Ethics complaints filed against mayoral candidate Doug Greco and incumbent Mayor Kirk Watson will move to a final hearing next month, but an anticipated court ruling could circumvent the proceedings.
In a preliminary hearing Wednesday, the Ethics Review Commission determined there were reasonable grounds to believe that both Greco and Watson violated the city’s campaign finance ordinance based on separate complaints that accused both candidates of exceeding the $46,000 contribution threshold from donors who live outside of postal ZIP codes within Austin city limits.
The commission voted 8-0 in favor of the complainant, former Ethics Commission member Betsy Greenberg. Her complaint also alleged Watson violated the ZIP code contributions limits in his 2022 campaign. Greenberg has said she supports Carmen Llanes Pulido in the mayoral race…