HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — A Houston City Council vote on stricter tax abatement rules for businesses was delayed Wednesday after a council member tagged the item, pushing the discussion to next week.
The proposal would let the city keep offering tax breaks to qualifying businesses, but only if they meet new requirements for how they treat employees.
Under the proposal, businesses that offer things like childcare subsidies, minimum wage requirements, and apprenticeship opportunities to their employees, among other things, would be eligible for tax relief.
District E Councilmember Fred Flickinger tagged the item Wednesday, joined by councilmembers Twyla Carter and Willie Davis. Flickinger said he wants city leaders to have a broader discussion about how the changes could affect the city’s revenue before moving forward.
“I really think our abatement should focus on providing more revenue to the city,” Flickinger said.
“The issue we have in Houston is revenue,” Flickinger said. “I wanted to do changes that focused this more on revenue, rather than everything else. Instead, it went the exact opposite direction.”
At-large Councilmember Alejandra Salinas helped lead the reform effort. She said the changes are straightforward.
“Companies still want those tax breaks,” Salinas said. “All we’re saying is, ‘You gotta treat people right, and you can’t take advantage of taxpayers if they’re going to receive that benefit.'”
Salinas said other cities in the area have already made similar moves.
“These were common sense changes to the tax abatement code,” Salinas said. “Changes many of our sister cities in Harris County have already adopted.”
Texas law lets cities set tax abatement guidelines, but those guidelines expire after two years. Houston approved its current criteria in August 2026, largely carried over from the 2024 criteria.
Salinas said the city administration supported the ordinance the city voted on Wednesday.
“We put forth the floor amendment,” Salinas said. “We’re grateful to work with the administration, and that was the ordinance that was going to be voted on today.”
On Flickinger’s revenue concerns, Salinas pointed to results elsewhere.
“For the jurisdictions who’ve already adopted these policies, there has not been a negative impact, in fact they’ve created more jobs,” Salinas said. “So, my hope is with this reform, we’ll see similar benefits in the City of Houston.”
Both Flickinger and Salinas said they will be prepared for a full discussion and a vote next week.
Copyright © 2026 KTRK-TV. All Rights Reserved.