Pearland, Texas 2020

On October 21, 2020, Councilman Tony Carbone sat down with Felicia Harris Hoss for a Facebook LIVE presentation to discuss Pearland's 8 proposed Charter amendments. Councilman Carbone provided additional insights and information that was not previously shared with Harris Hoss and was able to provide some feedback to Harris Hoss's analysis too. Before going to the polls, don't miss listening to this insightful and informative give-and-take on the proposed amendments.

On October 12, 2020, Felicia Harris Hoss gave a Facebook LIVE presentation reviewing each of the 8 proposed Charter amendments voters will see on Pearland's November 3rd ballot. Felicia spent weeks reviewing information publicly available, the applicable laws, and the Charter itself. The City's Attorney was also gracious with his time, and assisted Felicia in gaining an understanding - from the City's perspective - for each of the proposed changes. In this episode, Felicia provides an in-depth review of each proposition to assist you in deciding how to cast your vote at the polls.

On September 29, 2020, Pearland, Texas 2020 was pleased to sponsor a forum with Pearland Independent School District Administrators and Trustees to talk about the upcoming Voter Approval Tax Rate Election (VATRE), learn more about the District's fiscal initiatives, and why the VATRE is on the ballot. It is critically important that voters understand the impact of their decisions on ballot measures at the polls, and vote all the way down the ballot this election cycle. For more information about VATRE, visit pearlandisd.org/vatre.

On September 2, 2020, I sat down for a cup of coffee with Kevin Cole to talk about his vision for the future of the city of Pearland if he's elected Mayor on November 3, 2020. Listen now as Kevin talks openly about his PEAR plan, water billing, the city's debt, the budget process, transportation goals, and much more.

In April 2020, Council decided to conduct an independent third-party review of the Utility Billing Department aimed at rebuilding public trust and addressing operational issues, if any.At the August 24, 2020 Council meeting, Council considered awarding that contract, along with contracts to administer CARES Act dollars for rental assistance, taking steps to self-insure the City's workers compensation policy, and more.Listen now to the 20-minute highlights of the items and votes cast during the approximately 4-hour meeting.

Mayor Tom Reid is not seeking re-election. For the first time in decades, Pearland will elect a new Mayor. Two candidates seek to fill the position -- former Council member Kevin Cole and community leader Quentin Wiltz.On August 25, 2020, both candidates participated in a Facebook LIVE forum hosted by the Pearland Manvel Fresno Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi. It was the first time both candidates held the stage together. This episode summarizes some of the main points each candidate made during the hour-long forum.

Pearland City Council Positions 3 and 7 will be on the November 3rd ballot.Position 3 is an open seat, due to Council member Gary Moore terming out. Two of the 4 candidates seeking that position -- Jai Daggett and Alex Kamkar -- agreed to participate in a Town Hall forum. Council member Woody Owens is seeking re-election to Position 7, and is being challenged by two newcomers, one of whom is Jeff Hunkele. Owens and Hunkele also agreed to participate in a Town Hall forum.On August 19, Daggett, Kamkar, Hunkele and Owens fielded questions from Pearland residents in a Facebook LIVE forum. Listen now to get to know them better.[NOTE: All candidates seeking these two positions were invited to participate. The other candidates either declined the invitation or did not respond.]

Pearland City Council Position 3 is a contested election on the November 3rd ballot. Four newcomers -- Lewis Barnes, Orlando Bruzual, Jai Daggett and Alex Kamkar -- are seeking to fill the open seat created by Council member Gary Moore's stepping down due to term limits. On July 29th, three of the four candidates participated in a Facebook LIVE forum. Listen now to get to know the candidates a little better.

The November 3rd General and Municipal elections are now all set, and will be coupled with a Special Election for Charter Amendments. At this meeting, among other things, Council also accepted the City's quarterly investment report, awarded another million dollar contract, and tapped the brakes on a $14,000,000+ beautification project along State Highway 288. In less than 15 minutes, listen now for the highlights of the more than hour-and-a-half meeting.

Fifteen-year veteran Council member Woody Owens is being challenged by two newcomers to the scene - Mashunda Ivery and Jeff Hunkele. On August 5, 2020, the 3 candidates participated in a Facebook Live forum. The candidates fielded a number of questions ranging from budget, to 2nd Amendment rights, to transparency. This is a non-partisan election. These candidates' names will appear at the end of the November 3rd, ballot. Early voting begins October 13th.Listen now to get to know the candidates before you cast your vote. [Note: The Forum was recorded through ZOOM. Some of the audio is of a lesser quality due to the remote audio streaming capabilities of the various mics used by the participants. Where possible, efforts were made to improve the quality. Please accept apologies in advance.]

The City Manager will release his proposed FY2021 budget before Saturday, August 1, 2020. On Monday, July 27, 2020, staff asked Council to approve a 5-year Capital Improvement Program that included, in addition to voter-approved projects for which General Obligation bonds are being sold, projects for which about $100,000,000 in non-voter-approved Certificates of Obligation are to be sold over the next 5 years, if Council agrees to move forward on the projects according to staff's plan. About $35,000,000 of the Certificates of Obligation are proposed to be sold in FY2021, which begins October 1, 2020.Staff also asked Council to approve spending more than $9,500,000 for employee health care benefits. Citizens have a right to speak at Council meetings, and can also email Councilmembers to express their thoughts on these, and other, matters.The first meeting of Council to review the proposed FY2021 Budget is Saturday, August 8th. You can attend and participate from the comfort of your home or office, as Council is still meeting virtually due to COVID-19. Visit www/pearlandtx.gov for more information on how to sign up to speak or to find a link to watch the meeting remotely.

Not only is this the first year that cities are preparing budgets under the new law passed in the last Legislative session, they are doing so while also working through the ongoing side-effects of a state-wide government mandated shut-down of society due to COVID-19. For FY 2020, the City of Pearland approved an increase in the property tax rate to the maximum level permitted without voter approval. It was a close 4-3 vote by Council.The bulk of the new revenue generated by that tax rate increase would be allocated to the General Fund for operation and maintenance of the City. With more than $320,000,000 in outstanding debt secured by property taxes, the debt service tax rate grew minimally from $0.43 in FY 2019 to $0.434 in FY 2020. Approximately 6 months into the fiscal year, the City took a hard look at that budget and ultimately cut approximately $4.2 million dollars in expenditures dependent on General Fund revenues. At the time, the City anticipated significant revenue drops from its second largest revenue source -- sales taxes, but did not anticipate any impact to its largest revenue source, property taxes. Over the next 60 days, the City will review and prepare to vote on its FY 2021 budget. Council has invited Citizen participation.

It's July 21, 2020. Pearland, Texas is feeling the impact of COVID on its economy and local political elections. Citizens are social distancing and candidates are social media marketing. Local government is grappling with new property tax laws for the first time while simultaneously seeing significant revenue drops in sales tax, charges for services and other revenue streams typically relied upon to provide goods and services for citizens. It's arguably impossible to keep up with all that is going on, but even harder when you are also tending to other priorities like work and family. That's where this podcast comes in. Tune in as Felicia Harris Hoss endeavors to help you stay on top of local issues as you gear up to go to the polls in November to elect a new Mayor, Council Members, Congressman, and other local leaders.