It's the first day of early voting and San Antonio voters will be choosing to vote "Yes" or "No" on three proposed amendments to the city charter. Election Day is November 6.
A City-commissioned report paints a bleak picture of the economic and fiscal impacts these changes would have on the city, if approved. The analysis shows the main impacts would be derived from uncertainty the amendments create.
The local firefighters union, which has been in a years-long quarrel with city leadership over its contact negotiations, spearheaded the effort to add these items to the ballot:
A) Lowering required number of signatures for petitions presented to City Council;
B) Limiting the city manager's pay and tenure; and
C) Binding arbitration instead of a lawsuit as the City and the fire union continue to negotiate over their unresolved collective bargaining agreement.
The Mayor, numerous city council members, the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, S.A.G.E., the San Antonio Economic Development Foundation and technology-industry organization TechBloc are some of those opposing all three propositions.
Click here to view the full economic impact report.
Guest: Steve Nivin, director of the SABÉR Research Instituteand an associate professor of economics at St. Mary’s University