Monthly Newsletter

June 3, 2025 Issue 13

Dear District E Residents,

This week, my City Council colleagues and I will vote on the City’s $7 billion proposed budget for the 2026 fiscal year. The top two priorities in this year’s proposed budget are public safety and infrastructure.

Public safety remains a top priority representing $1.8 billion, or 71.5% of the total General Fund spend excluding debt service and PAYGO. The proposed budget includes a 3.5% pay raise for municipal employees and a 10% pay raise for police officers based on the recently approved contract with Houston Police Officers Union. It also includes funding for five (5) police cadet classes and nine (9) fire cadet classes. These investments aim to increase staffing, improve emergency response times, and recruit/retain first responders.

Beginning in FY2026, Houston will fully comply with the City Charter as it relates to the dedicated drainage and street renewal fund. This means allocating hundreds of millions more toward the repairs and replacement of our broken and aging infrastructure. The result will be an accelerated pace of improvements that addresses some of our most visible and disruptive challenges—potholes, poor drainage, and deteriorating roadways. We continue to work closely with Harris County Commissioners Tom Ramsey and Adrian Garcia, along with Montgomery County Commissioner Matt Gray, to find solutions that span across jurisdictional boundaries.

As we enter hurricane season, I encourage residents to take advantage of the updated Houston Disaster Preparedness Guide. The City of Houston Disaster Preparedness Guide is updated annually and helps Houstonians plan for emergencies. The guide is free and can be downloaded in six languages from the City’s Office of Emergency Management’s website, here. Additionally, I encourage all residents to sign up for emergency alerts through Alert Houston. Alert Houston delivers critical information to Houston residents regarding current conditions, expected impacts, and protective actions to keep themselves and their loved ones safe.

Wishing everyone a safe summer and a reminder the District E Office will be closed on Thursday, June 19, in Observance of Juneteenth.

Sincerely,