Houston Budget Must Connect To Attacks On Democracy-Will We Pay HPD Time 1/2 To Help Suspend Habeas Corpus?

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​As part of my work on the Houston Democracy Project, I went to a City of Houston budget hearing this past Saturday morning put on by Houston City Council Finance Committee Chair Sallie Alcorn & Vice-Chair Mario Castillo from District H. 

The hearing was at Fonde Recreation Center which is a great city resource. Above is a picture of the hearing. Some more people showed up after I took the picture. The hearing had more energy than the picture conveys. There also were tables set up by city departments. Thank you to the city workers who showed up on a Saturday morning. 

Both Ms. Alcorn and Mr. Castillo are Democrats. Republican District E Councilmember Fred Flickinger was also there. Councilmember Alcorn is At-Large and represents the entire city. Here are Council district maps so you can see who represents you. 

Here is the Houston 2025-26 budget. There is a lot of information and specifics if you want to give the budget a hard look. There is a virtual budget hearing that you can take part in at 6 PM on Thursday, May 22. 

Here is a report on the budget from NPR station KUHF.  

From KUHF: 

"More than $7 million from the neighborhoods department, $1.8 million from libraries and more than $4 million from health — those cuts are among the $74.5 million in slashed general fund spending from fiscal year 2025 to 2026...While the majority of city departments would see cuts to spending, the fire department would receive an additional $23 million in funding, the police department would add $67 million to its budget, solid waste would receive an extra $1.4 million and the housing department would get an additional $346,000."

I spoke at the hearing. My Houston Democracy Project concern with the budget is how it interacts with the national political situation. Here are the points I made in the 2 or 3 minutes I spoke at the microphone-- 

* This budget process cannot be seen outside the current national political situation. City budget hearings in this budget cycle have established that 98% of Houston Housing Department funding is federal & that the health department looks to lose at least $62 million in federal funding. Other departments face losses & new federal funding may well no longer be extended. Here is the Housing Department hearing. Here is the Health Department hearing. 

* The six Republican Councilmembers—Carter, Ramirez, Davis, Flickinger, Huffman & Peck—bear specific responsibility for these cuts. They’ve not spoken up. Maybe they are afraid of Trump's mob if they speak up. It is a slap in the face to the public that the Chair of Council's so-called Resilience Committee is Twila Carter. Ms. Carter campaigned in 2024 for the very people now slashing the National Weather Service & FEMA. 

* Since Mr. Flickinger was there, I said that his part of town-Kingwood-often floods and he should work to oppose these cuts. I doubt I convinced him. But I tried. 

*There is an expensive new police contract that includes provisions making it more difficult to discipline HPD officers. With an April 25th Executive Order outlining U.S. military cooperation with local law enforcement, will our cash-strapped city be paying time & a half to enforce locally the suspension of habeas corpus, or to deport people without due process to the torture prison in El Salvador? 

*Mayor Whitmire really isn’t part of the discussion. He seems unable to adjust to, or to even acknowledge, the failure of the systems that have sustained his lucrative political career. He has power, but offers no helpful insight or vision. 

*You’ll all go forward with this budget process. So it goes. I urge that you understand your role as Councilmembers isn't what it was before. You each have the duty to protect Houstonians as much as possible from both state and federal government & to step up with courage to confront the trouble ahead. 

In reply, Ms. Alcorn-in a friendly manner-said Houston City Council looks to avoid partisanship. I replied that the time for that worn-out way of doing things at Houston City Hall has passed. Republicans supporting federal cuts promise so much harm to Houston must be held to account.

The work of freedom is up to each of us. Our local elected officials must fully join the fight. They won't fully join the fight unless we press them to do so. 

Here is information on how to follow and interact with Houston City Council--
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Public comment time at Houston City Council is each Tuesday at 2 PM. Here is how you can speak at Council and here is how to contact your councilmember.  The earlier before the session you sign up, the higher up on the speaker's list you'll be. The agenda session to conduct Council business is each Wednesday at 9 AM. The agenda is posted in advance. Council can be watched live on HTV Houston Television and the most recent session is available at any time on the HTV feed on Facebook. Here is the link to past sessions of Council. Here are Council district maps so you can see who represents you. 

Here is the Houston Democracy Project list of things each of us can do to fight Trump/Musk. Here is a fundraising pitch for the Houston Democracy Project. I'm doing the work and showing up in many different ways.  Please help the effort. ​​

I'm on the Egberto Willies Politics Done Right Show every Thursday from 6 AM to 7 AM for the Houston Democracy Project segment. You can hear the show on the radio, stream it on KPFT or watch later Egberto's YouTube channel.

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