AP Photo / David J. Phillip
As Houston faces a difficult fiscal deficit, Mayor John Whitmire has expressed his dissatisfaction with the city’s chief financial officer, Chris Hollins, calling for a collaborative effort to tackle the challenges. Masu.
The projected fiscal deficit for 2026 has occurred This month it went over $330 million after the city lost its courtroom fight over infrastructure spending that dates back to 2019. Starting from the end of June, Houston will need to allocate $100 million each year to roads and drainage.
After news of court losses broke, Hollins warned that next year’s budget might not be validated without major cuts or significant new revenue. He called for an emergency joint task force to deal with the deficit, consisting of himself, the mayor’s office and members of the city council.
“We look forward to the upcoming budget and next year, so we don’t have the money in the bank to allow us to run another record deficit like that,” Hollins said. Houston Public Media on friday. “We need immediate changes and the emergency task force I requested is to place the best ideas on the table, assess them and their economic impact, and take responsibility while protecting Houstonians. You can come up with a plan to do so: a financial approach.”
In a statement to Houston’s public media, Whitmire said Hollins “should stop politics on serious issues.”
“” My team is capable and fully committed to addressing this issue,” Whitmire wrote. “This challenge didn’t start in 2019. It’s a succession of my administration. I ran to fix Houston for the mayor, and that’s exactly what we’re doing. .”
Houston City Council has been approved Whitmire’s first budget There was a structural deficit of over $200 million last year as Hollins warned of a pending infrastructure lawsuit. The council is also Accepted Whitmire’s request to not raise property taxes After the mayor secured more than $30 million in state funding to cover debris pickup following Hurricane Beryl in July.
Wednesday, Whitmire A wide range of efficiency studies have been published City government by professional service company Ernst & Young. Among the discoveries, the study It will be identified Inefficient in urban expenditure About external vendors. Whitmire’s Office said addressing the recommendations would save the city up to 15%, although the mayor refused to provide certain dollars before it announced its budget proposal in 2026.
“For years there have been inconspicuous inefficiency, overlap, lack of accountability, but now it’s over,” Whitmire said.
The mayor’s office has cost the city $580,000 for the investigation and has not asked for layoffs.
When it comes to dealing with the deficit, Hollins said a 15% cut in spending “will do that,” but he said in the report details on exactly where the cuts will happen and how much money they can save. He pointed out that there is none.
“The Ernst & Young Report is a step in the right direction,” Hollins said. “At the end of the day, the report is positive, but it’s still a report. All we need is a plan.”
Whitmire’s criticism of Hollinth fits a year-long pattern of tension among elected officials. Hollins was an early challenger in the 2023 mayoral race Descending and praising the late US Congressman Sheila Jackson Lee After she entered the fight.
Since then, Hollins has been warning about the financial impact of Whitmire. The big hit contracts with the firefighters associationcontributed to decisions made by two credit rating agencies. Lowers their outlook on the city’s financial situationand a pair Barb exchanged for corporate event donor impact.
“My job is not to come here and be best friends with other elected officials,” Hollins said. “My job is to become a financial watchdog for the city and call them up when I see the challenges on the horizon.”
Asked about Hollins’ task force proposals, Councillor Sally Alcorn co-chaired the Budget and Finance Issues Committee, and gave a more diplomatic tone. In a statement, Alcorn said she had never spoken to Hollins about the task force, but she was “open to join one.” She said Whitmire-appointed finance director Melissa Dubowski should be part of the group.
“After Mayor Whitmire announced his (Ernst & Young) City Wide Efficiency Survey yesterday, efforts are already underway to tackle budgetary gaps, focusing on managing more strategically on contract spending. I guess that’s the case,” writes Alcorn.
To implement the proposal from the efficiency report, Whitmire’s office will ask the city council for another contract with Ernst & Young. The city will need to approve the new budget until the end of June.
