NEWS BRIEFS
Austin airport receives TSA staffing boost in response to backups
1.2K
PANDEMIC EVICTION FILINGS Since the eviction ban was lifted, Travis County has hit more than 50% of pre-pandemic-era yearly totals in just three months.
Eviction protections lifted
1K
800
600
Pre-pandemic eviction levels
BY BEN THOMPSON
400
Austin-Bergstrom International Airport is getting a staffing boost for its security lines in response to extended passenger wait times the travel hub has experienced in recent weeks. Airport and Transportation Security Adminis- tration officials confirmed that new TSA officers are coming to ABIA. In an April 12 meeting of the Airport Advisory Commission, Aviation Department CEO Jacqueline Yaft said 15 new TSA officers are being deployed to supplement 35 officers already temporarily assigned to the airport. The aviation department said the new officers were expected to start work April 8. “TSA leadership has confirmed additional staffing and canine resources to be deployed to Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. The Department of Aviation is grateful for the con- tinued collaboration and support from our TSA partners as we work together on the shared goal of improving the [ABIA] passenger experience,” Public Information Specialist Bailey Grimmett said in a statement. A TSA spokesperson confirmed that officers are being onboarded at ABIA. However, due to security reasons, the agency could not provide specific details about the recent officer deployment. STEPPING UP STAFFING The Transportation and Security Administration is providing relief to travelers hoping to cut wait times at ABIA in the form of extra officers.
200
0
2020
2021
2022
SOURCE: TRAVIS COUNTY/COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
After a pandemic pause, local evictions are on the rise as rental market strains remain
BY BEN THOMPSON
800 eviction cases filed each month prior to the pandemic, many of which were tied to increasing local housing costs, according to representatives of the health and human services department. While the local and federal eviction moratoriums suppressed the number, the underlying housing issues were further exacerbated by fiscal hardships for many residents who lost income or faced other economic and medical events during the pandemic. Some local officials and advocates are working to ensure the scaling down of protections do not result in longer-lasting fallout for renters. “It sounds like evictions are going to skyrocket and continue
to increase, and that’s only going to compromise our local economy and our community even further,” said Pilar San- chez, Travis County health and human services executive. Between March and April 2020, eviction filings in Travis County plunged 96% as local orders aimed at delaying evic- tions went into effect, according to data from Princeton Universi- ty’s Eviction Lab. The county of nearly 1.3 mil- lion people historically saw well over 100 eviction cases filed each week, figures that dropped to around several dozen. In late 2021, those numbers began gradually rising as the CDC’s national eviction ban expired, according to Eviction Lab data.
After evictions in Travis County dropped to historic lows due to increased governmental protections during COVID-19, a gradual return to normalcy has also brought a renewed spike in cases as the Austin area remains in what some are calling a housing crisis. For much of the past two years, Travis County, Austin, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shifted their response to evictions, nearly halting renter removals. In March, the last Travis County eviction protections ended as the number of filings in the majority-renter city was jump- ing to pre-pandemic levels. The county saw about
temporary officers 35
new officers assigned 15
SOURCE: AUSTIN-BERGSTROM INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT/ COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
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