TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT
Good morning. It’s Monday, August 31.
A soggy stretch leads today’s briefing as a Gulf system takes aim at Southeast Texas midweek. Before the clouds roll in, note that the Houston Zoo offers a free admission day tomorrow, one of only four left this year.
Today’s Highlight
A Gulf disturbance designated Invest 97L threatens Houston with heavy rain and flash flooding Tuesday and Wednesday, the National Hurricane Center said. Forecasters put the chance of the system organizing into a short-lived depression or storm before Tuesday landfall at 50%, with the coast from the Upper Texas Coast to southwestern Louisiana in play. The threat holds regardless of whether it earns a name, because tropical moisture will drive rounds of downpours. Local forecasters project 2 to 4 inches east of Interstate 45, with higher totals possible. Rain arrives Monday evening and peaks Tuesday.
Quick Hits
Harris County commissioners face a projected $181 million general-fund deficit for the fiscal year starting October 1, and may adopt a rate that raises the average homeowner’s general-fund bill about 12%. Even the maximum rate available without a referendum would not close the gap, which grew more than 40% since July as health and law-enforcement costs climbed.
House Bill 24 strips neighborhood protest petitions of the power to force a city-council supermajority on contested housing projects, meaning developments can now clear a simple majority. In Austin, a 64-unit income-restricted project advanced under the new rule after 29 nearby owners petitioned against it.
More than 300,000 Houston-area voters sit on Texas’ suspense list, part of 1.2 million statewide whose addresses the state cannot verify. Being listed does not bar voting, though affected residents may need to update registration by October 5 or complete extra forms to cast a November 3 ballot.
Several new Texas laws take effect tomorrow, including a measure requiring solar sellers to register with the state and carry insurance. A right-to-repair law will force some electronics makers to give consumers and independent shops access to parts, tools and manuals.
More than 100 HISD campuses ran below 60% capacity this past school year, district data show, even after the district closed or consolidated 12 schools. Officials have not confirmed another closure round, though enrollment losses could cost the district $50 million to $60 million a year in state funding.
Check out your neighborhood website:
Oak Meadows Civic Club
