It’s Monday, February 18th. I'm Elise Randall, and here's your local news from the Austin American-Statesman. Our top story is: Wage growth in Austin perked up at the end of last year, as local employers competed to fill jobs amid the city’s booming economy and sub-3 percent unemployment rate, according to a report from the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. Average hourly wages in the metro area climbed 4.9 percent in December, compared to the year before.