The Fine Print: Houston
What they put in the agenda
Every agenda the site reads, from Commissioners Court and City Council to the port, the transit authority, the college districts and the school boards, is checked item by item. Anything that adds a rule, a fee, debt, surveillance or land control, or that happens behind closed doors, is logged here with the agenda's own words. Anything that cuts or repeals one is logged too, as a rollback.
Showing Harris County Commissioners Court only. Every government →
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Approve DEA State and Local Law Enforcement Memorandum of Agreement with funding
Sheriff to enter Drug Enforcement Administration State and Local Law Enforcement Agency Memorandum of Agreement with U.S. Department of Justice for continued DEA Task Force Program partnership and acceptance of FY 2027 High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) Agreement funding. Federal grant with conditions.
Oct 15, 2026 agenda, item 157.: the agenda's words
Request for approval of the Drug Enforcement Administration State and Local Law Enforcement Agency Memorandum of Agreement with the United States Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) for continued partnership and support of the DEA’s Task Force Program and acceptance of funding to support activities (FY 2027 High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas “HIDTA” Agreement).
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Approve overtime funding from U.S. Marshals Service for Task Force assignment
Constable of Precinct 5 to receive overtime funding in the amount of $109,185.88 from U.S. Marshals Service via existing memorandum of understanding for personnel assigned to Gulf Coast Violent Offenders and Fugitive Task Force. Federal grant with conditions.
Oct 15, 2026 agenda, item 151.: the agenda's words
Request by the Constable of Precinct 5 for approval of overtime funding in the amount of $109,185.88 from the United States Marshals Service via the existing memorandum of understanding for personnel assigned to the Gulf Coast Violent Offenders and Fugitive Task Force.
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Approve DEA agreement for Precinct 5 deputies on drug trafficking operations
Constable of Precinct 5 to enter agreement with U.S. Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Administration for personnel to be assigned to Houston Division Office for drug trafficking operations. Federal agreement with conditions.
Oct 15, 2026 agenda, item 150.: the agenda's words
Request by the Constable of Precinct 5 for approval of an agreement with the United States Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Administration via the existing memorandum of understanding for personnel to be assigned to the Houston Division Office to carry out operations regarding drug trafficking.
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Approve DEA Task Force Agreement for Precinct 3 deputies
Constable of Precinct 3 to enter Program Funded State and Local Task Force Agreement with U.S. Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Administration to assign two deputies as Task Force Officers to Houston Task Force. Federal grant agreement with conditions.
Oct 15, 2026 agenda, item 148.: the agenda's words
Request by the Constable of Precinct 3 for approval of a Program Funded State and Local Task Force Agreement with the United States Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to accomplish the objectives of the Houston Task Force by providing two deputies as Task Force Officers.
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Discussion and possible action on CDBG-DR and CDBG-MIT programs
Harris County Flood Control District to discuss and take possible action on Community Development Block Grant - Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) and Community Development Block Grant - Mitigation (CDBG-MIT) programs. These federal programs come with conditions and mandates.
Oct 15, 2026 agenda, item 93.: the agenda's words
Request for discussion and possible action on the CDBG-DR and CDBG-MIT programs managed by the Harris County Flood Control District.
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Application for Texas Parks and Wildlife Department grant of $15,000,000
Application to Texas Parks and Wildlife Department for FY27 Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership grant program requiring matching funds of $15,000,000.
Sep 22, 2026 agenda, item 81.: the agenda's words
Request by the Commissioner of Precinct 1 for approval to submit an application to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department for grant funds in the amount of $15,000,000, with a required match of $15,000,000, for the FY27 Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership grant program.
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Amendment to CDBG-DR and Mitigation interlocal agreement for $1,000,000
Amendment to interlocal agreement with Harris County Department of Economic Equity & Opportunity for technical assistance and services related to Community Development Block Grant - Disaster Recovery and Mitigation program.
Sep 22, 2026 agenda, item 44.: the agenda's words
Request for approval of amendment No. 3 to an interlocal agreement with Harris County Department of Economic Equity & Opportunity, in the amount of $1,000,000, for technical assistance, staff augmentation, and various services to assist with Community Development Block Grant - Disaster Recovery and Mitigation awarded to the Flood Control District (Agreement No. 2024-04, Countywide).
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Agreement with Precinct 2 for drainage project using federal disaster funds
Approve agreement with Harris County Precinct 2 allocating $2,000,000 in Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery funds and $3,028,192 in Precinct 2 funds for Barbara Mae Street Drainage Project. Federal funds come with conditions.
Sep 17, 2026 agenda, item 189.: the agenda's words
Request for approval of an agreement with Harris County Precinct 2 in the amount of $2,000,000 in Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funds and $3,028,192 in Precinct 2 funds for the Barbara Mae Street Drainage Project.
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Agreement with Precinct 2 for drainage project using federal disaster funds
Approve agreement with Harris County Precinct 2 allocating $1,000,000 in Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery funds and $2,330,278 in Precinct 2 funds for Lauder Road Drainage Project. Federal funds come with conditions.
Sep 17, 2026 agenda, item 188.: the agenda's words
Request for approval of an agreement with Harris County Precinct 2 in the amount of $1,000,000 in Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funds and $2,330,278 in Precinct 2 funds for the Lauder Road Drainage Project.
Deed restrictions
Houston has no zoning; deed restrictions are what keep a business out of a neighborhood, and the city's Legal Department enforces them for neighborhoods. Complaints don't go through 311: they go to drcomplaints@houstontx.gov or the city's complaint form.
- Deed restriction cases reviewed and enforced by the city: 530 in 2024-25, an estimated 550 in 2025-26, and a target of 550 for 2026-27. Nuisance lawsuits handled: 15 in 2024-25, an estimated 10 in 2025-26. [City of Houston FY2027 budget, Legal Department]
- The city's list of reported deed restriction violations has not been updated since Oct. 20, 2015. [data.houstontx.gov]
Code enforcement
- 40% of the City of Houston's Neighborhoods code citations and 36% of Public Works citations were dismissed; the top reasons were "Nolle Prosequi" (the city dropped it), "Officer Not Present" and "Insufficient Evidence." Inspectors made 95,688 residential inspections from Jan. 1, 2024. [KPRC, Nov. 21, 2025]
- Code enforcement inspectors from Neighborhoods and Public Works have been merged into one Community Code Enforcement division in Houston Public Works. Targets for 2026-27: 13,500 weeded-lot cuts, 87% voluntary compliance, 325 demolitions. [City of Houston FY2027 budget, Neighborhoods]
- The Municipal Courts do not publish code citations and how each ended (fined, dismissed, deferred), and the city's code violation dataset was last updated in 2023.
Code and nuisance complaints to Houston 311, by type, and the average days each took to close, from the city's 311 extract.
| Case type | Cases | Closed | Average days to close |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parking Violation | 1,175 | 643 | 6.3 |
| Traffic Signal Maintenance | 1,162 | 882 | 1.2 |
| Container Replacement | 984 | 945 | 1.4 |
| Weeds/Trash/Stagnant Water on Property | 950 | 88 | 5 |
| Trash Dumping or Illegal Dumpsite | 562 | 179 | 4.8 |
| Traffic Signs | 509 | 367 | 4 |
| New Resident Container | 494 | 471 | 1.3 |
| Building Code Violation | 403 | 337 | 2 |
| Container Repair | 340 | 311 | 1.3 |
| Heavy Trash Code Violation | 335 | 119 | 5.4 |
| Health Code | 261 | 25 | 5.7 |
| Junk Motor Vehicle - Private Property | 163 | 34 | 5.1 |
| Bandit Sign - Right of Way | 157 | 148 | 1.8 |
| Traffic Signals | 104 | 54 | 4.9 |
| Dangerous Buildings | 54 | 12 | 3.9 |
| MultiFamily Habitability Violation | 49 | 28 | 1.8 |
| Fire Code Complaint | 49 | 40 | 2.6 |
| Occupancy Violation | 38 | 36 | 2.4 |
| Container Placement | 25 | 3 | 4 |
| Graffiti on Private/Commercial Property | 12 | 4 | 4.5 |
| Drainage System Violation | 11 | 5 | 4.6 |
| Donation Box Violation | 8 | 6 | 2.1 |
| Sign Code Violation | 7 | 5 | 4.5 |
| Malfunctioning Railroad Signal | 4 | 0 | |
| Graffiti - ATT Telephone Equipment | 4 | 0 |
By council district: A 707 (2.5 days) · B 978 (2 days) · C 1,066 (3.1 days) · D 1,118 (2.6 days) · E 370 (2.2 days) · F 337 (3 days) · G 512 (2 days) · H 1,037 (2.7 days) · I 822 (2.7 days) · J 328 (3.1 days) · K 557 (4.1 days) ·
Ghosts in the machine
These cities pass ordinances, set tax rates and sign contracts, and none of it appears here: their agendas could not be read by machine in the last 90 days (scanned images, script-only pages, or no posted agendas). Unseen is not clean.
- 9,613 residents · Jacinto City (0 agendas read, 0 new items; newest agenda posted is for May 28, 2026)
- 4,385 residents · City of Hunters Creek Village Its website does not answer this site's public-records reader, and has since Oct 23, 2026. Its meeting agendas are public records the city must post under the Texas Open Meetings Act; nothing it approves can be shown here until it lets them be read.
- 3,704 residents · City of Taylor Lake Village Its website answers "forbidden" to this site's public-records reader, and has since Oct 23, 2026. Its meeting agendas are public records the city must post under the Texas Open Meetings Act; nothing it approves can be shown here until it lets them be read.
- 3,128 residents · City of Piney Point Village (0 agendas read, 0 new items)
- 816 residents · City of Hilshire Village (0 agendas read, 0 new items)
Scorecard, last 12 months
Points: New rules 3 · Money 4 · Surveillance 4 · Land control 3 · Strings attached 2 · Secrecy 2 · Rollback −3 · the same weights The Fine Print uses everywhere. The Fuckery Meter adds tax rates, consent agendas, closed sessions, missing notice and withheld records.