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PREVIEW: Harris County commissioners to hear status of climate justice plan, federally-funded flood recovery

Harris County commissioners are set to take up more than 400 agenda items April 16, including discussion about federally funded flood mitigation and recovery projects, affordable housing developments and the first annual status report of the county’s Climate Justice Plan.

At a glance: Commissioners are scheduled to hear a presentation on the implementation of the Harris County Climate Justice Plan, a multiyear climate resilience framework the court adopted April 10, 2025, per agenda documents. Staff from the Office of County Administration’s Sustainability Division will deliver the first report to Commissioners Court reflecting on a year of progress.

Also of note: The Harris County Flood Control District is expected to provide project-level updates to commissioners regarding local flood mitigation and recovery efforts that received funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, or HUD. Staff from HCFCD will share a schedule detailing construction start dates, estimated completion dates, cost escalations and other updates for each project.

Stay tuned: Harris County Commissioners Court meetings are held at 9 a.m. at 1001 Preston St., Houston. 

 
On The Business Beat
Browtique Beauty & Health Academy now open in Spring

Owned by Cecy Torres, Browtique Beauty & Health Academy is now offering a variety of beauty services in the Spring area.


The details: The beauty studio is now offering a variety of microblading services, lash lifts, facials and permanent eyeliners, according business officials.

  • Opened April 12

  • 3934 FM 1960 W., Houston

 
City Coverage
Houston’s recently launched firearm injury dashboard reports first findings

Houston, in partnership with the Houston Health Department and Texas Medical Center partners, released the first four months of data from a new firearm-injury tracking dashboard, the first of its kind in the U.S.

During the city of Houston’s April public safety committee meeting, HHD officials presented the findings of the SafeWatch dashboard.

What is it: Using Level 1 trauma center clinical data and citywide emergency response systems, the SafeWatch dashboard breaks down firearm injuries by age, race, sex, intent, outcome, location and risk factors.

The dashboard, which launched in December 2025, also breaks down whether the incidents were fatal or not, and if they resulted in an emergency department visit or a Level 1 trauma center visit. It is updated quarterly, city officials said.

Next steps: Officials said they are next hoping to integrate Level 2 and 3 trauma center data, add enhancements for a deeper dive into the data, and have regular task force meetings with partners at the Texas Medical Center to discuss trends found in the data.

 
CI Texas
Judge temporarily lifts Texas ban on smokable hemp sales

Texas retailers can resume selling smokable hemp products after a Travis County judge temporarily blocked some of the state’s sweeping new regulations on the hemp industry.

The background: On March 31, the state health department enacted rules changing how THC content is measured in consumable hemp, which industry experts said effectively outlawed most smokable hemp products.

The Texas Hemp Business Council, a federal hemp industry group, and several local hemp companies sued the state April 8, arguing that the state health department does not have the authority to reclassify legal THC levels. State officials have defended the rules, saying they are in line with a September executive order by Gov. Greg Abbott, who at the time called for stricter oversight of the multibillion-dollar hemp industry.

The latest: Travis County District Judge Maya Guerra Gamble sided with the hemp industry in an April 10 ruling, directing the state not to enforce the new THC testing requirement and a restriction on the transportation of hemp products between states. An additional hearing is scheduled for April 23.

 

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