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Austin residents could qualify for a $75 rebate from the city just for raising chickens at home

Chicken-keeping in Austin is not only allowed, but encouraged. So much so, in fact, that Austin residents can be rebated $75 for adding a chicken coop to their backyard.
Austin Resource Recovery will virtually host a free chicken-keeping class at 6 p.m. Oct. 22. The event will teach Austin residents how to raise chickens and how to qualify for the $75 rebate on their utility bill.
The rebate also applies to residents with home composting systems. Such a system functions similarly to chickens, which are known to eat scraps, potentially reducing food waste going to the landfill, according to the city. Here is how you qualify for the rebate:
- Decide to compost at home or keep chickens
- Take a free online home composting or chicken-keeping class
- Purchase a home composting system or chicken coop from a vendor of your choosing. Keep the receipt.
- Submit a rebate application form.
- Receive the rebate by mail in approximately eight weeks
The average chicken eats seven pounds of food per month, so they won't tire from eating your food waste. Chicken droppings can also double as compost for lawns and gardens, furthering their benefit.
Chicken coops are available at plenty of Austin-area retailers, including Callahan's General Store near the airport and Texas Backyard Farming in Dripping Springs. Callahan's also sells baby chicks every Thursday morning on a first-come, first-served basis
As chicken-keeping grows more popular in Austin, so, too, have 3-1-1 complaints to the city's code enforcement department. Since 2015, there have been a combined 297 chicken-related complaints lodged, according to city records.
Based on annualized data, chicken-related complaints—mostly regarding coops—peaked in 2018, dropping drastically last year. So far this year, there have been 56 chicken-related complaints submitted to 3-1-1, according to Austin records.
Here is a breakdown per year:
- 2015: 9 complaints
- 2016: 59 complaints
- 2017: 60 complaints
- 2018: 80 complaints
- 2019: 33 complaints
- 2020 (as of October): 56 complaints
Most of these complaints were filed under "public health" and "environmental services" classifications. Only once, in 2015, does the city have a documented instance of a loose chicken complaint. Appropriately, the complaint was filed under "Loose animal-not a dog."
To obtain free tickets for the chicken-keeping class, visit the city website, or learn more about the rebate program here.
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(Moriah Wilson/Instagram)
Austin police are investigating the killing of Moriah "Mo" Wilson after she was found with gunshot wounds inside an Austin home.
Wilson, a gravel and mountain bike racer, was visiting Austin from Colorado in preparation for the Gravel Locos race on Saturday taking place in Hico, a small town 2 hours from Austin.
On Wednesday, her roommate came home and found Wilson unresponsive with "a lot of blood near her,” police said. It is now being investigated as a suspicious death. No further information on the suspect or motive behind the killing are available at this time.
Wilson recently had become a full-time biker after winning a slew of races in the past year.
(Pexels)
Some of your favorite Instagram filters can’t be used in Texas anymore and Austinites are sounding off on social media.
Meta, Facebook and Instagram’s parent company, announced on Wednesday that certain filters would no longer be available in Texas.
The change is a result of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s lawsuit against Meta, alleging the company uses facial recognition technology that violates laws in Texas. A release from Meta says it stopped using facial recognition tech in November 2021 and denies Paxton’s allegations.
Some Austinites bemoaned the shift, saying some of their favorite filters were now unavailable.
This was my FAVORITE filter on @instagram and they done removed it cause I’m in Texas ! Like wowwwwww pic.twitter.com/uX60hdIC0Q
— Pinkyy Montana (@inkstar_pinkyy) May 11, 2022
i heard that instagram filters got banned in texas? what the actual fuck y’all better give me my favorite filter back
— lia 🤍 (@liatootrill) May 11, 2022
loved this stupid filter sm i hate texas pic.twitter.com/DXr9mmUc64
— birthday boy jeno 🎂 (@beabtox) May 12, 2022
But more often than not, locals joked about the ban.
Texas women seeing the filter ban on IG pic.twitter.com/yDMcP3Qtsr
— Christian (Anabolic) Flores (@christian_flo24) May 11, 2022
So, the state of Texas has banned filter use on IG? THE END IS NEAR. 😂
— THE FRANCHISE! Франшиза (@NYCFranchise718) May 12, 2022
And some in-between chose to show off some natural beauty.
I live in Texas, but no filter needed. 😉 pic.twitter.com/A6teRgYMKn
— bad and bruja (@starseedmami) May 11, 2022
filter, no filter..texas women still reign supreme.
— 🎍 (@_sixile) May 11, 2022
Finally, some are trying to cash in on the opportunity.
Texas IG users- if you want to filter your picture cashapp me $1.50 $ErvnYng
— Gemini (@ervn_y) May 11, 2022
Meta said it plans to create an opt-in system for both Texas and Illinois residents, who are facing the same issues.