Houston Controller Chris Hollins hosts a town hall on Houston’s budget at BakerRipley Ripley House in Houston, Wednesday, May 7, 2025.
Yi-Chin Lee/Houston Chronicle
Houston Controller Chris Hollins is accusing Mayor John Whitmire’s administration of refusing to provide records for an investigation into one of the mayor’s advisor, while the city’s top lawyer said the administration intends to cooperate.
The dispute unfolded nearly a month after Hollins announced an investigation into former Houston Controller Chris Brown, whose city building access records and email activity prompted questions about whether taxpayers received work in exchange for his $127,321 salary as Whitmire’s senior advisor for financial integrity.
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Hollins told council members his office has received none of the records it requested after launching the investigation, despite giving the administration until July 10 to begin producing documents.
“We’ve gotten nothing except push back,” Hollins said at city council on Wednesday. “We’ve received no explanation as to when any of this stuff is coming, or if it is coming.”
A city spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment and did not provide an update on whether the city provided Hollins’ office with the requested information as of mid-day Thursday.
The investigation stems from a Houston Chronicle report that found Brown swiped into city facilities only 13 times after joining Whitmire’s administration in January 2024 and sent less than one email per week. None of the emails he sent this year, the report found, appeared to relate to fiscal policy or strategy.
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Hollins said his office is seeking payroll records, time records, badge access logs, calendars, performance records, emails and other communications to determine whether taxpayer funds were properly spent, whether Brown performed work in exchange for his compensation and whether internal controls functioned as intended.
City Attorney Arturo Michel told council members the administration is gathering the requested information and intends to comply with the controller’s requests, but did not say when the city would provide the information.
“The mayor’s office has been cooperating,” Michel said. “We’re gathering the information and we’re fully going to cooperate.”
Michel noted private information, such as personal appointments on an employee’s Outlook calendar, won’t be provided.
Michel sent Hollins a letter July 1 arguing the city charter limits the controller’s investigative authority.
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While acknowledging the controller may review whether taxpayer funds were properly authorized and whether the city received value in exchange for compensation, the letter said Hollins lacks authority to conduct a personnel investigation into Brown or the mayor’s hiring decisions.
The letter also stated that actions exceeding the controller’s authority “may constitute ultra vires conduct subject to judicial review.”
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“Ultra vires” refers to actions taken by public officials that are beyond their legal authority, said retired state district judge Mark Davidson, who declined to weigh in on the merits of the dispute. Courts can issue injunctions to prevent officials from exceeding those powers, he said.
Hollins disputed the city’s position. In a July 8 response, Hollins wrote that his office is not questioning Whitmire’s authority to hire Brown, but whether taxpayer funds were spent appropriately and if Brown performed the work taxpayers paid for.
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During Wednesday’s meeting, Hollins said much of the information he seeks has already been released to the Houston Chronicle through public records requests, including badge access records, and could be provided to his office immediately.
“The exact information that we’re looking for should be available to us because it falls directly into the work of the controller’s office,” Hollins said. “Again, we launched this nearly a month ago… We’ve gotten zero.”