The City of Austin can keep making its own budgets and laws.
A creating a "District of Austin" that would've given state lawmakers the final say on local decisions was voted down 11-0 by the Texas House State Affairs Committee on Wednesday.
During a committee hearing on the measure was last week, Houston-area state Rep. Briscoe Cain, the bill's author, offered little detail on where Austin City Council's responsibilities would end and where state lawmakers' would begin.
The Deer Park Republican cited a spike in crime as proof the state needed to take over operations. Though Austin has struggled to staff its police department, local data submitted to the FBI shows 20% compared to two years ago.
Even Cain's Republican colleagues were skeptical of the proposal, which was paired with a bill to put the issue to a statewide vote. Members of the committee chuckled ahead of a unanimous vote Wednesday to reject the plan.
It's not the first time the state's GOP majority has attempted to wrest control from Austin City Hall. A similar bill was , and, theoretically, the measure could get folded into other measures during the Texas Legislature's regular session, which ends in May.
