VIDEO-Gov. Abbott says Texas could be put in charge of policing in Austin

Escalating his fight against Austin over police funding, Gov. Greg Abbott says he's considering a proposal that would put the state in charge of policing a large portion of the city, including downtown, the area near the Capitol and the University of Texas campus.

Abbott teased to the possible takeover this week during a campaign virtual town hall meeting while expanding on his plan during the upcoming legislative session to punish cities that take funding away from their police departments, according to the Texas Tribune, which attended the event.

The governor has repeatedly blasted the Austin City Council's decision in August to restructure the Police Department's budget by cutting $21 million right away and leaving room to cut an additional $129 million by the end of the fiscal year. Earlier threats from Abbott included proposing legislation that would freeze property tax revenue for any city that cuts its police budget. He also proposed stripping the annexation powers of those cities.

"We have people coming from across the world and across the country into our capital city, as well as to the university, we can't make our fellow Texans be victims of crime ... because of the city of Austin leadership," Abbott told his supporters, according to the Tribune.

Abbott last month called Austin's decision to cut police defunding "absurd" after homicides in the city had risen to 44 for the year — the highest total in a year in more than two decades.  

Abbott said his policing plan would call for Austin officers to patrol a zone from Lady Bird Lake up to 32nd Street and from Interstate 35 west to Lamar Boulevard or MoPac Boulevard (Loop 1).

Mayor Steve Adler hit back with a tweet Friday: "This would be unprecedented commandeering of local law enforcement. Our state has serious challenges with too many uninsured, inadequate funding for education, and an insufficient pandemic response. They need to be our focus."

The budget changes authorized by Adler and the rest of the City Council came after criticism of the Police Department's interactions with people of color, in particular Michael Ramos, a 42-year-old Black and Hispanic man who was shot to death by a white officer outside an Austin apartment complex as Ramos was trying to flee in a vehicle. Police then faced more scrutiny for injuring several people with less-lethal beanbag rounds during protests over the deaths of Ramos and George Floyd, who was killed by a white Minneapolis officer who kneeled on his neck during an arrest.

The $21 million cut from the police budget primarily reflected the cancellation of three cadet classes. The Police Department says that without those new officers, its staffing levels will be comparable to 10 to 12 years ago by the time the next cadet class graduates, which will be in late 2021 at the earliest.

Austin Police Department Association President Ken Casady pumped the brakes on Abbott's proposal, suggesting competing bills would be filed during the legislation session to limit the city government's control over policing in the city. The session begins in January.

"There are different ideas of taking the department away from the city's hands and putting it into (the Texas Department of Public Safety's) hands," Casady said. "It's just a matter of finding the right people to carry those bills."

The Texas Constitution grants the state authority over local matters in the capital city when a statewide importance is determined.

State troopers already are positioned near the UT campus after Abbott deployed them there in October after reports of a string of robberies in the area.