Todd, Bruce

Bruce Todd served as the Mayor of Austin, Texas from 1991-1996. He was born in Abilene, Texas on December 17, 1949, and he grew up in nearby Brackenridge, Texas. Todd first came to Austin in 1968 to attend the University of Texas at Austin in 1968. He graduated with a B.B.A. in accounting in 1973. While attending college, he worked as the Clerk of the Municipal Court from 1968-1972 and as the Clerk of the Court in 1972. In 1974 he became a certified public accountant (CPA). He worked for and was a partner at Mueller, Todd and Company, and he served as a senior consultant at Glass and Company. He also served as a past director if the Texas Society of Certified Accountants and as an executive committee member of the Austin Chapter of Certified Public Accountants.

Todd entered into local politics when he was elected Travis County Commissioner in 1986. He was re-elected to serve a second term, but he left that post to run for mayor in 1991. Bruce Todd was elected mayor in 1991 when he won in a run-off election against Robert Barnstone. While in office, Todd focused his attention on reducing crime in Austin, on opportunities for youth in Austin, on the environment, on the financial situation plaguing Brackenridge Hospital, and on the closure of Mueller Airport and the construction of Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. Within the city of Austin, Todd served as the City of Austin Chair for committees such as the Audit Committee, the Youth at Risk Initiative Subcommittee, and the South Union Gas Rate Request Subcommittee. His national and state activities included: Energy, Environment, and Natural Resources Policy Committee of the National League of Cities, U.S. Conference of Mayors, as the chairperson for the Balcones Canyonlands Conservation Plan, as a board member for the Austin Transportation Study Committee, and as board member for the Capital Metro Local Government Approval Committee.

After his two terms as Mayor, he became part of a consulting group, Todos, aimed to provide full-service public affairs, public relations, economics, governmental relations and informational trade services for a wide range of clients. He remains active in Austin politics, and lobbied for a mandatory bike helmet law in the 2000s.