What is Proposition A (Prop A)?

According to Ballotpedia, Austin Proposition A is “a petitioned ordinance to enhance public safety and police oversight, transparency and accountability by adding a new chapter 2-16 to establish minimum standards for the police department”. It is on the ballot as an initiative in Austin on November 2nd, 2021 with Early Voting starting October 18 and ending October 29.

The Texas Supreme Court voted unanimously for the Proposition A ballot language following a lawsuit filed by the 30,000 Austinites who signed the initiative petition. Save Austin Now is leading the campaign in support of Proposition B.

On August 13, 2020, the Austin City Council voted to repeal one-third of Austin Public Safety funding without enacting any reforms or safeguards. Since then, a strong bipartisan majority of 80% of Austinites surveyed report the city has become less safe with more crime and aggression.

To reverse these votes, Proposition A was put on the ballot through a successful indirect initiative petition drive. In Austin, to place an initiated ordinance on the ballot petitioners must collect 5% of qualified voters of the city or 20,000, whichever number is the smaller. In January 2021, the number of qualified voters in Travis County was 553,166.[10]

Save Austin Now, the sponsor behind the initiative, filed over 27,000 signatures with the city clerk. The city clerk certified the petition and the Austin City Council voted to certify the initiative to the ballot.[11]

Proposition A has created a great deal of anxiety. Austin residents have said that their city is unrecognizable from just 2 years ago, with crime and aggression rampant. The homeless population has ballooned as well.

Proposition A for Austin

Proposition A covers the entire City of Austin and reinstates our laws from 2019 that ensured adequate public safety. It also enacts important policing reforms. It will restore the safety that we lost when Mayor Adler and Councilman Casar cut our public safety by 30% without making any meaningful reforms. Prop A is on the Nov 2nd ballot. What all does it cover?

• It restores an adequate number of police for a city our side according to a national “Safe City Standard” to end the surge in 911 response times and unsolved crimes.

• It doubles mandatory training hours on the tensest and highest-pressure situations - to 40 hours - for Austin police.

• It aligns community policing with the diversity of our neighborhoods, including officer foreign-language proficiency requirements.

What Will Your Ballot Say?

The Exact Ballot Language for Prop A is Below:

The exact ballot language for this proposition, Proposition A on the November 2nd ballot, is as follows:

“A PETITIONED ORDINANCE TO ENHANCE PUBLIC SAFETY AND POLICE OVERSIGHT, TRANSPARENCY, AND ACCOUNTABILITY BY ADDING NEW CHAPTER 2-16 TO ESTABLISH MINIMUM STANDARDS FOR THE POLICE DEPARTMENT TO ENSURE EFFECTIVE PUBLIC SAFETY AND PROTECT RESIDENTS AND VISITORS TO AUSTIN, AND PRESCRIBING MINIMAL REQUIREMENTS FOR ACHIEVING THE SAME.”

WHAT DOES THAT MEAN IN PRACTICE? THE BILL DOES THE FOLLOWING:

BEGINS TO REBUILD AFTER THE DE-FUNDING BY MANDATING “SAFE CITY STANDARD” STAFFING LEVELS WHICH WILL ALLOW US TO BRING BACK THE SLASHED UNITS SUCH AS GANGS UNIT, LAKE PATROL, SPECIAL INVESTIGATIONS, AND DWI UNIT.

ENDS THE PRACTICE OF GIVING AUSTIN POLICE JUST MINIMAL TRAINING ON THE MOST DIFFICULT SITUATIONS: MANDATES 40 HOURS EVERY YEAR OF NEW TRAINING.

ENDS THE PRACTICE OF SENDING OFFICERS INTO NEIGHBORHOODS WHO DON’T KNOW THEM OR SPEAK THE LANGUAGE BY ENSURING COMMUNITY-BASED DIVERSITY AND FOREIGN LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY OF THE OFFICERS IN THOSE NEIGHBORHOODS.