10/29/26 – In January this year, I wrote an editorial titled “How Government Secrecy Contributes to Flooding.” Unfortunately, since then, not much has changed. The Secrecy Police remain active as future disasters develop in darkness.
This month, I had two Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests denied. In each case, Harris County told me they had no “responsive records” in their files. Then in each case, I received subsequent correspondence saying that my request was being appealed to the Attorney General.
Harris County government transparency. Image by ChatGPT.
We’ll likely never know. At least not in time for voters to do something about it. The Attorney General’s office has become a graveyard for FOIA and TPIA (Texas Public Information Act) requests. The AG routinely takes 45 days to rule on them and virtually all rulings support the government agency trying to keep documents secret.
In the last year, I’ve had public information requests refused concerning:
And more. Much more. I make about one request per week to different governmental entities in the region and their various departments. They deny most requests. Other journalists report similar batting averages.
Some development is insufficiently mitigated (Increases in impervious cover increase runoff. Detention basins can offset that. But they cost developers money and land.)
The public remains ignorant of increases in flood risk
Unsuspecting homebuyers lose their life savings…or their lives
Billions of tax dollars go toward flood mitigation and disaster recovery…unnecessarily.
And the counties surrounding Harris still have not updated their flood maps. A quick check of FEMA’s Flood Hazard Layer Viewer shows that effective flood maps in those areas date from 1983 to 2021.
But it’s not just unsuspecting new-home buyers at risk. It’s also people who may have bought homes decades ago. Floodplains have expanded since then. The post-Harvey map update in Harris County showed:
Floodways expanding into the old 100-year floodplain
The old 100-year floodplain expanding into the 500-year.
500-year floodplains expanding into previously uncharted areas.
Check out the slider on MAAPnext.org to see floodplain expansion in your area. Many people may have no idea that floodplains have engulfed their homes.
More than 1-in-4 People in the San Jacinto River Basin Live in Floodplains
We have the second highest number of repetitive loss properties in the country, according to the Insurance Journal.
It’s not all because of rainfall, flat land or our proximity to the Gulf. Government secrecy compounds those issues.
Please vote for people in this election who uphold the spirit of FOIA and TPIA. We need to get off this treadmill. And government secrecy keeps us on it…in the dark…putting our life savings at risk.
We pay for this information. Why won’t government share it with us?
Posted by Bob Rehak on 10/29/26
3348 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.
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Public-Records-Denial-Desk-2.jpg?fit=1100%2C733&ssl=17331100adminadmin2026-10-29 18:41:012026-10-29 18:41:02Editorial: The Secrecy Police and How Disasters Develop in Darkness
10/27/26 – The San Jacinto Watershed had the worst flooding in Harris County during Hurricane Harvey, yet has received only 14% of the $367.45 million in flood-mitigation assistance promised with the 2018 Flood Bond.
Harris County officials sold the $2.5 billion Flood Bond in 2018 on the basis of “worst first.” Said another way, areas with the worst flooding would receive flood-mitigation help first. However, eight years later, a different administration is fixing the worst flooding last. The graphs below tell the story.
Who Had Worst Flooding?
The first graph shows the number of “feet above flood stage” that floodwaters reached at representative gages across the county. I calculated the results from data readily available on the Harris County Flood Warning System. To cross-check, just subtract the “flooding likely” levels for each gage from the peaks recorded during Hurricane Harvey.
You can see the highest flooding in the county, aka “the worst,” happened at the US59 gage at the San Jacinto West Fork – more than 20 feet above flood stage. Spring Creek at I-45 came in a close second.
Who Received Most and Least Flood-Mitigation Support?
However, those two watersheds have received among the lowest percentages of promised flood-mitigation support.
Notice how the San Jacinto Watershed moved from worst flooded to virtually last in flood-mitigation support.
The San Jacinto Watershed has the largest disparity between mitigation promised and delivered.
Notice also where Spring Creek falls. It went from the second-worst flooding to the third-least support out of all the watersheds in Harris County.
The table below shows the total budget promised, money spent so far, and money actually spent as a percent of the total promised.
The San Jacinto River Basin (Harris County’s largest) has received only 14% of the promised flood mitigation dollars to date.
Note in the table above that “countywide projects” is not the same thing as a “countywide average for all watersheds.” HCFCD has spent $2.33 billion so far out of a total of $5.3 billion. The $5.3 billion includes secured partnership dollars. So, the average of “percent spent” for all watersheds is 44%. The San Jacinto is less than one third of that.
But that average assumes no partnership dollars will go somewhere else. More than $250 million of Community Development Block Grant Funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development are at risk unless HCFCD can speed up project execution.
Two Issues: Misleading Voters and Slow Delivery
The numbers above point to two issues:
Voters were misled. After the Flood Bond passed in 2018, a Democratic majority in commissioners court redefined the language voters approved in the flood bond. Instead of the “equitable expenditure of funds” (see Paragraph 14-G) promised in the flood bond and prioritizing projects on the basis of “worst first,” projects have been prioritized by equity and social vulnerability. Flood risk no longer even factors into the formula for prioritizing projects.
Project delivery rates fell off precipitously under HCFCD’s former executive director who was recommended by Commissioner Adrian Garcia. He defended her slow delivery long after problems under her leadership became clear. We’ve seen similar problems in other county departments. We must untangle them by hiring professionals not political loyalists.
HCFCD spending between start of flood bond and departure of Exec. Dir. Dr. Tina Petersen.
Your Chance to Correct
Voters have a rare chance to correct these problems in the current election – before it’s too late.
If you’re concened about flooding, you have a rare chance to correct these problems at the ballot box. Orlando Sanchez has met with me for hours on several occasions discussing flood problems in the Lake Houston Area. His opponent has not contacted me at all.
That speaks volumes about their respective priorities.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 10/27/26
3346 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.
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Percent-Spent-Thru-26Q3.jpg?fit=1100%2C656&ssl=16561100adminadmin2026-10-27 17:01:302026-10-27 19:34:39“Worst-First” Promised, But Far From Delivered
10/26/26 – Few people understand that floodplains are a shifting target. They are determined by LIDAR accurate to within a centimeter, certified by professional engineers, and enshrined in government regulations. At the end of that process, residents borrow billions of dollars for mortgages, often based on where a professional surveyor determines a line should appear on a map.
How could they all be wrong? They aren’t. They’re right for a period of time. But those floodplains shift based on:
Hundreds of jurisdictions within the San Jacinto River Basin that may not share Harris County’s flood-prevention priorities
Who wins the political battle for flood-mitigation dollars at the state, county and local levels.
Shifting-Target Horror Story
How fast can things change? In the early eighties, I bought a house in the Dallas area on Spring Creek downstream from Plano. The engineer, survey, and developer certified that it was two feet above the hundred year floodplain. But Plano was the fastest growing city in America at the time. Within two years, floodwater entered our house after a minor rain.
So, the Army Corps resurveyed the creek. They determined that we were ten feet below the 100-year floodplain, not two feet above it. That was an expensive lesson for young homeowners. After making repairs, we sold the house at a huge loss.
We then moved to Houston, but on much higher ground relative to the floodplain at the time. We bought a home a mile beyond the 500-year floodplain. Now, however, new flood maps show the 500-floodplain reaches within 50 feet of my house.
Do Maps Really Reflect Everything Going on Around You?
As a result, I have learned all over again that floodplains are a shifting target.
“Now, where is that floodplain?” Illustration by ChatGPT.
If you came across a bear in the woods, you would immediately sense a threat and turn around. But when searching for a new home, you may not feel an immediate threat from flooding. So, many people let their guards down.
Even if you wanted to learn what a new home’s flood risk is, how would you?
The new flood maps posted on MAAPnext.org are not yet official. And even if they were, Harris County Flood Control based them on data it started acquiring in 2019. Since then, Montgomery County has become the third-fastest growing county in America – a game changer.
FEMA is now reviewing protests by home and business owners who fear their property values could plummet re: the extent of floodplains.
Engineering for additional gates for the Lake Houston Dam has not yet finished. But we know we will need more funding that could potentially torpedo the benefit/cost requirement.
No additional upstream detention projects have yet started.
The Lake Houston Dredging and Maintenance District is scrambling to put together a business plan.
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Houston-Floodplain-Shuffle.jpg?fit=1100%2C733&ssl=17331100adminadmin2026-10-26 20:26:062026-10-26 23:05:44Floodplains: A Shifting Target and a Political Swamp
Editorial: The Secrecy Police and How Disasters Develop in Darkness
10/29/26 – In January this year, I wrote an editorial titled “How Government Secrecy Contributes to Flooding.” Unfortunately, since then, not much has changed. The Secrecy Police remain active as future disasters develop in darkness.
This month, I had two Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests denied. In each case, Harris County told me they had no “responsive records” in their files. Then in each case, I received subsequent correspondence saying that my request was being appealed to the Attorney General.
Every reporter I know has similar complaints.
Getting the Story Straight
Which is it? The records don’t exist? Or records that were minutes away from being discussed openly in commissioners court were so politically explosive that Adrian Garcia needed to delay their publication until after the election?
We’ll likely never know. At least not in time for voters to do something about it. The Attorney General’s office has become a graveyard for FOIA and TPIA (Texas Public Information Act) requests. The AG routinely takes 45 days to rule on them and virtually all rulings support the government agency trying to keep documents secret.
In the last year, I’ve had public information requests refused concerning:
And more. Much more. I make about one request per week to different governmental entities in the region and their various departments. They deny most requests. Other journalists report similar batting averages.
Consequences of Government Secrecy
The net effects of the darkness?
A brilliant, young investigative reporter named Yilun Cheng documented how 65,000 homes were built in Houston area floodplains while waiting years for the release of new flood maps.
And the counties surrounding Harris still have not updated their flood maps. A quick check of FEMA’s Flood Hazard Layer Viewer shows that effective flood maps in those areas date from 1983 to 2021.
But it’s not just unsuspecting new-home buyers at risk. It’s also people who may have bought homes decades ago. Floodplains have expanded since then. The post-Harvey map update in Harris County showed:
Check out the slider on MAAPnext.org to see floodplain expansion in your area. Many people may have no idea that floodplains have engulfed their homes.
More than 1-in-4 People in the San Jacinto River Basin Live in Floodplains
Some amazing statistics:
It’s not all because of rainfall, flat land or our proximity to the Gulf. Government secrecy compounds those issues.
Please vote for people in this election who uphold the spirit of FOIA and TPIA. We need to get off this treadmill. And government secrecy keeps us on it…in the dark…putting our life savings at risk.
Harris County officials talk transparency but there’s an appalling lack of it.
We pay for this information. Why won’t government share it with us?
Posted by Bob Rehak on 10/29/26
3348 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.
“Worst-First” Promised, But Far From Delivered
10/27/26 – The San Jacinto Watershed had the worst flooding in Harris County during Hurricane Harvey, yet has received only 14% of the $367.45 million in flood-mitigation assistance promised with the 2018 Flood Bond.
Harris County officials sold the $2.5 billion Flood Bond in 2018 on the basis of “worst first.” Said another way, areas with the worst flooding would receive flood-mitigation help first. However, eight years later, a different administration is fixing the worst flooding last. The graphs below tell the story.
Who Had Worst Flooding?
The first graph shows the number of “feet above flood stage” that floodwaters reached at representative gages across the county. I calculated the results from data readily available on the Harris County Flood Warning System. To cross-check, just subtract the “flooding likely” levels for each gage from the peaks recorded during Hurricane Harvey.
You can see the highest flooding in the county, aka “the worst,” happened at the US59 gage at the San Jacinto West Fork – more than 20 feet above flood stage. Spring Creek at I-45 came in a close second.
Who Received Most and Least Flood-Mitigation Support?
However, those two watersheds have received among the lowest percentages of promised flood-mitigation support.
Publicity surrounding the Flood Bond contained lists of recommended projects and their costs. The graph below shows what percentage of the estimated totals for each watershed has been spent to date. To calculate the percentages, I used spending data through third quarter 2026 available on the Harris County Flood Control District Activity Page.
Notice how the San Jacinto Watershed moved from worst flooded to virtually last in flood-mitigation support.
Notice also where Spring Creek falls. It went from the second-worst flooding to the third-least support out of all the watersheds in Harris County.
The San Jacinto River Basin (Harris County’s largest) has received only 14% of the promised flood mitigation dollars to date.
Note in the table above that “countywide projects” is not the same thing as a “countywide average for all watersheds.” HCFCD has spent $2.33 billion so far out of a total of $5.3 billion. The $5.3 billion includes secured partnership dollars. So, the average of “percent spent” for all watersheds is 44%. The San Jacinto is less than one third of that.
But that average assumes no partnership dollars will go somewhere else. More than $250 million of Community Development Block Grant Funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development are at risk unless HCFCD can speed up project execution.
Two Issues: Misleading Voters and Slow Delivery
The numbers above point to two issues:
Your Chance to Correct
Voters have a rare chance to correct these problems in the current election – before it’s too late.
Politicians have a long history of redefining words to suit their purposes. They also have a long history of replacing competent professionals with political loyalists.
If you’re concened about flooding, you have a rare chance to correct these problems at the ballot box. Orlando Sanchez has met with me for hours on several occasions discussing flood problems in the Lake Houston Area. His opponent has not contacted me at all.
That speaks volumes about their respective priorities.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 10/27/26
3346 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.
Floodplains: A Shifting Target and a Political Swamp
10/26/26 – Few people understand that floodplains are a shifting target. They are determined by LIDAR accurate to within a centimeter, certified by professional engineers, and enshrined in government regulations. At the end of that process, residents borrow billions of dollars for mortgages, often based on where a professional surveyor determines a line should appear on a map.
How could they all be wrong? They aren’t. They’re right for a period of time. But those floodplains shift based on:
Shifting-Target Horror Story
How fast can things change? In the early eighties, I bought a house in the Dallas area on Spring Creek downstream from Plano. The engineer, survey, and developer certified that it was two feet above the hundred year floodplain. But Plano was the fastest growing city in America at the time. Within two years, floodwater entered our house after a minor rain.
So, the Army Corps resurveyed the creek. They determined that we were ten feet below the 100-year floodplain, not two feet above it. That was an expensive lesson for young homeowners. After making repairs, we sold the house at a huge loss.
We then moved to Houston, but on much higher ground relative to the floodplain at the time. We bought a home a mile beyond the 500-year floodplain. Now, however, new flood maps show the 500-floodplain reaches within 50 feet of my house.
Do Maps Really Reflect Everything Going on Around You?
As a result, I have learned all over again that floodplains are a shifting target.
If you came across a bear in the woods, you would immediately sense a threat and turn around. But when searching for a new home, you may not feel an immediate threat from flooding. So, many people let their guards down.
Even if you wanted to learn what a new home’s flood risk is, how would you?
The new flood maps posted on MAAPnext.org are not yet official. And even if they were, Harris County Flood Control based them on data it started acquiring in 2019. Since then, Montgomery County has become the third-fastest growing county in America – a game changer.
FEMA is now reviewing protests by home and business owners who fear their property values could plummet re: the extent of floodplains.
Plus, nine years after Harvey:
Yep. You would think widening a channel or digging a detention basin would be a relatively simple task. But we seem to have designed a flood-control system inspired by Rube Goldberg. Read this ironic post I wrote 3000 days ago.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 10/26/26
3345 Days since Hurricane Harvey