What happened
Austin City Council started the process to allow the DACC to handle some Class C misdemeanors, including public intoxication, disorderly conduct, sit/lie violations, human waste and littering, and more citywide June 8.
Since last spring, the DACC has also taken on additional cases involving homelessness citywide for citations under Austin's reinstated public camping ban.
Terms to know
Class C misdemeanors are the lowest class of misdemeanors in Texas and do not result in jail time.
Quote of note
“The services the DACC provides, we can help our most vulnerable neighbors in profound, long-lasting, effective ways,” Council Member Natasha Harper-Madison said at the meeting. “With this expansion we will ensure that no matter where you live—downtown, Pleasant Valley, Springdale, Rundberg or Westgate—you can gain access to the same transformational aid that the DACC has been providing for years in downtown Austin.”
The context
The DACC has seen a consistent waitlist with over 200 people for its intensive case management services throughout the past several years, according to city documents. Daily service requests for the DACC’s walk-in case management program have also consistently increased with an average of 59 requests per day in 2023 compared to 36 in 2020.
Zooming out
Plans to relocate the DACC from the One Texas Center to a more central location downtown have been loosely in the works for the past several years. Austin City Council had been eyeing a historic municipal building at 124 W. Eighth St. for the relocation; however, that idea was put on hold last March after it received rebuff from local community members.
