BG Note | News - What We're Reading (November 7, 2017)
[Austin Metro]
Here's Everything You Need To Know To Vote In Central Texas (KUT) LINK TO STORY
Texas' seven constitutional amendments aren't the only thing on the ballot this Election Day.
Voters across Central Texas will decide the fate of school bond propositions, charter amendments and plenty of city council elections on Nov. 7. Here's a roundup of everything on the upcoming ballot...
Commission fails to endorse police contract (Austin Monitor) LINK TO STORY
Citing a lack of information, the Public Safety Commission on Monday declined to endorse the union contract recently hammered out between the Austin Police Association and city labor negotiators.
In addition to concerns expressed by some commissioners about shortcomings of the contract cited by activists urging greater police accountability, some members of the commission voted against recommending the contract after acknowledging that they haven’t read it yet...
Ethics Commission throws out three exhibits in complaint against AISD (Austin American-Statesman) LINK TO STORY
The Texas Ethics Commission won’t consider three of the four issues cited in a complaint against the Austin school district, saying the allegations, if true, don’t constitute violations.
The Travis County Taxpayers Union, and community member Karen Flanagan, alleged district employees had violated the Election Code by using public resources to lobby voters to support the school district’s $1.1 billion bond package...
[STATE]
Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez explores possible race for governor against Greg Abbott, her immigration sparring partner (Dallas Morning News) LINK TO STORY
Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez, a Democrat, is exploring a possible bid for governor. While she would be an underdog against Republican Gov. Greg Abbott if she were to run, Valdez told The Texas Tribune on Monday that she's "in the exploratory process" and studying election data. Abbott, who beat Democrat Wendy Davis by 20 percentage points in 2014, reported a campaign fund balance of $41 million in July. He faces no major GOP opponent and is expected to file his candidacy for a second term Saturday...
[NATION]
Cornyn Says Texas Shooting May Prompt Look at Background Checks (Bloomberg) LINK TO STORY
John Cornyn, the No. 2 Senate Republican, said the massacre at a Texas church may prompt Congress to look into whether there are gaps in the firearms background-check system that allowed the gunman to get the weapon used to kill 26 men, women and children.
Cornyn said in a brief interview Tuesday that there are numerous questions about whether the gunman, identified by police as Devin Patrick Kelley, 26, could have legally possessed the semiautomatic rifle used in the attack in the small town of Sutherland Springs, Texas...