Budget season is around the corner for Houston, and the city is hosting workshops for each department.

What is it: Budget workshops are when departments present their proposed fiscal year 2026-2027 budget and answer questions from council members and the public.

The meetings will take place May 12-19 at City Hall and are open to the public.

“We know most Houstonians interested in the budget process can’t make it downtown during the workday to attend the workshops,” At-Large council member Sallie Alcorn said. “These meetings are also shown live on HTV and may be found after the fact, linked on the HTV website.”

The city is also offering a budget survey, where residents can give feedback on what they believe should be prioritized in the budget.

In collaboration with the Houston Parks Board and community partners, Harris County Precinct 4 Commissioner Lesley Briones announced the official opening of more than 4 miles of trails and a new memorial plaza April 25. 

The backstory: The $6 million project broke ground in January 2025 and is partially funded by Precinct 4’s People 4 Places initiative, as previously reported by Community Impact. 

About the project: Along with the 4 additional miles of trails, the project included seven new pedestrian and bicycle underpasses that improve accessibility and trail safety for around 20,000 people in the community, officials said. 

What’s next: At the ceremony, Briones said the Brays Bayou project is one of 50 projects totaling $220 million that the precinct is working on. She said every year the People 4 Places initiative opens for residents to submit infrastructure projects for the precinct to consider, and that the 2026 call for projects will open shortly. 

Waymo, the autonomous ride-hailing service, is partnering with Waze, the GPS navigation app, to detect and report potholes across Houston to city and state officials.

How it works: Waymo, which uses fully electric vehicles, will use its cameras and physical feedback systems to detect potholes while driving. The data will then be made available to the city of Houston and the state department of transportation through the Waze platform.

Waze users will be able to verify whether or not the pothole is still at the reported location. When verified by users, it will continue to pop up on the Waze app, alerting drivers as they approach the pothole.

Quote of note: “There are potholes that you obviously want to avoid, and there are times where you can't avoid a pothole,” said Ethan Teicher, a representative of Waymo. “When you drive over it, you want to do so in a way that is comfortable for the passenger. And so we've used this data on potholes to continue to improve the driver's behavior.”

Meg Lonero was inducted into the Texas Aviation Hall of Fame, posthumously joining the Class of 2026 during a ceremony held April 10 at the Lone Star Flight Museum.

Her induction recognizes more than 20 years as an airport executive and pilot with the Houston Airport System, including her role in modernizing William P. Hobby Airport and other facilities.

The context: Meg Lonero became manager at Hobby Airport in 1998, where she led a $227 million modernization program focused on infrastructure and capacity.

Texas residents are increasingly facing damaging storms that drive up home insurance rates and other housing costs. Ahead of the state's 2027 legislative session, consumer advocates and insurance industry representatives are urging lawmakers to consider affordability solutions.

What's happening: The average Texas home insurance premium—the amount paid to an insurance company—was $3,291 in 2024, according to the latest Texas Department of Insurance data. In total, premiums rose about 50% between 2022-24.

Texas’ high propensity for natural disasters has been “the No. 1 driver” behind recent rate increases, said Rich Johnson, a spokesperson for the Insurance Council of Texas.

Stay tuned: While Texas can't legislate itself out of weather risks, lawmakers have considered some policy changes to increase disaster resiliency and boost regulatory oversight of the insurance industry. Proposals range from creating grants to help residents weather-proof their homes to placing limits on future rate hikes.