'Where would the money come from?': Harris County commissioners weigh year-long hiring freeze across county departments
Harris County commissioners and department leaders are considering implementing a yearlong hiring freeze to save at least $25 million in costs to address a projected $200 million-plus shortfall in fiscal year 2025-26. Budget Director Daniel Ramos presented the personnel freeze proposal during the Aug. 26 commissioners court meeting, which stretched until 10 p.m. as nearly 200 residents signed up to address agenda items.
Explained: Ramos said three of the county’s bigger departments—the engineering office, information technology services and public health—would be the most affected. The freeze would exclude positions in several departments identified as critical by county officials, including law enforcement, elections, the county clerk and park maintenance offices.
Quote of note: “It's definitely inconvenient for the departments,” Ramos said, "but the crossroads that we're at ... is, do we want to go back and identify $25 million worth of departmental cuts at this point or do we want to do something more blanket, like a hiring freeze?"
Nothing Bundt Cakes officials confirmed the bakery opened a new location in Spring on Aug. 22.
The details: According to the website, Nothing Bundt Cakes was founded in 1997 and has over 600 locations nationwide.
What they offer: Nothing Bundt Cakes offers a variety of cake sizes from 8-10 inch cakes as well as personal cakes and mini bundt cakes sold by the dozen. The bakery also offers gluten free options.
Amid Democratic criticism, Texas lawmakers vote to overhaul STAAR and launch new tests in 2027
Both chambers of the Texas Legislature have voted to overhaul the state’s standardized testing system, putting public school students one step closer to taking new exams in the 2027-28 school year.
The details: House Bill 8 would eliminate the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness and replace it with three shorter tests, which students would take at the beginning, middle and end of each school year.
Bill author Rep. Brad Buckley, R-Salado, said HB 8 would “reduce test anxiety, provide teachers with immediate feedback and create a pathway for trust in our system again." The majority of House Democrats and a few Republicans disagreed, arguing Aug. 26 that the bill would increase the amount of time students spend on exams and essentially create “another STAAR test” developed by the Texas Education Agency.
Next steps: After state senators passed HB 8 with a 21-7 vote Aug. 27, the bill returned to the House for consideration of a Senate amendment. If House lawmakers sign off on the changes, HB 8 will be sent to the governor.
FOODIE FRIDAY Check out these new restaurants and bars opening across the Houston area.
According to an Aug. 21 release, Local Public Eatery opened a new location at Market Street in The Woodlands, marking the concept’s first Houston location and second Texas location. The 5,140-square-foot space features curated artwork, vintage lighting and cozy area rugs, according to the release. The space also offers a screen at the bar for sports and a wrap-around patio with a retractable roof, intimate dining spaces and a central deck bar.
At the bar, customers can find a large selection of beer, wine and hand-crafted cocktails like the Spicy Guava Margarita. Local Public Eatery offers comfort food classics including fried chicken ramen, loaded potatoes and barbecue rice bowls.
🧇 The Waffle Bus now serving waffle sandwiches in Bridgeland (Read more)
😋 2 new restaurants coming to The Woodlands from chefs Austin Simmons and Aaron Bludorn (Read more)
🍖 Fire Craft BBQ brings Texas-style eats to Kingwood (Read more)
🆕 Amanecer Mexican Cafe to add authentic comfort meals to Heights palate (Read more)
The coastal eatery has two locations in Memorial City and River Oaks, with plans for a third restaurant to open in Rice Village this fall. Known for its raw bar selection and seafood, Liberty Kitchen recently announced the opening of its third location off Morningside Drive in an Aug. 6 social media post. A few customer favorites on the menu include the Chesapeake crab balls, buttermilk lobster bites and char-grilled Gulf oysters. The restaurant also offers sushi and sashimi cuts such as tuna poke, citrus chili salmon Scottish sashimi and black truffle hamachi.
