Among the nearly 120 items on the Austin City Council’s Thursday agenda are a minimum wage increase, two resolutions calling for gun control policies, and approving a controversial plan to turn an aged hotel into a homeless shelter.
If passed, the city’s minimum wage will increase from $17 per hour to $22 next year. It also includes a directive that the city manager “shall develop a plan that includes increasing the living wage each year to reach an hourly rate of $27.00.”
The cost of living in Austin is rising rapidly, with rents increasing by an average of 35 percent according to the city and appraisals in Travis County jumping 56 percent this year. Higher appraisals means more paid in taxes, funding the now $10.3 billion Project Connect light rail plan for which voters approved partial spending in 2020.
According to the council’s resolution, city staff vacancies are at 17 percent across the board — 25 percent in emergency medical services, 19 percent in the Austin Police Department, and 9 percent in the Austin Fire Department.
After the Uvalde shooting, governmental bodies across the nation are reevaluating gun policy, some more enthusiastically than others. The Austin City Council is among those calling for substantial restrictions on access to firearms. Before the council this week are two resolutions: one directing the city manager to evaluate ways to prohibit those under the age of 21 from purchasing an AR-15 rifle, and another calling for broader restrictions.
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