AUSTIN — Austin voters will decide in November whether to amend the city charter to require recurring outside reviews of city spending, efficiency and affordability, a proposal that drew competing rallies and press conferences Wednesday. Proposition I would require an independent affordability and efficiency initiative on a regular schedule and before any tax-rate election. The contractor would be required to identify annual and multiyear savings greater than the cost of its services. The city already conducts internal and external department audits. In February, the City Council also approved a comprehensive efficiency assessment intended to improve operations and maintain public trust. At City Hall, the political action committee Austinites for Equity held a rally opposing the measure under the banner “Don’t DOGE Our Austin.” Speakers included city employees’ union representative Cynthia Simons, U.S. Rep. Greg Casar and City Council Member Vanessa Fuentes. They argued that the amendment could lead to budget and workforce cuts and shift decisions about city services toward consultants. Simons, vice president of a local AFSCME chapter representing city and Travis County employees, said public workers and services would be threatened. Fuentes called the proposal a local version of the federal Department of Government Efficiency and described it as a giveaway to corporate consultants. Speakers also questioned whether the requirement to identify savings exceeding the contractor’s fee could create pressure to recommend cuts. Casar compared the proposal with federal DOGE actions and asserted that the federal effort cost taxpayers at least $135 billion. That figure was his claim at the rally; the information available about the local measure does not establish what savings or costs an Austin audit would produce. Save Austin Now, the PAC that gathered the petition to place Prop I on the ballot, held a virtual news conference later Wednesday. Bill Aleshire, a former Travis County judge and attorney who wrote the amendment, said the measure would require a thorough independent review and provide more information about city operations and spending. He said it was modeled in part on Houston’s audit and argued that experienced professionals would identify practical savings. Aleshire said the proposed review would go beyond the efficiency assessment approved by the council by examining how city government costs compare with household and business incomes, as well as measuring services’ workload and outcomes. He also said the charter requirement would prevent the council from canceling a future audit contract by vote. The dispute centers on how Austin should scrutinize public spending while protecting services residents rely on. If approved by a majority of voters casting ballots on the proposition, the measure would become part of the city charter.