Why HCFCD’s Report on Remaining Flood-Bond Funds is One Blank Page

6/25/2025 – On February 7, 2025, Harris County commissioners, expressed concerns about budget shortfalls in flood-bond and subdivision drainage projects. They asked Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD) for an accounting of where the money went and how much was left. One hundred and thirty-eight days later, after missing repeated deadlines, HCFCD filed the report below for Agenda Item #2 – one blank page. It has nothing on it. Nada. Zip. Bupkis. Zero.

This is what passes for “transparency” in Harris County and the Commissioners Court’s Orwellian world of double-speak. There’s a reason for this.

They’re trying to shift funds around without you knowing.

Commissioners Secretly Debating Scenarios for Dealing with Shortfall

I would hasten to add that Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD) has shared information with commissioners, just not you. And according to Commissioner Tom Ramsey of Precinct 3, all commissioners are engaged in a heated debate about five different scenarios for dealing with the shortfall.

Only one scenario would treat each precinct equally – Ramsey’s. The other four would take money from Republican Precinct 3 and give it to Democratic precincts.

For instance, under one scenario, Precinct 3 would get cut by $223 million while Democratic precincts would be cut only by an average of $120 million. So…

Precinct 3 would be cut $100 million more than other precincts.

According to Ramsey, they’re using “equity” to defend allocations that have nothing to do with equity. For instance, Barrett Station, an underserved neighborhood in Precinct 3 with flooding problems, would receive nothing under the Democratic funding scenarios.

Unacknowledged Scope Creep, Bloat, and Massive Slowdown

Another complaint that Ramsey has is about “scope creep.” Some line items in the flood bond were limited to engineering studies.

However, now that those studies are complete, some commissioners want to increase those limited financial commitments to include full-blown construction costs as well. That was never originally intended.

And when you factor in 27.5% inflation since the 2018 flood bond, you can understand why Democrats are grabbing Ramsey’s fair share.

Of course, they would never acknowledge that they created Harris County’s bloated, process-bound, equity-obsessed bureaucracy that has reduced HCFCD spending to pre-bond levels – making inflation take an ever larger toll on purchasing power.

Lake Houston Floodgates at Risk Tomorrow

That has also put essential, life-saving projects at risk. For instance, on the chopping block: the project to add more floodgates to Lake Houston. The flood bond allocated $20 million that is now at risk of going elsewhere.

GLO Takes Stand Against Partisan Politics, Encourages Speed

Ramsey has drawn a line in the sand on the floodgate issue in particular and the unfair allocation issue in general. He says he has talked with Texas General Land Office Commissioner Dawn Buckingham about the money grab.

According to Ramsey, Buckingham supports a fair and equal allocation of remaining bond funds among all precincts.

Buckingham issued this statement:

“My mission at the Texas GLO is to serve those we are supposed to serve and do it well. Since becoming Commissioner in 2023, I have put politics aside and done what is right for Harris County. Flood waters do not respect political boundaries, and neither should prioritization of resilience efforts. I encourage the Harris County Commissioners’ Court to put aside partisan politics and focus on maximizing effectiveness of the funds available as well as putting them to work as quickly as possible.”

Democrats may have a majority. But Ramsey likely has a bigger stick. Harris County cannot afford to lose Buckingham’s support at a time when her team is reviewing $850 million in Harris County grant applications with tight federal deadlines.

Will the other precincts share the pain? Will they vote for an equal allocation of the remaining funds? Or will they try to steal from Ramsey’s fair share?

How Did We Get Here?

The County’s complete and utter lack of transparency raises the question, “What are they trying to hide from us?” They have clearly forgotten that this is our money, not theirs. Where is it going? Why? Why can’t HCFCD move faster? And how are we to know whether remaining dollars are going where they are most needed? (HCFCD doesn’t publish flood risk data either.)

And most important: How are we to hold executives and elected officials accountable? We can’t without information.

This is the opposite of transparency. Secrecy will increase flood risk for large segments of Harris County’s population that have received little to no help from HCFCD up to now. Like the Lake Houston Area.

Watch the 6/26/25 commissioners court meeting. The meeting starts at 10AM. Don’t miss Agenda Item #2. And remember that blank page and broken promises during the next election.

Posted by Bob Rehak on 6/25/2025

2857 Days since Hurricane Harvey

The thoughts expressed in this post represent opinions on matters of public concern and safety. They are protected by the First Amendment of the US Constitution and the Anti-SLAPP Statute of the Great State of Texas.