On August 19, City Council approved an ordinance spearheaded by At-Large 4 Councilmember Alejandra Salinas that requires all rental properties to have air conditioning. Previously, landlords could opt out of air conditioning if the property had window screens. Now, they must install some sort of air conditioning. Central air conditioning is not required; window or other units will suffice, and they will have 120 days to comply.

Councilmember Salinas highlighted public support, notably the Houston Apartment Association, and said the Health Department will guide implementation and enforcement. Councilmember Salinas also announced her office is giving away portable A/C units. Find  information on eligibility and how to apply here.

The ordinance comes during a streak of more than 100 days in Houston, and not all councilmembers were in favor. At-Large 3 Councilmember Twila Carter and District E Councilmember Fred Flickinger voted against the measure. Though Mayor Whitmire supported the ordinance, he echoed many councilmembers’ concerns, including higher utility bills, increased rent as landlords pass the cost down to tenants, and a reduction in affordable housing, which could land people on the streets.

At-Large 2 Councilmember Willie Davis accused the ordinance of making empty promises, saying that it will be difficult, if not impossible, to enforce. Councilmember Carter called it an “unfunded mandate with no meaningful guardrails for the tenants,” and stated that air conditioning can raise people’s electricity bills to a level they can’t pay, resulting in their electricity being cut off or even eviction. Councilmember Flickinger agreed, noting that the ordinance only addresses a symptom of the root cause: poverty. Landlords who keep prices low by not providing air conditioning might decide the cost of A/C isn’t worth it and choose to remove affordable housing from the market, leaving people nowhere to go but the street.

District H Councilmember Mario Castillo countered, saying many of his colleagues’ concerns are unfounded. Other Texas cities have implemented similar measures but have never experienced any of the mentioned dangers, he added, though did not specify which. He also emphasized the direct link between heat and public health, noting that extreme heat conditions most often negatively affect vulnerable populations. “Our codes and our regulations are designed to keep people safe,” Castillo said. “This [ordinance] is raising the bar on the minimum, which is that when you rent a place, there will be a cooling unit. That doesn’t mean folks have to run it 24/7, but it’s there to keep people safe from the high heat.”

District J Councilmember Pollard agreed, noting that unintended consequences, like higher electricity bills, are unavoidable, but it’s the council’s job to prioritize public health. “Living here without AC should be criminal,” he said.

Two witnesses to the tragic ICE murder of Houstonian Lorenzo Salgado Araujo—Daniel Triado Pantoja and Lorenzo’s brother Victor Salgado Araujo—are still in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody, and Houstonians continue to show up to public comment sessions to advocate against ICE in Houston.

At the August 11 meeting, people implored councilmembers to respond. “I would love a question, so I know you’re listening to me, like everyone else who is here, who is presenting on something maybe a little more palatable,” one person said.

Finally, Councilmember Salinas responded: “We hear you. You’re not alone. You’re not talking into the void,” she told them, emphasizing that many councilmembers are advocating to restrict ICE.  She added that HPD Chief Diaz is slated to present on HPD and ICE cooperation at the August 25 public safety committee meeting. “Let’s hear what the chief has to say. Let’s have him explain the data, and then together, we’re going to figure out the next step. But you’re not alone,” Salinas said. “We’re going to do this together.”

Public outcry, calls for an independent investigation, and questions about ICE operations immediately followed after ICE killed Lorenzo Salgado Araujo on July 7. Salgado Araujo’s son, Ronald, attended a public comment session on July 28, asking the city to end its cooperation with ICE. The next day, Councilmember Salinas said HPD reported that law enforcement’s calls to ICE have doubled over the last three months and that police are holding people for up to two hours while waiting for ICE—all of which Salinas called “unacceptable.”

Mayor Whitmire claimed the city doesn’t collaborate with ICE and cited two cases with administrative issues that made it appear as if HPD held people longer than two hours. In one case, HPD was “getting the scene of a very serious accident under control” and didn’t call ICE until an hour and a half later. In the other, officers were securing children in a “domestic situation,” which made it appear that they were waiting for ICE longer than they were.

Councilmember Salinas refuted the mayor’s claims, telling him he was “given bad data.” She described a case in which HPD called ICE on a person who contacted the police department to report someone threatening their life—a situation Salinas said is “far beyond the scope of what HPD should be doing.”

During the August 12 monthly financial report, City Controller Chris Hollins reported that the mayor’s office has still not turned over the requested documents for his investigation into Chris Brown, former city controller and Mayor John Whitmire’s current senior financial adviser. Hollins called for the probe after a Houston Chronicle report revealed that Brown swiped his badge a mere 13 times and has sent less than one email per week since starting his taxpayer-funded job in January 2026.

During the July monthly financial report at City Council, Hollins accused the mayor of withholding information to shield Brown, calling him the mayor’s “political ally.” He later defended his authority to investigate the “serious, credible allegations that a senior member of the mayor’s team has been paid with taxpayer funds and may not have performed real work over a two-and-a-half-year period.”

Mayor Whitmire accused Hollins of spreading misinformation and making a “political speech.” Hollins suggested he is open to pursuing legal action if the evidence he requested is not provided.

Council approved the $1.8 million purchase of land, a $1.4 million architectural contract, and a $19 million construction contract for the replacement of Fire Station 104 in Kingwood, which flooded during Hurricane Harvey in 2017 and remains in the 100-year floodplain.

Mayor Whitmire and Councilmembers Carter and Flickinger called conditions at the current Kingwood fire stations “deplorable.” Flickinger explained that when Houston annexed Kingwood, the city didn’t update the volunteer-only fire stations, which no longer meet current standards.

The new construction is set to get them back on track. According to Flickinger, the renovations will give Kingwood firefighters the respect and appreciation they deserve, combining two of the old fire stations into one, with five bays, updated living quarters, and other necessary modernizations. “They put their lives on the line during the Kingwood flood. I watched them save people’s lives,” he said. “But this is a new chapter.”