Austinites have a chance to voice their opinions on the city's budget priorities through a series of town hall meetings titled "Your Budget, Your Priorities: Community Conversations with T.C. Broadnax." These meetings, hosted by City Manager T.C. Broadnax, aim to gather public input essential to shaping the City of Austin's fiscal year 2025-26 budget.
Having taken the office in May 2024, this is Broadnax's first full budget cycle, and as he facilitates this engagement with the Austin community, for whom he serves, Broadnax remarked on the significance of involving residents early in the budgeting journey, the city’s website reports that he stated identifying "community priorities is important." As spring approaches, city staff will explore city and community needs, and lay the groundwork for the City Manager's proposed budget that will be pitched to the City Council in mid-July, following a period of review, analysis, and amendments, the Austin City Council is set to adopt in mid-August.
Details on when and where the town hall meetings will occur are now available, starting with the first gathering scheduled for Monday, Feb. 24, at 6:30 p.m. at McNeil High School. Other sessions will follow throughout March and conclude on Thursday, April 3, at the Northwest Recreation Center, all designed to allow residents to learn about the budgeting process and share their thoughts ahead of the official proposal.
Notably, efforts have been made to ensure inclusivity; interpretation services for American Sign Language and Spanish will be provided, and for anyone requiring other languages, requests can be placed by calling 3-1-1 or 512-974-2000 at least 72 hours beforehand, according to the city's announcement, and for those who can’t make the in-person meetings, the opportunity for input doesn't cease with the town halls, commencing next week, Monday, February 24, the community will find a survey available on the city’s website to offer feedback on the upcoming budget.
For complete information on the town hall meetings and how to provide feedback virtually, visit austintexas.gov/budget.
