This week, Austin City Council could send charter changes to you for a vote

Grace Reader
·3 min read

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Thursday, Austin City Council could vote to send city charter changes to your November ballot. Those possible changes include the number of signatures required for you to get a citizen-initiated petition or a city council member recall to voters.

City council created a Charter Review Commission last year to look at city charter issues like petition signature requirements. The group presented its proposed changes to city council last week.

The recommendations include changing the number of signatures required for a citizen-initiated petition to end up on the ballot. Some examples of petitions approved by Austin voters include last year’s police oversight proposition and the city’s camping ban.

Right now, the required number of signatures required to get a petition on the ballot is 20,000 or 5% of registered voters, whichever is less. However, since Austin’s population has grown so rapidly, 20,000 is always less.

The Charter Review Commission is recommending that number change to a flat 3.5% of registered voters.

Another change the commission is recommending, tackling what happens when conflicting initiatives end up on your ballot. That happened last year, when two police oversight measures with the same name, but competing language, both ended up for a vote.

Only one passed, but what would have happened if they both had passed is currently unclear. The commission recommended that whichever proposition gets the most votes would be implemented.

The group also recommended increasing the number of signatures required to get a city council member recalled, from 10% of registered voters in a council member’s district to 15%.

But again, no changes can be made to City Charter without being put before voters — If city council votes to push these changes forward, Austin voters will decide on them in November.

Here are all of the Charter Review Recommendations, as written to city council:

  • Alphabetic rotation for proposition lettering: “This recommendation requires ballot propositions to be labeled sequentially through the alphabet until its completion.”

  • 3.5% signature threshold for petitions: “This recommendation sets a durable signature threshold for the approval of citizen initiative and referendum petitions at 3.5% of qualified Austin voters.”

  • Signature, Form, and Notice of Intent for Petitions: “This recommendation addresses signature validity and requires a notice of intent with a 90-day deadline.”

  • Citizen-Initiated Petitions on Municipal General Election Dates: “This recommendation requires council to select the earliest municipal general election date when it orders an election for Charter changes or citizen-initiated initiatives.”

  • Conflicting Ballot Initiatives: “This recommendation requires the implementation of the provisions of the proposition receiving the highest number of votes.”

  • Disclosure & Contribution Limits for Recall Petitions: “This recommendation requires public disclosure and campaign finance reporting for contributions and expenditures made related to recall petitions.”

  • Recall Signature Thresholds: “This recommendation requires the recall of a city council member with a petition containing valid signatures of at least 15% of qualified voters within the respective council district instead of the current 10% of qualified voters.”

  • Ratification of City Attorney Appointment: “The CRC recommends that the city manager appoint or remove the city attorney with the confirmation of council.”

  • Designated Assistant City Attorney: “This recommendation designates an attorney within the city attorney’s office to serve as a liaison to the council.”

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