Ann Kitchen

See also: Austin City Council

Ann Kitchen was Vice Chair of the City of Austin Charter Revision Committee and the City Councilmember for District 5. ^[8] Kitchen was elected to Austin City Council District 5 on November 4, 2014. She garnered 54% of the vote in a field of seven candidates and avoided a runoff election. She was sworn in on January 6, 2015. ^{[9] [10]}

In 2015, Kitchen proposed regulations on ridesharing companies such as Uber and Lyft. These regulations were presented as necessary for public safety, such as a requirement for fingerprinting rideshare drivers. Opponents, noting that Kitchen received campaign contributions from taxi companies, ^[11] claimed that the gross receipts tax, rules on fares, and other regulations included in the proposal threatened to drive those companies out of Austin.

On May 9, Kitchen's proposed regulations went into effect after a ballot proposition to alter them, backed by an $8 million Uber/Lyft-funded PAC, ^[12] was defeated in a special election. In response, Uber and Lyft ceased services in Austin.

In May 2017, Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed House Bill 100, which overruled local ride-share regulations and removed the fingerprint-screening requirement. The non-profit Texans for Public Justice reports that Uber and Lyft spent up to $2.3 million in support of the statewide legislation. ^[13]

In 2018, Ann Kitchen was elected to her second term in City Council after running unopposed. ^[14] She did not seek reelection in 2022 and was succeeded by attorney and former state Capitol staffer Ryan Alter. ^[15]

Recall efforts

In January 2016, a recall petition against Kitchen was circulated and submitted to the City Clerk in February 2016 by the Austin4All PAC. Austin4All was criticized by city leaders ^[16] and many Austinites for its purported lack of transparency and multiple ethics complaints were filed against the PAC, claiming Austin4All violated state election law by knowingly accepting political contributions and making political expenditure over $500 without filing a campaign treasurer appointment. Groups supporting Councilwoman Kitchen were formed as well in order to oppose Austin4All's petition.

In February 2016, Austin4All submitted 5,289 signatures to the city clerk's office. City Clerk Jannette Goodall rejected the recall petition shortly after, citing the group's failure to sign petition sheets in the presence of a notary. ^[17]

Personal life

Kitchen is married to Mark Yznaga, a lobbyist with the City of Austin. ^[18] Prior to her election to the State Legislature, Kitchen was an attorney, ^[19] and later managed the health care regulatory group of Price Waterhouse Coopers.

References

1. "Ann Kitchen's Biography" . Retrieved 18 November 2023.
2. "Ann Kitchen". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
3. "Freshman Class Act". Austin Chronicle.
4. "Freshman Class Act". Austin Chronicle.
5. Smith, Amy, "Dream on, Dream Team",Austin Chronicle, Nov 8, 2002
6. "Freshman Class Act". Austin Chronicle.
7. "Board Member". Liveable City. Archived from the original on 21 April 2012. Retrieved 24 March 2012.
8. "2012 Charter Revision Final Report". austin4georep. Retrieved 24 March 2012.
9. "Ann Kitchen". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 29 November 2019.
10. Lim, Andra (2014-11-05). "Delia Garza, Ann Kitchen win Council seats; other races head to runoff". Austin American-Statesman.
11. "Street Fight: Taxi Companies Poured Cash into Council Member's Campaign as Uber and Lyft Lobbied and Rallied Public Support". Austin Inno. Retrieved 2017-02-14.
12. "Austin's Uber War Is the Dumbest One Yet". Bloomberg. 2 May 2016. Retrieved 2019-09-21.
13. "40 Ride-Hail Lobbyists Land Up to $2.3 Million" (PDF). Texans for Public Justice. Retrieved 2019-09-21.
14. "Ann Kitchen to serve second term as District 5 Austin City Council member". KVUE. Retrieved 2019-02-12.
15. "Ryan Alter wins race to represent District 5 on Austin City Council" . Retrieved 18 November 2023.
16. "Austin4All Finally Speaks". Austin Monitor. 24 February 2016. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
17. "City Clerk Tosses Petition to Oust Ann Kitchen". Fox 7 Austin. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
18. Smith, Amy (November 12, 1999). "Naked City". Austin Chronicle.
19. "Attorney Directory". Texas State Bar. Retrieved 24 March 2012.

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Ann Kitchen
Member of Austin City Council from the 5th district
In office January 6, 2015 –January 6, 2023