DPS troopers stand outside the Capitol during the summer of 2020 (Photo by John Anderson) Before Kirk Watson was elected mayor of Austin (for the third time), the prospect of Gov. Greg Abbott assigning more Texas Department of Public Safety troopers to patrol Austin was a threat – not the beginning of a welcomed partnership. On Oct. 2, 2019, a few months after City Council voted to decriminalize homelessness, Abbott sent a letter to then-mayor Steve Adler issuing such a threat. DPS "has authority to act statewide – including throughout Austin – to ensure the safety of state employees and [Texans] .

https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/2023-03-31/what-state-police-patrolling-austin-means/

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