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Savannah Lee, of Equity Action, in November 2025. The group\u00a0is among 30 organizations urging Austin City Council to prioritize social services spending as budget season nears.<\/p>\n
Sara Diggins\/Austin American-Statesman<\/p>\n
A coalition of more than 30 community groups is calling on city leaders to restore millions in proposed cuts<\/a> to social service contracts and fund additional \u00a0programs by limiting growth in the Austin Police Department budget.<\/p>\n The coalition this week released a \u201ccommunity investment budget\u201d calling for roughly $36 million for programs including emergency rental assistance, violence prevention, homelessness services, mental health response and inclement weather sheltering.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The proposal comes weeks before Austin City Manager T.C. Broadnax is expected to release an austerity budget proposal for the upcoming fiscal year that must account for a $25 million shortfall. Broadnax has already indicated he plans to achieve that by cutting $17 million from social service programs.<\/p>\n The coalition is asking the City Council to reject that approach.<\/p>\n \u201cInstead of funding APD to the tune of $500 million-plus, we should invest in social services,\u201d said Savannah Lee of Equity Action, one of the organizations behind the proposal.<\/p>\n The coalition is not asking the city to cut police spending below its current level as Texas law limits cities\u2019 ability to reduce police budgets below previous spending levels. Instead, advocates want council members to keep the Police Department budget flat by rejecting spending increases where possible.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n That could be difficult given that the city is obligated to fund major raises for Austin police officers under a labor contract ratified in late 2024.<\/p>\n Lee acknowledged that the contract will increase the Police Department\u2019s budget. But she said council members should scrutinize other areas of police spending growth, including funding for positions that have remained vacant for long periods.<\/p>\n \u201cInstead of funding those empty seats, we could fund some of these investments the community needs,\u201d Lee said.<\/p>\n Austin police move through the crowd on Sixth Street during SXSW in 2019.<\/p>\n American-Statesman file photo<\/p>\n The coalition\u2019s request includes $4.5 million to expand the city\u2019s inclement weather shelter program, $4 million to restore emergency rental assistance, $3.5 million to continue operating a trauma recovery center for crime victims and $3 million for shelter services.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Several of those programs were reduced or eliminated after Austin voters rejected a property tax increase in November. Community violence intervention funding, for example, was reduced from $1 million to $500,000. The coalition is asking the city to provide $800,000 for those programs next year.<\/p>\n Terra Tucker, Texas state director with the Alliance for Safety and Justice, another coalition group, said violence intervention programs should be viewed as public safety spending because they can help identify conflicts before they escalate.<\/p>\n \u201cWe support police, but they are responsive to crime after it happens,\u201d Tucker said.<\/p>\n Some council members said the coalition\u2019s requests align with concerns they already have raised about the budget.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Council Member Ryan Alter pointed to programs organizers want protected, including permanent supportive housing and 24\/7 mental health crisis response.<\/p>\n “I know we can’t fund all of the things they’re asking for, but at a minimum we should do what we can to not go backwards,” Alter said.<\/p>\n Read More: Amid ongoing budget crunch, Austin orders rubric for $17M social service cuts<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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