Mayor Whitmire unveils proposed FY2026 budget and 5-year police agreement, highlights drainage, trucks and retirements

Mayor John Whitmire on CityPULSE unveiled a proposed fiscal year 2026 budget and announced a five‑year agreement with the Houston Police Officers Union intended to boost recruitment and retention for Houston Police Department officers.

The budget places infrastructure high on the list of priorities, including “almost a half a billion dollars” earmarked for drainage and street repairs and a recent purchase of 30 garbage trucks, Whitmire said. He also described a voluntary retirement incentive that 1,059 city employees accepted.

The package matters because the administration framed it as an effort to restore public trust, improve service delivery and address chronic maintenance backlogs. The mayor said new pay provisions…