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Top Morning Stories August 23, 2011

Last night the Austin Independent School District passed a $700 million operating budget for the 2011-2012 school year.
Photo by KUT News
Last night the Austin Independent School District passed a $700 million operating budget for the 2011-2012 school year.

Austin School board passes budget; Argues over historic property tax breaks

After passing a $700 million operating budget for the 2011-2012 school year, the Austin Independent School District focused on Historic Property tax breaks. Last year the program was suspended due to budget concerns, but this year the school board voted to reinstate the program--at an estimated cost of $382,000.  

KUT's Nathan Bernier has more on this story. Click here to listen to it.

 

New Braunfels Bans Disposable Drink Containers

Last night, New Braunfels City Council voted to ban disposable food and drink containers on the Guadalupe and Comal rivers. City officials say the ban is to cut down on litter left by tubers.

Local business owners say that ultimately the ban will hurt their business. “There’s the potentiality that individuals will chose other rivers to go down other than these particular rivers,” Joe Breads, owner of Corner Tubes in New Braunfels told KUT News.

The vote was 5 to 1 for the measure. The ban will take effect January 1, 2012.

 

Fort Hood fires burn about eight thousand acres and is now contained

Firefighters and soldiers have contained two grass fires that broke out Saturday near Fort Hood. The fires burned a combined total of almost 8,000 acres.

The Robinette Fire,  11 miles northwest of Killeen, is 100 percent contained.  The fire near West Range Road is also 100 percent contained, according to a statement released by the base.

The dry weather is a contributing factor to the numerous grass fires popping up around central Texas. Today Austin is expected to tie the number of consecutive days in the triple digits and tomorrow the city is expected to break it.

 

Kristen Cabrera is a graduate of the Salt Institute for Documentary Studies in Portland, Maine, where she saw snow for the first time and walked a mile through a blizzard. A native of the Rio Grande Valley, she graduated from the University of Texas-Pan American (now UTRGV) and is a former KUT News intern. She has been working as a freelance audio producer, writer and podcaster. Email her: kcabrera@kut.org