Tag Archives: Annise Parker

Repealing the revenue cap is only part of the answer

Posted on July 31, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Repealing the dumb revenue cap charter amendment from 2004 won’t solve the impending fiscal problems by itself. It’s still a good idea to repeal it. With an estimated $144 million budget shortfall looming next summer, the city’s finance director delivered … Continue reading →

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City smoking ban extended to parks and libraries

Posted on July 29, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Who knew they weren’t already, right? Houston public parks, golf courses and pools will be smoke-free zones come September, marking one of the most sweeping tobacco bans at city facilities. Parks and Recreation Department Director Joe Turner announced the new … Continue reading →

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It’s past time for a garbage fee

Posted on July 28, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Yes, this. For years, Houston’s Solid Waste Management Department Director Harry Hayes has suggested the city implement a garbage fee to expand curbside recycling and pay for other initiatives. And for years, Mayor Annise Parker has demurred. Now, with a … Continue reading →

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Another lawsuit against Uber and Lyft

Posted on July 26, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

That’s three lawsuits that I know of. A coalition of Texas disability advocates sued ride-share companies Uber and Lyft on Thursday as part of dozens of lawsuits filed around the state ahead of the anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities … Continue reading →

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HERO repeal petitions announcement today

Posted on July 25, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Today’s the day we find out what happens. The city’s controversial HERO ordinance prohibits discrimination based on federally recognized groups such as race and age, but also extends those rights to sexual orientation and gender identity. Opponents of the ordinance … Continue reading →

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More on the partisan lines of the Uber fight

Posted on July 20, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

From Wonkblog, another interesting look at how the fight over the so-called “sharing economy”, in particular transportation network companies like Uber and Lyft, is playing out nationally. In its short life, however, the sharing economy has seldom reflected a clear … Continue reading →

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Council votes to sue over bad pension projections

Posted on July 18, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Game on. Houston City Council on Wednesday paved the way for city attorneys to sue an actuarial firm the city claims gave inaccurate pension estimates that spurred costly changes to firefighters’ retirement benefits in 2001. […] Houston’s contribution rate to … Continue reading →

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Believing in – and lying about – monsters

Posted on July 15, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

This Chron editorial about the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance and the frenzied, fanatical opposition to it gets right to the heart of the matter. On its face, there is nothing controversial in the NDO. One could even claim that it … Continue reading →

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Meet your first parklet

Posted on July 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It’s in the Heights, because of course it is. A parking space converted into Houston’s first parklet brought a mini-media frenzy — and fun street party — to 19th Street in the Heights, where New Living artisans, city officials and … Continue reading →

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One Bin For All RFPs

Posted on July 11, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Yesterday was a big day for the One Bin for All proposal. Thursday [was] the deadline for private companies to submit bids to the city to build and run the facility. The bid guidelines call for a 75 percent diversion … Continue reading →

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Diverting ReBuild Houston funds

Posted on July 11, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t know about this. Expressing impatience with the pace of street repairs under the Rebuild Houston program, City Council on Wednesday voted to siphon off some of the drainage-fee supported funds to speed up projects and help resolve smaller … Continue reading →

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Another pension-related lawsuit coming?

Posted on July 10, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s a little blast from the past. The city of Houston may sue a company whose advice it relied upon in making changes to firefighters’ retirement benefits in 2001, saying the firm’s inaccurate predictions left the city on the hook … Continue reading →

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One point of perspective on the repeal petitions

Posted on July 7, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the Chron story about the HERO-haters turning in their repeal petitions. Opponents of Houston’s new non-discrimination ordinance Thursday turned in well more than the minimum number of signatures needed to trigger a November vote on whether to repeal the … Continue reading →

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Back to the drawing board for the city and the firefighters’ union

Posted on July 5, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Don’t expect much at this point. Negotiators for the city of Houston and its firefighters union will return to the bargaining table to discuss a new labor contract weeks after union members soundly defeated the last proposed deal, Mayor Annise … Continue reading →

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Get ready to defend the HERO

Posted on July 3, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Surrounded by members of the community who are impacted by the ordinance, Mayor Annise Parker announced today that the City will mount a vigorous effort to defend Houston’s Equal Rights Ordinance from being repealed. “The Houston I … Continue reading →

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Uber is working hard to make itself unlikeable

Posted on July 2, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It’s almost as if it’s a deliberate part of their business plan. “We’re in a political campaign, and the candidate is Uber, and the opponent is an asshole named Taxi,” Travis Kalanick, the CEO of ride-sharing company Uber, said while … Continue reading →

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One less food desert

Posted on July 2, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: With high hopes of more to come, Mayor Annise Parker, Council Members Stephen Costello and Dwight Boykins, the Houston Redevelopment Authority (HRA) and others broke ground on the first project to target a Houston food desert. With … Continue reading →

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Mayor Parker discusses her possible political future again

Posted on July 1, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

After making a rousing speech at the TDP convention, Mayor Annise Parker talked about some possible paths she could take for a future statewide campaign. Parker said she would be interested in running for any number of statewide positions when … Continue reading →

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City exploring new pension for new firefighters?

Posted on June 28, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Maybe. Long concerned about the cost of Houston’s pensions and stymied in her attempts at reform, Mayor Annise Parker is considering a dramatic step to place new firefighters into a separate, less generous pension plan, sources with knowledge of the … Continue reading →

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We need more context to the HPD no-investigations issue

Posted on June 23, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Regular commenter Steven Houston left this feedback on my “More reaction to the HPD no-investigations report” post. It raises some good points and helped me focus my thinking on a couple of things, so I wanted to reproduce it and … Continue reading →

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Council adopts its budget for next year

Posted on June 20, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Might be the last easy budget for a couple of years. The Houston City Council agreed to boost funding for after-school programs, add cameras to catch illegal dumpers and give $1 million to each district council office to spend on … Continue reading →

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Firefighters union rejects contract deal

Posted on June 19, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Oops. The contract rejected Tuesday by 93 percent of the roughly 2,900 firefighters voting would have taken a similar approach, granting a pay raise in exchange for concessions on members’ ability to take leave. With the no vote, as of … Continue reading →

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More talk about bathrooms

Posted on June 18, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The HOUEquality webpage returns to a familiar topic. 1.) Over 180 cities and municipalities across the country have implemented nondiscrimination ordinances, some have been in place for decades. There are no reports of incidents of sexual assault or rape causally … Continue reading →

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On cops and the revenue cap

Posted on June 16, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Mayor Parker again calls attention to the city’s stupid revenue cap and the things it will prevent the city from doing if it is left in place. If Houston voters do not want police pulled from the streets next year, … Continue reading →

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Another taxi survey

Posted on June 15, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Vehicle for hire industry survey The City of Houston has retained Taxi Research Partners to conduct a study of demand within the vehicle for hire industry in Houston. The study will review current market conditions, identify key … Continue reading →

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City reaches contract agreement with firefighters

Posted on June 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Give a little, get a little. Houston firefighters would give up some of their ability to schedule time off in return for a pay hike under a tentative new labor contract that city officials hope will enable them to rein … Continue reading →

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Vehicles for hire vote put off till end of July

Posted on June 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Seriously? The Houston City Council delayed a vote until July 30 on regulations for the vehicles-for-hire industry, keeping Uber Technologies Inc. and Lyft Inc.’s legal status in Houston in limbo. Council member Mike Laster proposed an initial delay of 60 … Continue reading →

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More reaction to the HPD no-investigations report

Posted on June 10, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I’m not the only one that wasn’t impressed by Chief McClelland’s response. [Burglary victim Heather] Heinke’s experience is not unusual in the nation’s fourth-largest city. A recent HPD staffing study says that 15,000 burglaries and thefts, 3,000 hit-and-run crashes and … Continue reading →

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McClelland’s response

Posted on June 8, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I have to say, I’m not impressed. Defending his department’s failure to investigate thousands of crimes last year, Police Chief Charles McClelland on Thursday said the understaffed Houston Police Department does not and should not have a goal of aggressively … Continue reading →

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On bathrooms and menaces

Posted on June 6, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Nonsequiteuse has something to say. Steven Hotze, M.D., recently published these outright lies about the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance: Mayor Parker’s ordinance would include minority status for the so called “transgendered,” allowing a biological male to legally enter women’s public … Continue reading →

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Vehicle for hire vote tagged

Posted on June 6, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

No surprise here. I had thought the ordinance was still in committee, but it went before the full Council yesterday. It was of course tagged – we weren’t going to have this vote only one week after the HERO vote, … Continue reading →

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Bell op-ed for eliminating the revenue cap

Posted on June 6, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

More like this, please. A decade ago, Houston voters restricted city property tax revenues to the combined rates of inflation and population increases. Like most arbitrary rules that politicians apply to math, this revenue cap sounds like a great idea … Continue reading →

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Those uninvestigated criminal cases

Posted on June 5, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

To say the least, this is big news. The Houston Police Department, already reeling from a scandal involving shoddy work in its homicide unit, was dealt another blow Monday when a report revealed that some 20,000 burglary, theft, assault and … Continue reading →

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Who stands with Jared?

Posted on June 4, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I noted yesterday that soon-to-be-former Harris County GOP Chair Jared Woodfill is busy trying to gather petition signatures to repeal the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance. Here’s the beginning of his pitch: I want to thank all of you who stood … Continue reading →

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