AUSTIN (KXAN) — When lobbyists try to influence Austin’s elected officials, new rules taking effect next week aim to bring more of those efforts into the open — but critics warn one change could do the opposite.
Ten months ago, a KXAN investigation revealed a paid lobbyist privately texted Austin City Council Members Paige Ellis and Zo Qadri while they were on the dais, in addition to texting and calling Qadri’s staff minutes before a vote in an attempt to stop it. Now, the public will have an easier time, in theory, finding out who has the ear of their elected officials.
Our investigation found in December 2024, Austin lobbyist Michael Whellan unsuccessfully tried to block a measure to require crash-rated security barriers at new hospital entrances on behalf of St. David’s HealthCare, which paid him “less than $10,000” quarterly, according to public records.
The hospital system had opposed the now mandated safety step. The ordinance was introduced by former Council Member Mackenzie Kelly following a KXAN investigation into a deadly crash at the north Austin emergency room that occurred in February of that year.
‘The public should at least know’
“City council members are being influenced, even sometimes right at the moment of a decision, by paid professionals,” said Adrian Shelley, the Texas director of Public Citizen, a nonprofit government watchdog based in Austin. “So, when those kinds of things happen, the public should at least know about it. And, hopefully, that’s what this will do.”
LOBBYIST SEARCH: See a list of Austin’s registered lobbyists and who they represent
Shelley supports new transparency rules passed by the city council Thursday. One update requires lobbyists disclose in quarterly reports “all direct communications with a City official” including meeting dates and payment sources. That could potentially include who lobbyists are texting with to influence policy, according to Shelley. KXAN discovered Whellan’s texts after filing public records requests with the city.
An Austin City Auditor’s report released last September noted the city’s code previously “did not require lobbyists to report virtual or remote meetings.” That was updated in 2023. However, the report found 70% of city departments used physical sign-in sheets, which are “not practical” for tracking virtual appointments and sometimes inconsistently filled out. The report said it’s “possible some lobbyists did not sign in at all.”…