Hon. Don Zimmerman

Council Member Don Zimmerman is a software engineer who is best known for his efforts to fight various tax proposals.  In 2002, Zimmerman was elected president of the Northwest Austin Municipal Utility District (MUD) No. 1, where he waged a legal battle against a practice that he maintained was unlawful—combining City property taxes and (MUD) property taxes. Zimmerman won when a court sided with the MUD, thereby successfully defeating the City and the City’s additional tax.  In that process, property taxpayers in that area saved $18 million.

Soon thereafter, Zimmerman founded the Travis County Taxpayers Union Special Political Action Committee to fight various local tax proposals. He was extremely active in defeating the 2012 proposed Housing Bonds with nearly 120,000 voters turning out.  On December 16, 2014, Zimmerman was elected to District 6, the single-member District that covers Northwest Austin in the City’s new 10-1 Council structure.  He was sworn into office on January 6, 2015.  He drew a two-year term in the Council lottery and, therefore, will be up for re-election in November of 2016.

Don Zimmerman, a 5th generation Texan, was born minutes from the Alamo in San Antonio.  Zimmerman credits his constant battle for liberty and equity under the law to the men and women who fought and died at the Alamo.  Zimmerman graduated from Texas A&M with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and went on to receive his M.S. the following year.  He has lived in Canyon Creek Subdivision of Northwest Austin since 2000.  He is married to Jennifer W. Zimmerman.