Join the AUSTIN Firefighters and votE NO ON PROP A

Early Voting is OCTOBER 18 - October 29, 2021

Election Day is TUESDAY, November 2, 2021

YOUR AUSTIN FIREFIGHTERS URGE YOU TO VOTE NO ON PROPOSITION A

Please click on the link below to watch the AFA Press Conference as this will give you an idea of the tone of our campaign as well as explain why Austin Firefighters are urging you to vote no on Prop A.

AFA PRESS CONFERENCE ON PROP A

Firefighters Deeply Respect and Support our Austin Police Officers

Austin Firefighters love and respect our Austin Police Officers. Firefighters work with Police every day and both departments are sworn to keep the citizens of Austin safe and we do this together to the best of our abilities.

Both Police and Firefighters serve in high-stakes jobs, where we must make decisions under high stress and under compressed timelines where we put our lives on the line each and every day.

We consider Austin Police Officers our Brothers and Sisters and we respect them. The Austin Firefighters were very disturbed by the disrespect shown to the fine men and women of the Austin Police Department as of late, especially during the defunding exercises.

The Austin Firefighters opposition to Prop A is only about our legitimate concern about the negative consequences of a very poorly written law.

Prop A is a Poorly Written Law

The proposed law (Prop A) that the Austin Police Association and Save Austin Now have written, is very poorly written. The law was written with cost escalators that go well beyond the cost of 2 police per thousand, which I believe the authors did not fully understand, but in a law, words matter because they can be challenged and enforced in court.

The vote of the full membership of the Austin Firefighters Association (AFA) to oppose Prop A was never about disrespecting the Police, it was only about examining the negative consequences of a poorly written proposed law, that if passed, would have enormous negative impacts on Public Safety, including Fire and EMS…as well as parks, libraries and other City services.

It is also important to point out that this law has no provision that provides flexibility if the City budget becomes too financially stressed. It would not matter, the money would have to go to the Police to meet the mandate.

This law will harm Austin Firefighters if it is voted in. The facts I have presented prove this with a high degree of certainty. You cannot take $75 million from the finite General Fund Budget (mid-range number where capital costs are backed out) and expect zero effect on the Austin Fire Department budget.

Therefore, if we back out capital costs, the costs to the COA general fund becomes, low end for Prop A a cost of $48.3 million per year (instead of $54.3 million w/cap costs) and high end $101.8 million per year (instead of $119.8 million w/cap costs). Midpoint then becomes $75.7 million (instead of $87 million with cap/costs).

Link to COA Budget Office estimates

Link to Budget Embers by Julio Gonzalez with two decades of public service

Increased revenues will not make up the difference, projected revenues over the next 5 years put Austin in a $15 million structural budget deficit. Prop A will add an additional $375 million to the five year ($75M x 5) COA General Fund deficit.

Moving homeless money will not make up the difference either. Some homeless spending does come from the general fund but much of it comes from grants that are one-time funding that is earmarked for things like homeless issues and not staffing costs.

APD has a Hiring Problem NOT a Funding Problem

Austin Firefighters love and support our Austin Police Officers, but don’t be misled. Under current State Law (HB 1900), Austin Police are already “fully funded” plus an additional $10 million.

The Austin Police Department today, has the available funds to hire 229 to 300 police officers. The Austin Police have a hiring problem NOT a funding problem, and we would suggest they hire more Police Officers as quickly as possible.

As a matter of fact, all Austin Public Safety Departments are currently under-staffed.

The vacancy rate for Austin Firefighters is 9%, the vacancy rate for the Austin Police is 12% and the vacancy rate for Austin EMS is 13%,

The Big Lie: For Save Austin Now, the Truth is a Mere Inconvenience

Save Austin Now (SAN) continues to spread dis-information about their Proposition A. The biggest lie of all is that Prop A will restore staffing removed during the “de-funding.” Absolutely un-true.

During the AFA membership discussion period, Save Austin Now vigorously tried and failed to manipulate the internal AFA voting process. Matt Mackowiak, tried to pull the Austin Firefighters away from the real issues of Prop A, by distracting the Firefighters with personal attacks, lies and confusion. All entirely untrue, but it seems that for Save Austin Now, the truth is a mere inconvenience.

I am speaking to the Citizens of Austin about this for I fear that this type of deceitful behavior is what you can continue to expect from Save Austin Now. One of the main cornerstones of their campaign is false, that the Austin Police are still defunded and that Prop A will fix this…this is absolutely a lie…the Austin Police Department is funded today at a historical higher level that ever before plus an additional $10 million dollars!

the vocabulary

Proposition A: Ballot initiative that will increase the Police staffing by way of creating a local ordinance or law.

City of Austin General Fund: The budget where spending for normal City services is reflected. The City Departments include: Police, Fire, EMS, Austin Public Health, Parks and Libraries and other City Services.

HB 1900: House Bill 1900 was passed in the 87th Legislative Session in the Spring of 2021. It enables the criminal justice division of the governor’s office to identify any applicable municipality that reduces appropriations to its Police Department year-over-year, as specified under the bill’s provisions as a defunding municipality and establishes restrictions on these municipality’s powers with regards to annexation, taxation as well as charges from a municipally owned utility, as applicable, until the reductions are reversed and adjusted for inflation.

Vacancy Rates: The percentage of “vacant” positions can be calculated by subtracting the current positions filled from the total authorized positions.

YouR AUSTIN FIREFIGHTERS URGE YOU TO VOTE NO ON PROPOSITION A

Want to Learn More?

We will be providing more information soon so that Austin voters can make an informed decision. Additionally, you can contact Bob Nicks, President of Austin Firefighters Association at 512-217-3474 or at bob_nicks@yahoo.com.

POLITICAL AD PAID FOR BY THE AUSTIN FIREFIGHTERS PUBLIC SAFETY FUND