Open government advocates gather in Austin Annual conference hosted by the Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas theaustinbulldog.org/open-governm...

Audit: Council compliance with lobbyist ordinance improving City Manager accepts audit recommendations for tracking lobbyist activities theaustinbulldog.org/audit-counci...

Appraisal district to sue Tesla Board of directors authorize litigation to contest the property value of carmaker’s Gigafactory theaustinbulldog.org/appraisal-di...

Appraisal district adopts $34.1 million budget The board of directors of Travis Central Appraisal District (TCAD) voted unanimously to approve a budget for 2026 totaling $34,160,980. That’s an increase of $1,919,628 more than the current year’s budget. theaustinbulldog.org/appraisal-di...

Lost Creek residents win exemption from Austin property taxes Court order saves property owners $7.8 million in future property taxes. Trial could win a $5.2 million refund theaustinbulldog.org/lost-creek-r...

‘Charmin wipes out a forest’ premieres July 1st at Austin Film Society Cinema In an old television ad, a man in a grocery store tells two women shoppers, “Please don’t squeeze the Charmin.” But the goal of a new documentary is precisely to squeeze Charmin. theaustinbulldog.org/charmin-wipe...

Chief Appraiser Leana Mann told the board of Travis Central Appraisal District that property owners and agents had filed 205,000 protests this year. The district plans to resolve these protests and hit its target to certify the appraisal rolls by July 18th. theaustinbulldog.org/205000-prope...

Former President Bill Clinton delivered an impassioned speech to 38 men and women who completed naturalization to become U.S. citizens. I was brought to tears as he talked about our country's need for immigrants, in contrast to current actions to deport them. www.arkansasonline.com/news/2025/ju...

Doug Greco, who ran for Austin mayor in 2024 and placed fifth with 4.8% of the votes, is now running for chair of the Travis County Democratic Party. The election is June 21st. The Bulldog profiled Greco at theaustinbulldog.org/profile-doug...

150,000 property value protests filed Travis County property owners have filed some 150,000 protests of property valuations so far this year.The district plans to... theaustinbulldog.org/150000-prope...

The Austin Bulldog has been unleashing truth in our community. We’ve exposed corruption, influenced policy, and kept our local government accountable. But our work isn’t done—we need your support more than ever. Donate now. the-austin-bulldog.fundjournalism.org/bulldog-supp...

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The Austin Bulldog is the city’s tireless watchdog, sniffing out corruption, exposing mismanagement, and keeping our local government honest. As we celebrate this milestone, help keep our investigative engine running. Donate now. the-austin-bulldog.fundjournalism.org/bulldog-supp...

We’ve unearthed stories others missed, exposed wrongdoings that would have remained hidden and brought to light issues that shape our city’s future. We’re asking for your help to dig even deeper. Donate now. the-austin-bulldog.fundjournalism.org/bulldog-supp...

For 15 years, The Austin Bulldog has been barking loudly (and biting) for accountability in our local government.Now, as we celebrate our 15th anniversary, we’re calling on you to join our pack. Donate now. the-austin-bulldog.fundjournalism.org/bulldog-supp...

Sad news indeed. Co-founder American Journalism Project and Texas Tribune. www.theajp.org/news-insight...

For 15 years, The Austin Bulldog has exposed corruption, influenced policy, and kept our local government accountable. But our work isn’t done. As we celebrate this milestone, we need your support more than ever. Donate now. the-austin-bulldog.fundjournalism.org/bulldog-supp...

Records they don’t want you to see Local governments require public officials to file a wide range of personal information. We want to trust. But we need to verify. Our Government Accountability Project (GAP) provides the means to do that. Pick a target and see for yourself: theaustinbulldog.org/gap

‘Rising star’ Austin manager candidate flaming out in KC Brian Platt, who opted to stay in Kansas City, just cost that city nearly $1 million, plus attorney fees of at least $700,000, with more lawsuits pending. theaustinbulldog.org/rising-star-...

Thousands of homeowners to lose homestead exemptions But they will have a chance to reapply and regain exemption if qualified theaustinbulldog.org/thousands-of...

‘The Magic Hole’ slams spending for new convention center ‘Convention Center Follies’ author calls billion-dollar spending sprees by cities competing for convention center business ‘jaw-droppingly stupid.’ theaustinbulldog.org/the-magic-ho...

Neighborhoods litigate to defend deed restrictions Cliffhanger Developments LLC bought property with intentions to build eight homes. The neighborhood association sued and won in district court to restrict development per deed restrictions. theaustinbulldog.org/neighborhood...

Austin’s next city council elections are 21 months away but two incumbents have wasted no time in building campaign war chests for 2026 raising red flags about potential conflicts of interest. theaustinbulldog.org/alter-and-qa...

Mayor and council candidates spent $3.1 million on the 2024 election Mayor Kirk Watson spent more than $1 million to win reelection in 2024. That equates to 34 percent of the combined $3.1 million spent by all 22 mayoral and council candidates. theaustinbulldog.org/mayor-and-co...

State lawmakers elected by Austin area voters are looking to enact a variety of incremental bipartisan reforms during the legislative session that began January 14th and runs through June 2nd. theaustinbulldog.org/austin-democ...

HOME initiatives doing little to provide affordable housing The HOME Phase 1 and HOME Phase 2 ordinances are having an effect on making market-rate housing available for those able to pay still-high prices. theaustinbulldog.org/home-initiat...

TCAD board members depart, ARB members appointed Travis Central Appraisal District’s board of directors held the last meeting of 2024 on December 9th. theaustinbulldog.org/tcad-board-m...

On a cold Monday night in downtown Austin, local dignitaries and city workers gathered for a highly organized event in the city hall chambers to celebrate the inauguration of the mayor and newest slate of council members. theaustinbulldog.org/election-win...

Thanks to generous supporters we reached our $15,000 goal for NewsMatch. These funds help us to tackle the important investigations we have planned for 2025. If you meant to contribute but it slipped your mind, you can still throw us a bone: the-austin-bulldog.fundjournalism.org/bulldog-supp...

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NewsMatch ends today! If you were waiting until the last day to contribute to our annual NewsMatch fundraising campaign, congratulations, it’s here! Help us reach our goal. DONATE NOW! the-austin-bulldog.fundjournalism.org/bulldog-supp...

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After a month of runoff campaigning that sometimes got contentious, the election came down to a winning margin of 206 votes. theaustinbulldog.org/mike-siegel-...

Final unofficial results for the District 7 runoff election between Gary Bledsoe and Mike Siegel, from the Travis County Elections Division website. Bledsoe 4,196 votes for 48.80 percent Mike Siegel 4,402 votes for 51.2 percent.

With votes from 11 voting centers still not counted at 10pm, Gary Bledsoe leads Mike Siegel by 52 vote: 3776 to 3724 in the District 7 runoff election for Austin City Council.

After the City’s Ethics Review Commission held preliminary hearings Wednesday night, commissioners voted unanimously to find probable cause that both Ashika Ganguly and Krista Laine violated City Code ...READ MORE: theaustinbulldog.org/criminal-cha...

Adam Haynes has filed a sworn ethics complaint against District 7 runoff candidate Mike Siegel. And another sworn ethics complaint with the Texas Ethics Commission against AURA for Austin, READ MORE.... theaustinbulldog.org/siegel-and-a...

Runoff combative down to the wire Dirty politics trying to tip the scales in the final throes of the District 7 runoff between Gary Bledsoe and Mike Siegel. theaustinbulldog.org/runoff-comba...

Either Gary Bledsoe or Mike Siegel will take office in January and join fellow attorneys Mayor Kirk Watson, District 4 Council Member Jose “Chito” Vela, and District 5 Council Member Ryan Alter. Which one depends on the outcome of the December 14th election. theaustinbulldog.org/two-attorney...

Bledsoe stumping for runoff support Runoff candidates are down to the wire for the December 14th runoff election which will decide who represents District 7 on the City Council in 2025. theaustinbulldog.org/bledsoe-stum...

Without you, stories go untold The Bulldog depends solely on donations from readers like you. #GivingNewsDay champions our reporting that holds government agencies and officials accountable. Donations up to $1,000 will be DOUBLED. the-austin-bulldog.fundjournalism.org/bulldog-supp...

District 7 candidate Gary Bledsoe got $62,000-plus from the Austin Fair Campaign Fund for his runoff against opponent Mike Siegel. Https://theaustinbulldog.org/bledsoe-gets-62000-plus-for-runoff.

Once again only the bare minimum six members were available to participate. Once again the commission’s bylaws—which require at least six votes to pass a motion—combined with the low attendance prevented resolving the business at hand. theaustinbulldog.org/mayor-watson...

I participated in “People United” show about takeaways from the 2024 elections. Hosted by Allan Campbell. Participating were Eliot Trotter, author of a book about Austin, “Shadows of a Sunbelt City,” and political analyst Rahul Mahajan. My section starts at 1:03 on the recording lnkd.in/gb95u6Zw .

We published the best overnight coverage of Austin's mayoral and city council elections. Took all night but it was definitely worth it. theaustinbulldog.org/watson-wins-...

Ethics? Who gives a damn? Certainly not the City of Austin theaustinbulldog.org/ethics-who-g...