Save Austin Now Sues City Manager Over Parody Logo Dispute

Save Austin Now, the PAC that led the charge against Prop Q, and its treasurer, Leland Bickers, filed a lawsuit Friday against City Manager T.C. Broadnax over the parody usage of the city's new logo.

The group is asking a Travis County district judge to issue a permanent injunction against Broadnax to prevent him from “interfering in Plaintiffs’ exercise of their rights, including their right to criticize the Broadnax Logo and use it as parody free speech” and to declare that the logo cannot be trademarked. The lawsuit also alleges that the new logo is not legal because the City Council did not adopt it.

The lawsuit comes after the city, through attorney Dwayne Goetzel with the intellectual property law firm KHMR&G, sent a letter to Save Austin Now alleging unauthorized use of the city logo on the PAC’s website. The image of the city logo was a parody of the Austin logo with a picture of the stylized “A” and the word “audit” underneath.

“This is an example of the abuse of power by the city administration. It is an outrageous threat,” said Bill Aleshire, the attorney filing the lawsuit against the city.

The city has come under fire in recent months for the $1.1 million rebranding effort, including the new logo, which drew sharp criticism for its design that some residents found lacking. After voters defeated Prop Q, which would have raised city property taxes, Save Austin Now launched a petition to put a charter amendment on the May 2026 ballot to require an external performance audit of the city budget.

“That logo is a perfect encapsulation of so much of the problem at City Hall right now – outrageous wastes of money, embarrassingly poor judgments, a complete and total disregard for taxpayers, and a lack of transparency, and accountability,” said Matt Mackowiak, co-chair of Save Austin Now PAC.

Goetzel wrote in his letter to Mackowiak that the parody logo will confuse consumers who may believe it is sponsored or approved by the city. Goetzel did not respond to requests for comment.

“Save Austin Now's use of the city's logo is inappropriate, confusing to the public, and a violation of our established trademark for an identity we established to make it easier for the public to connect with City services,” Jessica King, the city’s chief communications director, said in a statement, adding that creating a logo and brand guidelines for city services is an operational function and therefore does not require City Council approval.

The city’s communication and engagement budget includes legal services for the registration and protection of the brand mark, she added.

“If they want to pick a fight over this logo, pack a lunch and we look forward to it,” Mackowiak said.