HTX-CYF: Impact 10/21/2025

In November, Harris County Commissioners Court will consider a worksite safety policy proposal seeking to standardize safety protocols countywide in order to reduce injuries and strengthen worker protections on authorized construction sites. 

By the numbers: Workplace injuries in 2021 cost $167 billion and amounted to $47.4 billion in wage and productivity losses, according to a 2024 report from a Houston-based Occupational Safety and Health Administration training organization.

The experts: Linda Morales is the organizing coordinator at the Texas Gulf Coast Area Labor Federation. Harris County’s current contractor safety record policy is taken into account during the bidding process, Morales said, where contractor and subcontractors must show a proven safety record that complies with industry standards.

In their words: “What it does is that it helps prevent habitual violators of health and safety standards from operating on Harris County projects, but what they don’t have is a policy that addresses real-time safety issues that arise on county projects," Morales said.

Family-owned business Not Just Another Daycare reopened in late July with new ownership following a five-month closure, day care staff said.

Meet the owner: New owner Xiomara Gaytan told Community Impact she bought the business after working in the day care's kitchen and eventually as a teacher. She said her two daughters now teach at the day care, serving approximately 40 kids between 6 weeks and 12 years old.

The nonprofit Harris County Public Library Foundation has officially launched, a press release from the organization announced. 

What to know: The nonprofit is dedicated to supporting and enhancing library services for the more than 5 million residents of Harris County and was established to champion the library's mission and secure financial support to expand its services and collections of materials and resources according to the foundation's website.

What else: The HCPL Foundation will hold its first annual Booked for Lunch event on Nov. 10 at the Junior League of Houston. The 2025 Booked for Lunch event is specifically focused on raising funds to increase the quantity of both printed and digital books in the Harris County Public Library collection and reduce wait times for borrowers.

As water restrictions and shortages become more common in Texas communities, state lawmakers are asking voters to approve $20 billion to fund new water supply projects and improve existing systems over the next 20 years.

The overview: If voters approve State Proposition 4, which is on the November ballot, the state will create a dedicated funding stream to help local utilities access more water and upgrade their infrastructure. Without the new funding, Texas’ water crisis could deepen, experts say.

“We’ve got 1,500+ people moving to Texas every day, and not one of them is bringing a single drop of water with them,” Dean Sharp, who leads the management division of the Texas American Water Works Association, said Oct. 16.

Key takeaway: Despite the $1 billion annual price tag, Proposition 4 would not create any new state taxes or increase costs for Texans, lawmakers and experts said. Beginning in 2027, the money would come from existing sales tax revenue and be deposited in the Texas Water Fund, a state account that voters approved in 2023.