Austin City Council takes next step toward climate bond, would come before 2026

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Would you pay more money for the City of Austin to achieve its climate goals quicker? Think: Land acquisition, making city facilities more climate-friendly and helping Austin prepare for severe weather events.

Austin City Council moved forward Thursday with a resolution that both directs the city to create a comprehensive climate plan and, as part of that, craft a bond package that would go in front of voters no later than 2026.

The background

In February, Council Member Ryan Alter brought forward a resolution to move forward on an “environmental investment plan” which asked city staff to look at all of the city’s climate goals and gather input from the public. City council approved that resolution.

As part of that, Alter asked the city to look at possible funding options to achieve those goals. One option Alter pitched: A climate bond.

In May, City of Austin Chief Sustainability Officer Zach Baumer estimated the city would need $1.8 billion for that proposed environmental investment plan to become a reality.

Back and forth over timeline

While Alter wanted the climate bond election to happen in November 2024, he, ultimately, didn't have enough support to move forward with that timeline.

Instead, Mayor Kirk Watson pitched a more intensive process that brings that bond before voters no later than 2026. Still, some council members expressed concern about waiting that long.

"Ultimately didn't have that support and so what I think is the next best thing, and that is we are going to have a process that is not only thorough but we have given the instruction that they need to act quickly. And if there are things that are ready to go to the voters in 2025, we have a commitment from a majority of the council that that's what we're going to do," Alter said.

What kind of projects are being discussed?

A few of the most expensive projects city staff looked at when evaluating costs were:

• $1 billion purchase of 20,000 acres for use by the city;
• Over $100 million for an Austin Resource Recovery transfer station and an electric vehicle charging network;
• $100 million for community resilience programs;
• Over $60 million for climate improvements to city facilities; and,
• $50 million to create a “Food Hub.”