SAVE AUSTIN NOW: Mackowiak & Loewy Pen AAS Guest Column on Budget Priorities // City Cancels Budget Meeting After Flub // SAN Encourages Support for AFA Charter Amendment // Recent Media Appearances
Deep Dives
Explore related topics with these Wikipedia articles, rewritten for enjoyable reading:
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Tax resistance
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The article describes Austin voters overwhelmingly rejecting a property tax increase, which fits into a broader American tradition of taxpayer revolts. Understanding historical tax revolts like Proposition 13 in California provides context for this local political movement.
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Council–manager government
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The article references both the City Council and City Manager T.C. Broadnax as key players in Austin's budget process. Understanding this specific form of municipal government structure helps readers grasp the power dynamics and responsibilities discussed.
Good early Friday morning --
A few more updates this morning:
Mackowiak & Loewy Pen AAS Guest Column on Budget Priorities
Save Austin Now co-chair Mackowiak (Republican) and local business and community leader Adam Loewy (Democrat) penned a guest column for the Austin American-Statesman on what we think the budget priorities should be after the overwhelming defeat of Prop Q.
Prop Q’s defeat gives Austin a chance to refocus on basics
Instead of significant new spending, voters want better core services. City Hall should start with what’s broken.
By Matt Mackowiak and Adam Loewy
Austin American-Statesman
November 13, 2025
Austin voters sent a clear message in overwhelmingly rejecting Proposition Q, an ill-considered and unjustified tax hike plan that 109,000 Austinites voted against to deliver a stunning 63%-37% defeat to Mayor Kirk Watson and nine of 10 City Council members.
Only Council Member Marc Duchen had the foresight and the courage to oppose Prop Q. He saw the damage it would do, and diagnosed the deep and undeniable taxpayer distrust.
The message taxpayers sent was this: We don’t trust City Hall right now.
We recognize that many cities face predictable yet tough budget climates, as temporary federal COVID funding has run out.
Faced with a $33 million deficit, the council proposed Prop Q, a 20.2% city property tax hike that would have generated $110 million a year, with $35.5 million going to address homelessness. Taxpayers roundly rejected it.
Prop Q’s defeat was about credibility. When people no longer trust that City Hall is spending wisely, they won’t hand over more control or more money.
Residents see a city budget that now exceeds $6 billion — larger than that of some states. The general fund, the discretionary part of the budget, has risen from about $906 million in 2015 to $1.4 billion this year. That’s a 55% increase over the past decade, during which time the city’s population grew just 10%.
Do residents see results that justify that budget? No, they don’t. They deal with slow emergency response times, short-staffed police and EMS units, a misguided proposal to lower staffing shifts for fire, deteriorating roads and soaring housing costs. For a city that prides itself on innovation, Austin often struggles with basic delivery of core services.
If City Hall wants to rebuild trust after Prop Q, it should start by refocusing its budget priorities.
First, restore public safety capacity. The
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