Category Archives: Local politics

Plaintiff in Constable Precinct 1 lawsuit responds

Posted on September 5, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

She’s not having it with the dismissal of Constable Alan Rosen as a defendant from the lawsuit. The booze-fueled undercover hotel operations were bad. Felecia McKinney’s worst moment at the Precinct 1 Constable’s Office, however, came two years ago, during … Continue reading →

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Constable Rosen removed from sexual harassment lawsuit

Posted on September 3, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Good news for him, but the suit continues. Harris County Precinct 1 Constable Alan Rosen has prevailed in a legal effort to be removed from a lawsuit accusing department supervisors of sexual misconduct against female subordinates in an undercover anti-prostitution … Continue reading →

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What about City Council and redistricting?

Posted on August 30, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Of interest: . NEW: Except for #DistrictD, all the #CouncilDistricts held by minorities need to add people to equalize population in #Houston’s #political jurisdictions. #redistricting @MarcCommentary @jcortina @PabloMPinto @houtopia @ReneeCrossTX @UHPoliticalSci @MarkPJonesTX @bjrottinghaus — hectordeleon (@hdl_perspective) 9:54 PM – 21 … Continue reading →

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A look ahead to Commissioners Court redistricting

Posted on August 24, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, the Census redistricting data is out, and that means a whole lot of map-drawing is in our future. The main focus on this will be in Austin where the Congressional and legislative maps are re-drawn, but those … Continue reading →

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Harris County gets its restraining order against Abbott

Posted on August 14, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Step one. A judge in Travis County on Friday granted Harris County a temporary restraining order, blocking Gov. Greg Abbott’s ban on local COVID-19 restrictions. The decision by Judge Jan Soifer of the 345th Civil District Court provides legal cover … Continue reading →

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Harris County sues Abbott and issues a mask mandate

Posted on August 13, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Quite the busy day yesterday. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo on Thursday issued a mandatory mask order for Harris County schools and daycares, joining the chorus of elected officials in the Texas’ larges cities in defying Gov. Greg Abbott’s order … Continue reading →

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The charter referendum will be in 2023

Posted on August 13, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

So be it. The organizations and residents who petitioned the city to give City Council members more power will have to wait until 2023 to vote on the measure, after the council declined to put it on this year’s ballot. … Continue reading →

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Sheriff Gonzalez approved by Senate committee

Posted on August 8, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

We are one step closer to needing a new Sheriff. The Senate Homeland Security Committee on Wednesday advanced the nominations of two Texans tapped by President Joe Biden to lead Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Census Bureau. While San … Continue reading →

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Back to Code Red

Posted on August 6, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Pretty much inevitable at this point. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo on Thursday returned the county to the highest COVID-19 threat level and urged unvaccinated residents to stay home and avoid unnecessary contact with others. At a news conference, Hidalgo … Continue reading →

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Mayor Turner tells city employees to mask up

Posted on August 4, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

We’ll see how it goes. Mayor Sylvester Turner told city employees Monday that they again must wear masks when they are at work and unable to socially distance, a requirement that could run afoul of Gov. Greg Abbott’s latest executive … Continue reading →

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County Court judge Barnstone resigns

Posted on July 21, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Ugh. A Harris County civil court judge has resigned amid several allegations of judicial misconduct, including showing bias or prejudice toward litigants and attorneys on the basis of race, sex or socioeconomic status, according to the State Commission on Judicial … Continue reading →

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Sheriff Gonzalez gets a confirmation hearing date

Posted on July 11, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Mark your calendars. The Senate Homeland Security Committee will hold a hearing on Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez’s nomination to lead U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on July 15, the committee announced Wednesday. President Joe Biden nominated Gonzalez to lead … Continue reading →

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Again with the existential Constable question

Posted on July 3, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s a long and detailed story in the Chron about the history and purpose of the Constable office in Harris County, where they are bigger and do more than anywhere else in the state. The lawsuit’s allegations were stunning: Harris … Continue reading →

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The Harris County Administrator of Departments

Posted on July 2, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this. Harris County Commissioners Court on Tuesday created a new administrator position to oversee departments, which the three Democrats described as a wonky internal move to improve efficiency but the two Republicans decried … Continue reading →

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Glaser removed as HCC Chair

Posted on July 2, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Appropriate. Houston Community College board of trustees member Robert Glaser was removed from his position as chair following allegations that he sexually harassed an instructor. The board voted on June 25 to replace Glaser with John P. Hansen as chair, … Continue reading →

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Chron story on Odus Evbagharu

Posted on July 1, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Some good stuff here. When Odus Evbagharu, a 28-year-old legislative staffer and campaign organizer, took the reins of the Harris County Democratic Party Sunday evening, he inherited a party that stands on some of its firmest footing in years, despite … Continue reading →

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Let’s try again to fix that flood bond deficit

Posted on July 1, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Hope this works. Harris County on Tuesday [unveiled] a new plan to address a funding gap for its flood bond program, which will rely more heavily on diverted toll road revenue instead of federal aid that may never arrive. The … Continue reading →

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The HPD transparency portal

Posted on June 17, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

This is good. Traffic stops. Discipline. Use of force. Following widespread calls for police accountability, Houston residents now can use the city’s “Police Transparency Hub” to get far more detailed, accessible information about some of police’s most controversial topics than … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment, Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

HCC Trustee accused of sexual harassment

Posted on June 16, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Ugh. A Houston Community College instructor who accused a college board of trustees member of sexual harassment said HCC executives, including the college’s chancellor, were aware of the misconduct but did nothing to stop it. Documents obtained by the Houston … Continue reading →

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Harris County and Houston appeal to HUD for flood funds

Posted on June 13, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Hope this helps. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo and Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner on Friday asked U.S. Housing Secretary Marcia Fudge to set a 30-day deadline for the Texas General Land Office to formally request $750 million in federal flood … Continue reading →

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Flood Control District director to resign

Posted on June 13, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting. Harris County Flood Control District Executive Director Russ Poppe submitted a letter of resignation to Commissioners Court on Friday, saying he plans to step down July 2. Poppe, 45, said the demands of the job, which have grown significantly … Continue reading →

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Bring in an outside investigator

Posted on June 6, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

That’s the Chron editorial board’s advice for Constable Alan Rosen. Rosen’s office declined to comment to the editorial board Thursday, but in an earlier statement, he said that when he was made aware of the allegations, he “proactively” ordered an … Continue reading →

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City’s budget passes

Posted on June 4, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

There was a little bit of drama, but nothing too big. Houston’s City Council voted Wednesday to approve a $5.1 billion budget for the next fiscal year that relies heavily on a massive infusion of federal aid to close a … Continue reading →

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Another deputy constable files suit

Posted on June 3, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

More bad. When Precinct 1 Constable deputies accused their bosses of sexually exploiting them during undercover vice operations last week, their attorney vowed there would likely be more allegations in the near future. On Wednesday, Cordt Akers returned to the … Continue reading →

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Here comes our boring budget

Posted on June 2, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Save the drama for the budget amendments. A few months into the COVID-19 pandemic, Mayor Sylvester Turner painted a dire picture of the city’s finances as he laid out his plan to balance last year’s $5 billion city budget. Like … Continue reading →

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Threat level down again

Posted on May 30, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Nice. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo on Friday downgraded the county to the yellow COVID-19 threat level, citing improving metrics for the virus here coupled with increasing vaccinations. “This is an important and encouraging, but still fragile, milestone in our … Continue reading →

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State Reps to P Bush: Reconsider

Posted on May 26, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Nearly all of the Harris County State Reps have written a letter to Land Commissioner George P Bush asking him to reconsider the ridiculous process that completely shut Houston and Harris County out of federal flooding funds. A bipartisan group … Continue reading →

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Threat level down

Posted on May 19, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Been waiting for this for some time. Harris County finally will downgrade from its highest COVID-19 threat level, County Judge Lina Hidalgo said Monday evening, after 47 weeks of urging residents to stay home. Hidalgo said the effectiveness of the … Continue reading →

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Houston gets to have a boring budget

Posted on May 12, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Thanks, President Biden and all you voters in Georgia! Mayor Sylvester Turner plans to use an influx of federal cash to give firefighters a “raise the city can afford,” expand the Houston Police Department and replace lost revenue from the … Continue reading →

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A little incentive

Posted on May 3, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

If it takes a reward of some kind to get a few more people to be vaccinated against COVID, I’m fine with that. To increase the rate of vaccinations, the Harris County Commissioners Court approved giving incentives to citizens. At … Continue reading →

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Commissioners Court partially fills the flood bond funding gap

Posted on May 1, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Harris County Commissioners Court took initial steps this week to plug a $1.4 billion funding hole for its flood bond program by diverting revenue from the county’s toll roads system. Court members also laid out a “backstop” plan to … Continue reading →

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Sheriff Gonzalez nominated to lead ICE

Posted on April 28, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. President Joe Biden announced Tuesday that he will nominate Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, a vocal skeptic of cooperating with federal immigration authorities in certain circumstances, to serve as director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. As head of … Continue reading →

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Harris County drops its vaccine waitlist

Posted on April 18, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Sign up and get a shot if you haven’t already. Harris County Public Health has ended its waitlist for COVID-19 vaccinations, County Judge Lina Hidalgo said Friday. The new portal at ReadyHarris.org allows residents to register, after which they can … Continue reading →

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Should Harris County lower its threat level?

Posted on April 16, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Maybe? According to Harris County’s COVID-19 guidance, residents should avoid all unnecessary contact with others. They should not go to bars or barbecues or ballgames. They should work from home if possible and leave only for errands, such as groceries … Continue reading →

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