Category Archives: Local politics

I’ve said more than once that the office of the County Attorney has played a significant role in the various scandals emanating from the District Attorney and Sheriff’s offices. Now, thanks to the work of Wayne Dolcefino, it seems that … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Okay, so back in July a part-time municipal court judge named April Jill Walker, who is also a plaintiff in a lawsuit filed by the Ibarra brothers alleging that the Sheriff’s office retaliated against people who had filed complaints against … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Voter registration may be at an all-time high statewide, but here in Harris County we’ll be lucky to match 2004 totals. Ahead of Monday’s registration deadline, about 1,912,000 citizens were on the voter roll as of Friday, county officials said. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Last September, the city of Houston was sued by billboard company RTM Media after officials threatened to issue citations under the sign code to dozens of advertisers using the company’s billboards in the city’s extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ). The intent was … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Mayor Bill White takes his fight against nearby chemical plants over the pollution they send our way to the next level. In an unusual request by the city, White asked the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, which is responsible for … Continue reading → Continue reading →

There has been some tension in the relationship between HISD and its superintendent, Abe Saavedra. Yesterday, that nearly came to a head. Supporters of Houston ISD Superintendent Abelardo Saavedra rallied Monday amid fears that the school board planned to sever … Continue reading → Continue reading →

We have talked before about the possible creation of a public defender’s office for Harris County. Commissioners Court approved a study of whether the county should adopt such a thing back in April. Now the report is ready to be … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The city bags one. A Houston strip club shut down Tuesday after a state district judge ruled it violated a 1997 city ordinance regulating “sexually oriented businesses.” The Penthouse Club, 2618 Winrock, is the first one the city has shut … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Remember that board of ethics that County Judge Ed Emmett wanted to form and eventually got around to? It was supposed to have the power to investigate ethics complaints involving county officials and employees, but it turns out it won’t … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Meant to give Texas Watchdog a shoutout for their nice catch. Houston city officials have failed for the past two years to post ethics forms online as required by law, Texas Watchdog has learned. The ethics forms are meant to … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Harris County Commissioner Jerry Eversole says the feds are coming after him and that he expects they’ll get him. Harris County Commissioner Jerry Eversole said Thursday that he expects to be forced from office by an FBI investigation into corruption … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I found this front page story from yesterday about how various City Council members spent leftover funds in their budgets a little puzzling. For one thing, it lacked a certain amount of context. Why is it that some members had … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Just an update in the ongoing legal battle. [N]early five months after winning the right to keep sexually oriented businesses at least 1,500 feet from residential neighborhoods, the city’s officials have yet to close a single establishment. The businesses have … Continue reading → Continue reading →

HCAD wants more money to do battle with those who don’t like their tax bills. Skyrocketing commercial property values have led to costly court battles for the Harris County Appraisal District, prompting its leaders to propose increasing its budget to … Continue reading → Continue reading →

On Tuesday, I asked the question how many eligible voters there were in Harris County, so we could put the number of registered voters into some perspective. Yesterday, I got an answer to that question. The folks at Houston Votes … Continue reading → Continue reading →

We should have over two million registered voters for the election this fall, which would be a record high for Harris County. The question is whether that figure should be even higher. For starters, 2 million citizens older than 17, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The Chron looks at a gray area of political contributions. For the contractors and lobbyists whose public business rides on the trust and goodwill of politicians, it is no secret that campaign giving is a high-stakes game. At Harris County … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Oops. Harris County Clerk Beverly Kaufman says she will ask District Attorney Ken Magidson to look into the fact that former District Attorney Chuck Rosenthal apparently hasn’t filed his semi-annual campaign finance report. The deadline was July 15. Rosenthal resigned … Continue reading → Continue reading →

From last week, another loss in court for local anti-tax gadfly Bruce Hotze. Hotze has filed four lawsuits about Prop 2, which sought a revenue cap on all city funds. Any revenues that exceeded the yearly cap would have to … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I’m always happy to see action being taken on behalf of cleaner air. Mayor Bill White on Thursday challenged the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s methods for calculating emissions from large refineries and chemical plants, saying that the approach significantly underreports … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I have two questions regarding this front page story that says “Understaffing costs Houston taxpayers $150 million in overtime”. Local governmental agencies spent large sums on overtime last year, in part to compensate for their understaffed police forces, according to … Continue reading → Continue reading →

In late May, the Ibarra brothers and several other people filed a lawsuit against the Harris County Sheriff’s Office, claiming that its deputies retaliated against people who filed complaints about them. Now one of those plaintiffs has been arrested by … Continue reading → Continue reading →

It’s a start. Reacting to the latest controversy about his office in recent months, Sheriff Tommy Thomas today apologized in person to a local Muslim group for religiously insensitive e-mails sent by members of his staff. Monday’s appearance before the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

This is one of those “why didn’t we think of this sooner” kind of things. City Hall has gotten a little hotter, and not because of a sudden gust of political rhetoric. Officials adjusted the air conditioning in 100 municipal … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Matt Stiles, who did that interview with Sheriff Thomas, adds a little extra to the mix. Thomas said his department will now launch internal affairs investigations of deputies’ conduct if defense attorneys raise questions. In the past, the office had … Continue reading → Continue reading →

In addition to the Metro vote, Council passed the budget yesterday. In his fiscal 2009 plan, Mayor Bill White asked the council to approve a $105 million increase in spending for police, fire and emergency medical services. Included is money … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The strip club owners haven’t had much luck in court with the 1997 anti-SOB law, so I’m not sure why a strip club landlord thinks they’ll do any better, but they”re giving it a try anyway. The landlord of a … Continue reading → Continue reading →

As we know, City Council had its turn with the 2009 budget. The Chron has a look at some of the members’ requests, a few of which we’ve seen before, but I want to focus on this one: Councilman Mike … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Mayor White proposed his budget for 2009 last month, and now it’s City Council’s turn to have at it. With oil prices on the rise and construction costs escalating, some council members plan to submit proposals they say could make … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Here’s an update to the latest lawsuit filed by the Ibarra brothers and some other people against the Harris County Sheriff’s Office. Sgt. C.A. Sandoval has been named as a defendant along with Sheriff Tommy Thomas and other deputies in … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Good. The Harris County Sheriff’s Office has disbanded its surveillance unit, which came under criticism after it was revealed its officers watched two brothers who sued the county for civil rights violations. The Investigative Support Unit’s image has become so … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Look out, Lloyd Kelley and the Ibarra brothers are suing the Sheriff’s Office again, this time alleging that the HCSO retaliates against people who file complaints against it. “There is a pattern and a practice of abusing civil rights and … Continue reading → Continue reading →

You’d think a story headlined Critics question White’s motives for environmental push would feature some criticism of Mayor White. This is what you got: In his third and last term, White has backed up his eco-friendly rhetoric by purchasing wind-powered … Continue reading → Continue reading →