Conroe City Council appointed two longtime city employees to leadership roles Aug. 13, naming Brandy Taylor as community development director and Jason Miller as public works director.

What you need to know: City Administrator David Willard recommended both appointments, telling council Taylor is a longtime employee whose work he has come to appreciate.

“She's just a great employee, and I'm excited to bring her forward to be this director and really start bringing back our team,” Willard said.

Council approved Taylor's appointment without opposition.

The discussion: Miller's appointment drew more discussion and ultimately passed 3-2.

Willard said Miller has worked for Conroe for 31 years and called him “one of the best water and sewer people” he has worked with during his career.

“I have full confidence in Jason,” Willard said. “He's a person of integrity and truth.”

Council members Shana Arthur and David Hairel raised concerns about moving forward without conducting a broader search. Arthur said the position now requires executive leadership, technical knowledge, major project management and long-range infrastructure planning.

On Aug. 18, the Montgomery ISD board of trustees adopted the fiscal year 2026-27 tax rate, which is lower than the previous tax rate. The reason behind this decision was to pay back Montgomery residents for their recent support and investments, said MISD Board President Eddie Winn

The breakdown: MISD Superintendent Mark Ruffin said the FY 2026-27 rate would be $1.0479 per $100 valuation; this is a decrease of $0.0433 compared to the district’s previous tax rate of $1.0912. 

The basic breakdown for the tax rate is:

• Maintenance and operations: $0.6977 per $100 valuation

• Interest and sinking (debt service): $0.3502 per $100 valuation

M&O focuses on paying the district’s day-to-day operations, programs and essential services. The I&S portion is used to make payments on voter-approved bonds. As previously reported, MISD was able to pass a $326.9 million bond referendum on May 7, 2022, which they are still working to pay off.

Need to catch up on Community Impact’s coverage this week? Check out these trending stories across the northern portion of the Greater Houston area from Aug. 14-21.

1. Conroe approves data center regulations as officials cite interest in city

2. Sprouts to anchor Grand Imperial Marketplace center and 5 more businesses announced
3. Apple officially opens new manufacturing facility in north Houston

4. Montgomery County FY 2026-27 budget grows to $552.7M after workshops

5. Willis residents push for FM 1097 relief amid current congestion, future growth

6. Conroe ISD STAAR results consistently surpass state, but show decreases within district in some subjects

7. Conroe City Council keeps Flock cameras, firefighter collective bargaining off November ballot

This November, Libertarian Ted Brown, Republican Ken Paxton and Democrat James Talarico are running to be Texas' next U.S. senator.

The overview: Each state has two U.S. senators serving staggered terms, with Ted Cruz and John Cornyn currently representing Texas. Cornyn ran for reelection but lost his primary race, and the winner of the November election will replace him in January.

Paxton advanced to the general election after beating Cornyn in a primary runoff, while Talarico beat two other contenders in the Democratic primary, Community Impact reported. Brown was selected as the Texas Libertarian Party's candidate during an April nominating convention.

At the polls: Early voting runs from Oct. 19-30 for dozens of statewide and local races. Election Day is Nov. 3.