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Austin council advances budget package, adds amendments tied to a proposed tax-rate election
Summary
After 11 hours of public comment, the Austin City Council moved a consolidated budget package toward adoption, adding staff and council amendments and a separate council proposal that keeps a proposed tax-rate election near 5 cents while funding homeless strategy, mental-health response units and other priorities.
The Austin City Council spent the day hearing more than 400 public comments and debating hundreds of budget lines before adopting a staff-produced package of changes to the city manager’s proposed 2025–26 budget and voting on supplemental council amendments.
Councilmembers first approved a staff-prepared set of 12 technical and revenue-neutral changes and a block of revenue-neutral council amendments. Later in the evening, a multi-councilmember amendment combining additional policy priorities was adopted after roll-call (6–5), moving the package closer to a plan that assumes a tax-rate election in which the proposed increase is about five cents on the city property tax rate.
The consolidated change package that the council adopted or folded into the base motion funds homeless strategy office elements, increases funding for community mental-health responses and family stabilization and restores several previously proposed cuts. Council members also approved a series of targeted amendments including overtime and staffing support for…
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