Houston City Council wrapped up two days of discussion on Mayor John Whitmire’s proposed $7.5 billion fiscal year 2027 budget this week, hearing from labor unions, advocacy groups, and residents before members voted to delay the final budget vote.
Council members agreed to tag, or postpone, the budget and associated amendments for a vote on June 10.
The budget has drawn scrutiny for two primary revenue measures: a new $5 monthly administrative fee tied to residential trash collection and a right-of-way rental charge on the city’s water and sewer utility set at 5 percent of gross revenues. City officials project the trash fee alone would generate between $24 million and $25 million annually for the general fund.
Support for the proposal came from several corners. Labor representatives from the Texas AFL-CIO and HOPE Local 123, the municipal workers’ union, both backed the plan, with union leaders praising the administration for avoiding the layoffs and benefit cuts that characterized previous budget cycles.
Spokespeople from the Houston Region Business Coalition and the Greater Houston Builders Association also voiced approval of the fee structures, according to Fox26.
Councilmember Fred Flickinger acknowledged the budget’s shortcomings but framed it as a practical bridge. “The budget is not perfect, no one is going to pretend like it solves all of our problems,” Flickinger said. “It does tap into the utility fund, which will allow us to get by for the next couple of years. Houston has a long history of having financial challenges.”
Not everyone at the dais or the podium shared that measured view.
City Controller Chris Hollins presented survey data gathered from public town halls showing that 76 percent of respondents said they were not confident the city is spending tax dollars wisely, and more than half said they knew little to nothing about how the city’s budget actually works.
“That is not a minor communication problem,” Hollins said. “That is a trust problem.”
Hollins also warned that routing general fund expenses through the city’s dedicated water utility fund amounted to financial misdirection, saying the maneuver would leave roughly $1 billion in water infrastructure needs unfunded and ultimately push rates higher for everyday Houstonians.
“Fire is not water. Police cars is not water. Trash is not water,” Hollins said.
Those concerns echoed through public comment. Resident Carolyn Rivera brought her own utility bills to illustrate the squeeze on fixed-income households, telling council members her water bill has tripled since April 2021, climbing from $20 to more than $62 per month. “It causes hardship on people like me who live on a fixed income,” Rivera said.
While Hollins launched an online tool called “This Fee is Garbage” allowing residents to compare what they would pay under the flat monthly fee versus a proportional property tax increase, he has said he expects to certify the FY2027 budget.
The new fiscal year begins July 1.
