Unfortunately, the new tax proposal only includes buildings and not single-family residences.
City Controller Annise Parker, who headed a committee that worked on historic preservation when she served on the council, said the omission of residences is a serious weakness in the proposal.more ›
HPD's plan to encourage police officers to work overtime to make up for a staffing shortage seems to be working — at least in terms of the overtime. The Chronicle reports today that the number of HPD officers earning more than $50,000 in overtime soared in 2006, totaling 70 — three times as many as earned that much in 2005. The four officers at the top of the list took home more than $100,000 in...
Remember Houston's plan to sue online travel services for back hotel occupancy taxes? Yep, so does the city: City Attorney Arturo Michel said he hopes to have City Council approve a legal contract within the month. "We still plan on proceeding with it," Michel told the Chronicle. "We'll keep an open mind, but we've had a lot of good lawyers looking at it, and I'd be surprised if something happened that would change our minds."
What, you may be asking yourself, is going on with the City Hall bonus scandal these days? The investigation into government spending is continuing, and it keeps turning up interesting things like news about City Controller Annise Parker shutting down 11 special bank accounts set up by City Council members. Parker said she shut down the accounts, which held donations that councilmembers used to fund special events, to avoid any inadvertent violations of city law...
