Last week’s State of the County speech points to a brighter future after historic challenges

Travis County Judge Andy Brown’s past three years of service have been a lesson in navigating disaster. In his State of the County speech last week, he recalled his term being host to a time when the Austin-Travis County area was hit with “a once-in-a-century pandemic, two historic winter storms, destructive wildfires and an increasingly restrictive and authoritarian state Legislature.” 

“It is an understatement to say that the last three years tested us,” Brown said. 

Brown categorized these challenges as “survived.” Throughout the speech, which was generally uplifting and forward-looking, he advocated a thematic “recommitment” to Travis County. Ultimately, he declared, “Travis County is stronger and more resilient and more equitable and more focused on delivering the promise and the potential of our community than ever before.”

This promise came to the fore, Brown said, as the county fought against the Texas Legislature to defend reproductive rights, preserve protected status for immigrants, protect LGBTQIA+ families and safeguard access to voting. 

“We know it’s going to be a tough year, as we see what’s going on down the street and elsewhere. We’re going to need to work through this together,” he said.

Brown emphasized the issues of abortion access and family services, reacting to the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. 

“Over the past year, we’ve seen those concerns become a reality. We’ve seen the legal and medical chaos and the real harm to people’s lives,” he said.

Brown promised that the county is doing “everything they can” to protect reproductive rights at the local level and increase support for Travis County families. 

The county complemented this work with support for working families, a far less divisive policy area. Brown highlighted a wish to pursue more affordable child care and collaboration with AFSCME Local 1624, Early Matters Greater Austin, the Lilith Fund, Planned Parenthood and other community organizations to pass “the most progressive paid parental leave program in the state of Texas,” offering an unequivocal 12 weeks of paid parental leave for infant care. 

The speech also focused on efforts in addressing substance abuse disorders, overdose fatalities and mental health disparities. Brown reaffirmed the success of the Sobering Center, which has diverted 8,000 individuals from jail in total. 

Travis County is also in the process of establishing the Travis County Mental Health Diversion Center, which will divert individuals with mental health treatment needs from incarceration and encourage their stabilization. 

“Before COVID, about 20 percent of the county jail population had an unmet mental health need upon entering central booking,” Brown said. “Today, by the same measure, more than 40 percent do.”

“Our county jail should not be the largest mental health facility in the county,” he said.

For Brown, substance use treatment goes hand in hand with these initiatives. 

Travis County has the highest rate of fentanyl overdoses in Texas, and drug overdoses are a leading cause of accidental deaths. Brown said he sees the opioid epidemic as an overriding crisis and admonished the state Legislature for its limp efforts to address a host of preventable deaths. He reviewed the county’s efforts in distributing overdose-reversing medications such as Narcan, along with community services and support for medical addiction treatment. 

“Substance use, addiction and the recreational use of drugs should not be a death sentence,” Brown said.

Brown also touched on the Counsel at First Appearance program, which provides accused individuals with legal representation when they first go in front of a judge. For years, Travis County residents have not had access to such representation, which recently attracted a lawsuit from the ACLU. Brown affirmed that the pilot program will be ongoing, with hopes of scaling up sustainably. 

Brown also addressed the county’s significant commitment to curb the affordability crisis with its efforts to supply quality supportive and affordable housing. 

He revisited the county’s use of American Rescue Plan funds, having allocated a historic $110 million to create 2,000 new supportive housing units. He also reviewed the county’s efforts to raise pay for all workers, raising the minimum wage from $15 to $20, among other pay structure increases. 

Brown concluded his speech with an affirmation of the county’s rather more soothing efforts to achieve two quality-of-life enhancements that would likely be of benefit to any county resident: more green space and less time spent in cars. 

Passenger rail has been historically difficult to establish in Austin by vote, much to the ire of transit advocates. Brown said the establishment of a robust passenger rail system in the Travis-Bexar County super-region will be a critical scaffolding for the area’s projected growth in the near future.

Travis County, Brown said, is currently “building a statewide coalition of support for passenger rail and sitting down to figure out the best way to make these plans a reality for our region and our state.”

In the meantime, voters can find comfort in parks and other enhanced transportation, following the passage of a $500 million bond package.

Residents will benefit from improvements such as “enhanced bike, pedestrian, and shared-use paths that safely separate vehicle, bike and pedestrian traffic” along with an additional 2,000 acres of green space the county plans to develop into parks.

“We anticipate the remaining funds will allow us to nearly double that amount, preserving green space for county residents and visitors for generations to come,” Brown said. “Travis County voters have sent us a clear mandate. They want transformational change toward a future that includes everyone.”

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