Love Austin PAC files, then withdraws ethics complaint against website opposing tax increase

AUSTIN, Texas - In a few weeks, Austinites will vote on a tax rate increase, or Proposition Q. 

There is bickering between a pro-tax hike political action committee and the creator of a website opposed to it. 

What is Prop Q?

The backstory:

The proposition is a 5-cent increase per $100 of property value. According to the city, for the average homeowner, that's about a $302 annual increase for the city portion of their property tax bill. 

The tax increase would help with things like first responder resources and homeless services. Advocates say it's needed because of federal cuts, but opponents say it makes Austin less affordable. 

Debate over Prop Q

What they're saying:

The Love Austin Political Action Committee is in favor of Proposition Q on the November ballot. Joe Cascino is its campaign manager.

"Prop Q is incredibly important for the city of Austin. It's something that's not about taxes, it's about values," he said. 

The other side:

A website, created by Austinite Nate McGuire, opposes a tax hike. 

"We should continue to make Austin affordable for everyone, and Prop Q is just going to make it more expensive," McGuire said. 

Dig deeper:

Last Thursday, the Love Austin PAC filed a complaint with the Texas Ethics Commission, claiming the website didn't have the right campaign finance disclosures. Cascino says when campaigning, you have to have a treasurer, and political ads have to show who's paying for it. He says he wanted to make sure rules were being followed. 

"We're just trying to ask questions for the sake of transparency, because people know who donates to us, and people know who how we spend our money, so others should know the same on the other side," Cascino said.

When McGuire said he was behind the site, the Love Austin PAC withdrew their complaint to let them fix anything necessary. 

"What that doesn't explain is who is putting out yard signs that have that URL on them and no disclaimer," Cascino said.

"I have nothing to do with those," McGuire said. 

McGuire says he's not involved with any PAC. 

"I'm a local guy, I'm a normal dude, I'm not in politics, and so, of course, I was upset and confused. It just felt especially egregious, because I'm just putting the facts out there," he said. "When I saw they withdrew the complaint, they continued to insinuate that I was breaking the law, and so it felt like a half measure."

He says he bought the domain for $12 and wrote the code himself. 

"I would comply with any type of disclosure requirements, but I don't fall under them because I haven't spent, you know, more than 50 bucks. I've been fully transparent with my name, my website," McGuire said.

McGuire has hired an attorney, calling on Cascino to retract his statements implying McGuire is breaking the law. If Love Austin doesn't comply, McGuire will file a lawsuit against them. 

"The statements were defamatory and false, so I think it's important that they retract it. I think it's important they set the record straight," McGuire said.

"On advice of counsel, I don't have a response to that," Cascino said.

The Love Austin PAC was filed by former Council Member Leslie Pool. The top donors are AFSCME, a workers' union; ECHO (Ending Community Homelessness Coalition); Foundation Communities, the Austin-Travis County EMS Association PAC, and the KPW PAC. 

"You shouldn't need a lawyer to speak your mind in Austin. We should keep it free, not fearful. I think it's important that people understand what's going on, get educated," McGuire said.

Election Day is Nov. 4. Early voting starts October 20. 

"This is an extremely important election. Whether you're for or against this thing, we need people to get out and vote for this thing," Cascino said. 

AustinElection