid losing those students to other school systems, she said. The district has lost about 3,600 since 2019, and while virtual schools aren’t the only factor driving that decline, Layne said the program is part of a larger strategy geared toward keeping students in the district… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ Flock cameras expand across Bexar County as privacy concerns grow (Texas Public Radio)

Automated license-plate readers are spreading across Bexar County, giving police a powerful investigative tool while prompting concerns about mass surveillance, civil rights and documented misuse.

Flock Safety cameras record license plates, vehicle descriptions, locations and times. Police use the searchable database to locate stolen vehicles, missing people and vehicles connected to crimes.

The Bexar County Sheriff’s Office operates 33 cameras. Its public dashboard recently showed more than 750,000 vehicle detections during a 30-day period. Flock cameras are also used by area municipalities and homeowners’ associations. Live Oak has credited the technology with arrests in 16 stolen-vehicle cases, while New Braunfels reported 19 arrests… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ Corpus Christi City Council rejects $60,000 community gift to benefit water desalination plant (Texas Tribune)

The Corpus Christi City Council voted 5-4 to reject a $60,000 gift intended to cover the cost of applying for a federal grant to help build a city-owned water treatment plant.

The Tuesday night vote confirms the strength of the anti-desalination bloc in the City Council, a month before members are expected to vote on whether to revive plans to build the $978.8 million Inner Harbor desalination plant.

Business and community leaders pledged the money in hopes of moving forward on a desalination plant capable of providing a drought-resistant water supply by removing salt from seawater collected from Corpus Christi Bay.

Tuesday’s vote came three weeks after a bitterly divided City Council declined to apply for the grant from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, which has a program offering up to $120 million to help build desalination plants across the country. Five council members opposed spending money and time applying for a grant for the proposed Inner Harbor desalination plant — a project that has not yet been approved and would take three years to build… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ OpenAI, Anthropic ask U.S. government to consider slowing down AI (Washington Post)

Two of the biggest players in the race to develop artificial intelligence endorsed a letter asking the U.S. government to find a way to slow down the development of the technology should it become too rapid. ChatGPT-maker OpenAI and its main rival, Anthropic, which provides the Claude chatbot, endorsed a petition released Tuesday that had been signed by hundreds of employees at the two companies, as well as Google, Meta and other leading companies working on AI.

The letter warned that companies could be close to automating the work of AI research, a development that it said could lead the technology to careen out of control. “We request that the U.S. government support an international effort to develop the technical and governance tools needed to deliberately pace the frontier of automated AI development,” the petition said. (The Washington Post has a content partnership with OpenAI.)

Coordinating international agreement to limit AI development would be a gargantuan diplomatic task that has been likened to implementing a nuclear weapons control treaty for software that can be freely distributed through the internet. In the United States and around the world, development of AI is largely unconstrained by regulation. Companies and national governments are investing billions of dollars to build and deploy the best technology they can.

That race has become a central part of the geopolitical competition between the U.S. and China. Despite the corporate endorsements and broad range of signatories to Tuesday’s letter, many people in the AI industry and across Silicon Valley argue that the technology should be aggressively pursued to bring about new innovations, cure diseases and help the U.S. maintain its military edge in the coming decades. The letter follows several other tech industry petitions since the 2022 launch of ChatGPT in which prominent AI researchers or executives called for a pause on AI development or warned that AI could wipe out humanity. The previous letters did not lead to major shifts in how companies or governments approached AI development… 🟪 (READ MORE)

✅ ICE arrests surge at airports, opening new front in deportation drive (New York Times)

The Trump administration has begun arresting foreign citizens with expired U.S. visas as they travel through airports, including spouses of Americans, according to documents obtained by The New York Times and interviews with immigration lawyers — a tactic that opens up a vast new pool of people for deportation. Immigration agents in plain clothes have whisked away targets at check-in counters and arrival gates, with enforcement actions in at least 15 airports in recent weeks. Some of the arrests have occurred quietly, while others have happened as angry fellow passengers filmed the encounters.

The recent arrests appear to be an expansion of an arrangement between the Transportation Security Administration and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The Times reported in December that ICE officers were arresting people with deportation orders at airports with the help of information provided by airlines to the T.S.A.

Now, through a review of Homeland Security Department documents and interviews with lawyers for more than 25 people from more than a dozen countries recently detained at airports, The Times has learned that the program apparently now includes people with expired visas — a much larger group. Hundreds of thousands of immigrants and visitors overstay visas each year. Many with expired visas occupy a legal gray area, as they are awaiting visa extensions or green cards and have been issued work permits. Such individuals were not prioritized for deportation in the past unless they had committed crimes, and they were rarely detained while waiting for visa extensions or green cards.

But that has changed under President Trump, whose administration has undertaken a campaign of mass deportation and views all visa overstays as illegal. “This administration is working diligently to ensure that aliens in our country illegally can no longer fly unless it is out of our country to self-deport,” a spokesperson for the Homeland Security Department said in a statement. The agency did not confirm the expansion of the program… 🟪 (READ MORE)