Bills targeting Austin start trickling at Legislature. But how far will they go?

Bill filing is underway in the Texas Legislature ahead of the 88th session, and some lawmakers are laying the groundwork for their priorities while others take aim at Austin.

Two anti-Austin bills are in the pipeline, the most fractious coming in a long-shot proposal from state Rep. Jared Patterson, R-Frisco, to abolish the capital city and fold it into a planned district under the lieutenant governor's and House speaker's authority. A similar bill came up last session and died.

The second bill, from state Rep.-elect Ellen Troxclair, R-Lakeway, who once represented Southwest Austin on the City Council, would prohibit cities from giving out taxpayer money to struggling residents under a program, already underway as a pilot in Austin, known as guaranteed income. In Austin, 85 families are getting $1,000 a month for a year to spend as they please. The program, which has not yet been reviewed for long-term viability, costs taxpayers $1 million.

By bringing forward the legislation, Troxclair, elected in House District 19 this month, is making good on a campaign promise to end Austin's money handout.

"Getting a job is what lifts people out of poverty, and I think the misuse of taxpayer money is causing insult to injury to Austinites struggling to make ends meet," Troxclair said.

The Legislative session will begin Jan. 10. The deadline to file bills is March 10.

The anti-Austin bills are the first but, Troxclair warns, maybe not the last to target Austin, whose liberal policies often become prey for the political right. Two years ago, GOP lawmakers worked successfully to undo controversial measures Austin approved related to police budget cuts and allowing public camping, and fought unsuccessfully on behalf of wealthy lakefront homeowners who wished to disannex from and stop paying taxes to the city.

As usual, the city and state are pointing the finger at each other as the instigator. Austin says its policies, as extreme as Republicans think they are, benefit the city's 1 million residents, and that the state should back off.

"These are residents who have voted us in to represent their interests, and we can't do our job if the state legislators think they know better than us," Council Member Vanessa Fuentes said.

But the GOP, the majority party in both the House and Senate, believes it's responsible for holding Austin and its lawmakers accountable for what they consider issues on safety and affordability in the capital city.

"Elected officials in Austin have failed their city," said Patterson, the Frisco lawmaker. "Record high taxes and crime are pushing folks out of the city, and their San Francisco wannabe policies force the state to come over the top on legislation each session."

Troxclair said, "It's up to state leaders to make sure the Texas miracle lives on despite efforts from some of the liberal cities to make Austin more and more like San Francisco, which we don't want."

'We'll see what happens'

Troxclair's arrival in the Legislature could spell trouble for Austin's progressive agenda.

On a political island as a conservative on the City Council from 2015 to 2018, Troxclair lacked support to pass meaningful legislation. Now, with that scenario flipped in the statehouse, she looks to accomplish things she never could at City Hall.

Though Troxclair declined to give specifics, she said she's planning additional legislation to thwart Austin policies.

"There are some things I'm working on," she said. "We'll see what happens the rest of the session."

A safe bet is a Republican lawmaker, maybe Troxclair, will file a bill targeting the city's abortion protections.

Over the summer, Austin, responding to the state's new abortion ban, directed its Police Department to make abortion investigations a very low priority and to refuse to cooperate in similar investigations conducted by outside agencies. Austin was joined in passing what is known as the GRACE Act by other local jurisdictions, including Dallas and San Antonio.

Fuentes, who represents Southeast Austin on the City Council, co-sponsored the abortion act as well as the money handout program. She says that in hindsight the city maybe should have used language less exciting than "guaranteed income." Perhaps it could have been "family stabilization grant," she said.

"I now realize uniquely how important messaging is, working in the capital city," Fuentes said. "A lot of these state legislators have their aides live in Austin. Their aides are keeping tabs on what we're doing. It is important the messaging we're putting out."

Through Monday, the beginning of the second week of bill filing, lawmakers had proposed more than 1,000 bills. And one of them actually supports an Austin policy. In May, Austin voters banned the use of no-knock warrants by police. A bill from Rep. Ron Reynolds, D-Fort Bend County, would have Texas adopt that prohibition.

"That's great to see," Austin Mayor Steve Adler said. "Cities can be the incubator for innovation. When cities are able to do something that works, you hope the state will expand it. That's good to hear."

Adler, unlike in the last session, is not yet the subject of any bills. Annoyed by Austin's tent encampments, state Rep. Bryan Slaton, R-Royse City, sought to rename a part of Interstate 35 the Steve Adler Public Restroom Highway. The bill died in the session.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas Legislature: Some GOP lawmakers start filing anti-Austin bills