Houston's Chief Operating Officer On Fixing The Budget

Houston's city budget has run a structural deficit for nearly 40 years — the last structurally balanced budget was under Mayor Lee Brown. In Episode 9 of 901 Bagby, Chief Operating Officer Steven David walks through exactly how the Whitmire administration plans to end that streak, and the math is straightforward. Two policy moves, one budget cycle, and the projected FY27 gap shrinks.David is a fifth-generation Houstonian who left Accenture and a higher private-sector salary to take the COO job. He explains the Ernst & Young assessment commissioned in Year 1 — a four-part review covering org structure, performance, spend, and forensic accounting — and the Voluntary Retirement Incentive Program that followed: 1,056 employees accepted the offer, 80% of those positions were deleted from the budget, and the city locked in roughly $100 million in permanent annual savings without a single layoff. Then comes the FY27 budget itself: declaring solid waste a municipal utility (lifting ~$117M off the general fund), and a new right-of-way rental fee on the water and sewer system (~$104M in new general fund revenue) that aligns Houston with Dallas, Austin, San Antonio, and El Paso. Plus the $5 monthly solid waste fee — the Mayor insisted on $5, not $25 — that makes Houston the last major city in Texas to charge for garbage service.The stakes, in David's words: do nothing, and the FY30 gap approaches $450 million — enough to wipe out libraries, parks, the health department, and most of city administration. This is the same briefing he's given  87 times. Now you've got it too.Thanks for listening!New episodes from inside Houston City Hall, featuring candid conversations about the issues, decisions, and leadership shaping the future of Houston.Connect with Mayor John Whitmire and the Mayor’s Office:Instagram: @houstonmayorX: @HouMayorWebsite: https://www.houstontx.gov/mayor/Follow the show for more conversations from inside the Mayor’s Office.