Bike Austin opposes Proposition A about police staffing (2021)

MichaelBluejay · 2021-09-22 11:29:19

Proposition A would require Austin to increase the size of its police force at considerable cost. The group opposing it, No Way on Prop A, lists a bunch of organizations on its side, including Bike Austin. That's probably true, but of course there's nothing on Bike Austin's website about that. Heck, Bike Austin's website doesn't even say who its staff is.

Jack · 2021-09-22 11:56:40

If true, I'd say it's mistake for Bike Austin to enter any fray that is not about bicycling and only bicycling. Harms the
brand.

dougmc · 2021-09-22 12:50:15

This page gives the board of directors ...

Chris Riley, President
Hill Abell, Treasurer
David Walker
Stanton Truxillo
Adam Greenfield

NoWayOnPropA's list of people includes both Chris's and Hill's name as well (as individuals).

So, whether it was a good idea or not, I think we know who made the decision.

MichaelBluejay · 2021-09-22 13:43:01

I did see the BoD page, but who's the staff?

Endorsements should be made by either a majority of the BoD, or the executive director, if the director is authorized to make such decisions.

I don't necessarily disagree with the decision, I'll be voting No on Prop. A myself, but if an organization is taking a side on an issue it should say so publicly (on its website). Of course, for that matter it should also say who its staff is, publish its budget, etc.

Could be a bike issue because of the mistreatment of cyclists at the hands of the police. But this is about police staffing levels, so maybe not related enough.

Chris · 2021-09-22 15:39:41

Bike Austin's board voted on 9/8/2021 to oppose Proposition A. There was no opposition to this position, so I can't say we had a very vigorous discussion about it. Bike-wise, I think systematically starving the City's general fund would be a big mistake -- one that would manifest in a lot of small ways, like worse maintenance of parks, shorter hours for parks & libraries, and reduced staffing for planning. I generally agree with the points made by the organized opposition (see https://nowaypropa.com/), which seems to be doing a lot of work on organizing & outreach.

The only paid staffperson Bike Austin has had in the past couple years is Alex Ecenia, alex /at/ bikeaustin.org, who's been helping on a contract basis for a few hours a week since early 2020, focusing mainly on social media.

I agree that it'd be helpful to have a more robust website with info about all this and other things too, and I'm hoping we'll make good progress on that in the next few months. I think it's fair to say we've had some bandwidth issues; there's a lot going on these days. If anyone would like to get involved, let me know.

Chris Riley

MichaelBluejay · 2021-09-22 20:41:28

Thank you for replying Chris. Yeah, I forgot the obvious: Double the police budget, less money for everything else, including bike lanes.

Austin becomes a mini version of the U.S., which spends most of its budget on the military, leaving less for education, housing, homelessness, infrastructure, etc.

Bicycle Austin forum

#1 2021-09-22 11:29:19

Bike Austin opposes Proposition A about police staffing (2021)

#2 2021-09-22 11:56:40

Re: Bike Austin opposes Proposition A about police staffing (2021)

#3 2021-09-22 12:50:15

Re: Bike Austin opposes Proposition A about police staffing (2021)

#4 2021-09-22 13:43:01

Re: Bike Austin opposes Proposition A about police staffing (2021)

#5 2021-09-22 15:39:41

Re: Bike Austin opposes Proposition A about police staffing (2021)

#6 2021-09-22 20:41:28

Re: Bike Austin opposes Proposition A about police staffing (2021)

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