See how fast wildfire spreads - Texas Parks and Wildlife [Official]

The Texas Forest Service has responded to 181 wildfires over the past week and reports more than 700 homes were destroyed by fire over the Labor Day weekend.  Check the Texas Forest Service website for the latest information and a link to a Google Earth map of the fires in Texas. 

GivingCity.com, a project of the Austin Community Foundation has a list of ways people can help victims of the Central Texas fires.

In its first rate restructuring in 17 years, Austin Energy is recommending an overall increase of 13% in its residential rates. However, customers that use the least energy, less than 300 kilowatt hours per month, would see an increase of 60% in their average monthly bill.    The monthly bills for customers using more electricity would increase by 11% to 17%.   The major driver for the higher residential bills is a monthly Customer Charge and an Electric Delivery charge which together total $25 a month for each residential customer.

The Electric Utility Commission will hold three more public hearings on the proposed rates.  The next one will be held on Monday, September 19th at 6 p.m. See the rate proposals, read the report and learn about opportunities for public input at www.rates.austinenergy.com.

This unusually hot summer has driven electricity usage to record levels.  This means summer utility bills have been higher than usual.  City of Austin utility customers who are behind in paying their electric bills now have until September 28th to sign up for a one-time six-month payment plan. Customers can use the six-month payment option by paying one-third of their delinquent total and paying the rest in equal installments over six months along with their monthly utility bill. 

Customers currently receiving benefits through various assistance programs may be eligible for the City of Austin Utility Discount Program.  The program provides utility discounts of about $400 a year for an average customer. Currently, almost 10,000 customers participate in the program.

Learn more about these and other Austin Energy programs to help people keep their cool in these hot summer months.

A report released today by the U.S. Department of Agriculture on Household Food Security in the United States finds that almost one out of every five Texas households did not have enough food at some time during the last year. Texas ranked second only to Mississippi in the percent of households that were food insecure. 

The City of Austin will launch a public planning process focused on the future of Airport Boulevard from Mueller to Midtown Commons with a Kickoff Reception next Tuesday, September from 5 - 9 p.m. at our Lady's Mennonite Catholic Church, 1320 East 51st Street. The City of Austin is working with Airport Boulevard owners, users, neighbors and other stakeholders to create a vision for rail service, revitalized neighborhoods, popular local businesses, and a new future for Highland Mall.  Learn more at www.airportboulevard.com.

A report by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation finds that Texas accounts for 16% of all children in the U.S. who are eligible for CHIP/Medicaid, but who are not enrolled.  Texas tied with Florida for the lowest level of participation by eligible children in these public health insurance programs.

The report finds that many states have made strides in insuring children, and sixteen states have participation rates topping 90%.  However, about 4.3 million children who qualify for public insurance remain uninsured.  In Texas, the state-wide participation rate in CHIP/Medicaid for eligible children was 70%. 

The Travis County probation department is used as an example of how the steps can be carried out.  Since transforming its operations between 2005 to 2008, the Travis County probation department has seen felony probation revocations decline by 20% and the one-year re-arrest rate for probationers fall by 17%.     

Community Resources 101 is a free training for volunteers and front line staff on how to use 2-1-1 to refer people to the help they need.  Classes are held the last Friday of every month from 2-4 p.m. at the United Way, 2000 E. MLK Boulevard.  Call 2-1-1 the day of the training to confirm that the training is taking place.