Just ahead of a city council proposal to increase the City of Houston tax rate by five percent to cover disaster-related expenses, Mayor John Whitmire announced that Gov. Greg Abbott and the Legislative Budget Board agreed to give the city, along with other communities in the region, $50 million in funding to cover disaster recovery costs.
“I met with the governor in the mansion, told him how broke we were… we owed FEMA $45 million and we don’t have it, well we have it this morning,” said Whitmire. “It’s not the ultimate solution, but I think it’s a model that will go forward and we will see additional state and other agencies’ support in meeting our challenges.”
The tax increase discussion began in the weeks following Hurricane Beryl which, combined with May’s derecho, left Houston roughly $46 million in the hole to cover debris pickup. That is on top of the estimated $200 million projected budget deficit next fiscal year.
Whitmire had said he didn’t support raising taxes at this time given Harris County’s recent property tax increase, a $4.4 billion Houston ISD bond on the ballot, and a $60 on average property tax increase proposal on the ballot for the flood control district. He intended to pursue cuts and other efforts, but some council members felt now was the right time to raise rates.
They were set to consider his proposal to maintain the same tax rate as well as the council’s proposal to raise it by 5 percent at the meeting.
In light of the announcement, Councilmember Sallie Alcorn, who serves as chair of the Budget and Fiscal Affairs Committee and proposed the increase, pulled her request and said she would no longer ask the council to approve it. However, she still urged them to get serious about city finances as they face a deficit in next year’s budget and additional strains.
Whitmire said that while the increase is off the table for now, it will be a discussion in the future.
“We are going to ask the public to give us additional resources, in my judgment, at the proper time.”
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