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Austin 
Thu May 23, 2013 at 10:00 PM CDT
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The Dallas Voice is reporting today that Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins has endorsed marriage equality.
According to the article, Watkins supports a domestic partner registry. In an interview with the Voice, Watkins made this argument for equality:
"This is America, and we shouldn't discriminate against anyone for whatever reason, and so I think it's a disservice for us as Americans to say that just because you are a certain lifestyle, that you can't have the same rights as someone else," Watkins told the Voice. "I think it goes towards, you know, when we were going through the civil rights movement, issues that we dealt with back then, which, basically, I can understand very clearly because of who I am. ..."
"It goes back to quality of life issues, and as a DA, I'm responsible for improving the quality of the lives of all of the citizens I represent," Watkins said. "I'm the lawyer for everybody in Dallas County, and so I can't be against something that will make your life better. So I'm for whatever we need to do in Dallas County to make the quality of life better, and in my opinion to have that - marriage equality and the registry - it makes lives better for citizens of Dallas County."
While gay marriage is as yet not recognized in Texas, currently, several jurisdictions in Texas recognize domestic partnership benefits. They include Austin, San Antonio, El Paso, Dallas, and Fort Worth, as well as El Paso County, Travis County, and the Pflugerville ISD. The issue was brought to the fore nearly a month ago when Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott issued a non-binding, advisory opinion that political subdivisions in Texas could not recognize domestic partnerships and notably, Austin City Manager Marc Ott volleyed with a perfunctory: "[W]e do not intend to change domestic partner eligibility for our benefits program at this time."
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Sat May 11, 2013 at 02:38 PM CDT
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(Thanks to David Wogan for keeping us informed about what Governor "$10,000 Degree" wants to do to the generation of knowledge in Texas. - promoted by Katherine Haenschen)
Cross-posted from Scientific American
Hey, North Carolina, we're raising the ante on claim to the title of State Most Shamefully Committed to the Stupid Political Ruination of Science - except we're not that shameful about it. Instead, we're putting our boisterous Texas spin on it.
We've been most impressive with your attempt to legislate away sea level rise and stop counting votes and removing scientists from scientific commissions. But, we the Lone Star State, are not giving up without a fight.
You're well aware of Representative Lamar Smith's efforts to introduce the long lost step of the scientific method: passing political muster. But, that's not all. Texas oil man Jeff Sanderfer and our Dear Leader want to do away with the more trivial functions of first-class universities like, you know, research and writing books.
Because, really, what do research and books offer society?
Read more below the jump.
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Thu May 09, 2013 at 05:26 PM CDT
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 President Obama was in Austin Thursday to kick off his nationwide "Middle Class Jobs and Opportunity Tour", where he visited Manor New Tech High School and Applied Materials promoting tech jobs and his plan for a, "one-time $1 billion investment to create a network of 15 manufacturing institutes across the country."
His overall theme was that working together we can reignite the true engine of America's economic growth: a rising, thriving, middle class.
To achieve this he said would require three things: making America a magnet for good jobs; helping people earn the education and develop the skills to do those jobs; and ensuring that people who are working hard are able to achieve a decent living.
As part of his visit he also issued an executive order, "to make government-held data more accessible to the public and to entrepreneurs and others as fuel for innovation and economic growth."
"Corporate profits are at an alltime high, but thats not good enough, we have to make sure that middle-class wages are also going up, because most families haven't seen their take home pay rise for years now...There are a lot of reasons for us to feel optimistic about where we are going as a country, especially after all of the tough times we have been through the last several years. That should encourage us to roll up our sleeves and work even harder, and work together to take on the challenges that are holding back parts of our economy."
Governor Perry and Senator Ted Cruz haven't missed the opportunity to have a field day mocking the President over job creation and promoting their pro-business-at-any-cost "Texas model", in advance of his visit. Perry went as far as "greeting" President Obama at the airport with a letter and said that, "If the president is serious about creating jobs in this country, then Texas is the blueprint."
Close but no cigar Governor, according to the White House the President is here, "Showcasing the Innovative Spirit of Austin as a Model for the Rest of the Country". Our Republican state leaders continue to promote the Texas mirage that low taxes, low services, and low regulation alone are the fuel for our economic success, but the White House sees something very different and so do the facts.
Not only does Texas rank near the bottom on important statistics relating to quality of life, income and savings, but the areas in our state that lead in job creation also happen to be the bluest. Cities like Austin, San Antonio, Houston and Dallas constantly top the growth and job markets for the US and all 4 of their respective counties rejected Rick Perry as Governor in 2010. According to Forbes Texas also has two top 10 cities for green jobs, Houston and Dallas.
More below the jump!
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Wed May 08, 2013 at 07:00 PM CDT
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President Obama will be in Austin on Thursday as part of his "Middle Class Jobs & Opportunity Tour". He will start at Manor New Tech High School just outside of Austin, and then he will speak with tech workers to "discuss his vision for ensuring that hard work leads to a decent living." Next, he will meet with technology entrepreneurs and finally, he will visit Applied Materials, "one of the tech companies that has made Austin a hub for innovation and job creation."
Burnt Orange Report will have live coverage of the President's visit on our Facebook and Twitter feeds.
The President's open schedule is as follows.
ARRIVAL: 12:15 p.m. at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport
Remarks at Manor New Tech High School
1:05 p.m.
Manor New Tech High School Gymnasium
10323 US Highway 290 East
Manor, TX 78653
Remarks at Applied Materials
4:40 p.m.
Applied Materials - Building 30
9700 US Highway 290 East
Austin, TX 78724
Below the jump, read Texas Democratic Party Chairman Gilbert Hinojosa's email to Democrats about the visit.
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Tue May 07, 2013 at 05:52 PM CDT
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 UPDATE: The Mayor has postponed the vote this morning; the agenda item will now be up for a vote on May 23. A large number of citizens - including myself - had already scheduled the time to talk and discuss this tonight; it's a shame it got pulled so quickly and with such little notice. More here on the postponement. On the upside, it gives me more time to publicly research and write about the companies and corporations who are pressuring Leffingwell on this issue.
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The City of Austin - led by Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell - is preparing to take away control of Austin Energy from the public. If you want to take action, go here.
Currently, Austin Energy is managed by the City Council, which means citizens of Austin can hold those who make decisions about our energy policies directly accountable. Austin Energy is our city's largest asset, and when the people of Austin voted for Mayor Leffingwell and our City Council members, we voted for them to be in control of Austin Energy. Now, instead of asking citizens to vote on a charter amendment so voters can decide the future of Austin Energy, Mayor Leffingwell and City Council are preparing to take the power away from us without asking.
Mayor Leffingwell did not run on this issue. As I told him the first time Council considered this a few weeks ago, I would not have voted for him if he had announced this while he was running. I was in the minority of Austin environmentalists when I kept my support behind Leffingwell over Brigid Shea. I now believe I made a mistake.
This Thursday, at Austin City Hall, there will be a second and third reading on this proposal. Please speak out against an un-elected Austin Energy board.
Read more about what this proposed ordinance does below the jump.
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Mon May 06, 2013 at 10:30 AM CDT
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According to analysis of the INRIX 2012 Traffic Scorecard, Austin has a higher traffic congestion score than New York City. While that might be comforting news to Rep. Elliott Naishtat, an Austin Democrat from New York City (whose introduction into local politics began with a joke about his anterior habitation), Austin scored 4th for congestion behind San Francisco, Honolulu, and Los Angeles which was rated America's most congested.
#4: Austin
- Congestion score: 20.7
- Population density: 406.7 people per sq. mile (70th highest)
- Average commute time: 25.8 minutes (45th highest)
- Pct. driving to work: 85.8% (47th lowest)
No metro area with more than a million residents had a greater percentage increase in population from July 1, 2011, and July 1, 2012, than Austin's 3% growth, according to the Austin Statesman. This is hardly news for the area, which has expanded rapidly for more than a decade and, like much of the state, has been unable to expand transportation infrastructure to handle this growth. In 2012, Austin was one of four metro areas with an INRIX index score higher than 20, well above the 6.6 score for the U.S. overall. It was also one of just six large metro areas in which the INRIX index score worsened compared to the year before.
Emphasis mine. But before I discuss why Austin is where it is, let's be sure everyone's on the same page about what's being measured here. Click to continue reading.
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Mon Apr 29, 2013 at 04:54 PM CDT
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April can be the cruelest month. In a defeat for civil rights and home rule in Texas, Texas Attorney Greg Abbott scaled back rights for same-sex couples in cities such as Austin, Pflugerville, El Paso, Fort Worth, and others.
In November, State Senator Dan Patrick sent a request for an official opinion to Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, asking this question:
"Does Art. 1, ยง32 of the Texas Constitution that defines marriage as one man and one woman and prohibits government recognition of any legal status identical or similar to marriage preclude political subdivisions of Texas from providing so-called domestic partnership benefits to their employees?"
Today, in a six-page opinion , Greg Abbott struck down advances in civil liberties for same sex couples in Texas, and answered Patrick's letter stating that it does.
Patrick had been upset that insurance benefits were offered to members of same-sex couples in Travis County, the City of Austin, Pflugerville ISD, El Paso, Fort Worth, the City of San Antonio, and El Paso County.
Abbott's letter first argues that Section 32 - the section in question - applies to Texas cities, counties, and school districts (no word yet on municipal utility districts or MUDs). It then asks whether these political subdivisions have created or recognized a legal status, and, if so, whether that legal status is identical or similar to marriage.
Abbott's letter answers "yes" to both questions, at the end stating that Section 32 "prohibits political subdivisions from creating a legal status of domestic partnership and recognizing that status by offering public benefits based upon it," but not before cautioning that the U.S. Supreme Court's upcoming rulings on DOMA and Prop 8 might make this very letter unenforceable.
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Fri Apr 19, 2013 at 07:04 AM CDT
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Today, starting at 8am, donations of $100 or more will be matched, up to $20,000 for the Ride. The Ride is in a week - next Saturday the 27th - and they are only at 39% of the goal raised. So, if you can, please pitch in $100 today (or pool your resources & donate together, to total $100 or more)
I have some t-shirts from past years, in various sizes that I got in order to give away. People who donate $100 or more will get one. I'll figure out how to mail them later, but I've got shirts & I need donations, so come read the rest of the diary for some music (you didn't think I was going to post a diary without music, did you?). Or you could donate at my Hill Country Ride page. If you want a shirt and I have one in your size, we'll figure out the mailing thing.
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Thu Apr 18, 2013 at 01:00 PM CDT
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Trying to explain the Independent Citizens Redistricting process is admittedly hard. KUT has boiled it down before using infographics. This post takes you through where we are in the process for Austin to draw 10 single-member districts to ensure geographic diversity on the city council when new elections take place in November of 2014.
So first off, where are we? Click here to continue.
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Wed Apr 10, 2013 at 06:08 PM CDT
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The Austin City Council has agreed to a "time certain" scheduling for their first reading vote on Austin Energy governance tomorrow, April 11. They will be discussing the matter at 4 PM, and various environmental, public interest, social justice, civil rights and other advocacy organizations will be rallying then to make sure they know that the people of Austin do not want an unelected board deciding the future of Austin Energy.
WHAT: Stand up for public accountability for Austin's public utility, Austin Energy
WHERE: Austin City Hall, 301 E. 2nd Street (Parking is free with validation in the garage there
WHEN: Thursday, April 11, 4 PM
WHO: SEED Coalition, Public Citizen, Texas Campaign for the Environment, PODER, Occupy Austin, Sierra Club and more
WHY: Austin's public utility is our most important public asset. We have used it to make a stand for renewable energy, and to take concrete action on climate change. It also provides money for Austin parks, libraries and other important facilities and services. The progressive direction of the utility is a direct consequence of public pressure effective because Austin's elected officials run the agency. While there is legitimate room for improvement, the ordinance that will be considered tomorrow represents the interests of a small handful of powerful corporate buyers of electricity who want a board more pliable for them, less interested in us.
We will have some food available, but the real sustenance is in the work of direct democracy. Come early, be loud, stay late and get ready to defend Austin Energy!
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