COUNTY & SCHOOLS
News from Harris County & Lone Star College System
Harris County Commissioners Court will meet at 10 a.m. April 4 and 25 at 1001 Preston St., Ste. 934, Houston. 713-274-7000. www.harriscountytx.gov Humble ISD board of trustees will meet at 7 p.m. April 11 at 20200 Eastway Village Drive, Humble. 281-641-1050. www.humbleisd.net Lone Star College board of trustees will meet at 5 p.m. April 6 at 5000 Research Forest Drive, The Woodlands. 832-813-6500. www.lonestar.edu MEETINGS WE COVER NUMBER TO KNOW At a Feb. 21 County commissioners discussed conditions for inmates at the county jail, approving $1.65 million in contracts and reports aimed at assessing facilities and improving inmates’ quality of life. Among the contracts approved by commissioners meeting, Harris were a $1.4 million contract with AECOM Technical Services Inc. to develop a plan for assessing the county’s detention facilities and a $250,000 contract granting each county jail inmate two additional free phone calls as well as video visitation services. $1.65M
Harris County Public Library System eliminates late fees
Local drainage projects on hold due to funding gap
Lone Star College System board of trustees votes unanimously to raise tuition starting fall 2023
PROJECTS IN PROGRESS Harris County commissioners paused 33 projects totaling $303 million under the Harris County Flood Control District’s Bridge Subdivision Drainage program due to a funding shortfall.
RAISING RATES Lone Star College System’s
in-district, out-of district, dual credit and international/out-of-state tuition rates will increase this fall.
HARRIS COUNTY The Harris County Commissioners BY JOVANNA AGUILAR
BY CASSANDRA JENKINS
budget—assessed value, student growth and state funding. In the mid- dle of all that, we are thinking about what the tax rate might be and what the homestead exemption might look like, too. We are trying to be responsive to taxpayers as well as our students.” According to LSCS information, in-district tuition will increase from $96 to $103 per credit hour. The 7.3% increase from the 2022 rate increase is a larger percent change than the 6.6% increase from $88 to $96 per credit hour the year prior. Out-of-district tuition increased by 7.8% from $214 per credit hour in 2022 to $231, while out-of-state and international tuition jumped by 7.8% from $269 in 2022 to $290. Dual-credit tuition increased by more than 50%. The previous $26 fee increased to $40 per credit hour, according to information from LSCS. Registration for the fall semester will start April 6. The scal year 2023- 24 budget will be approved in August.
BY EMILY LINCKE
LONE STAR COLLEGE SYSTEM Trustees unanimously voted March 2 to increase Lone Star College System tuition starting in the fall. Tuition will increase across in- and out-of-district tuition costs, out-of- state tuition, and dual-credit tuition. LSCS Chancellor Stephen Head said in 2016, the board agreed to equalize the percentage of the budget that students and taxpayers pay in a scal year. The upcoming increase is part of that plan. “This current year, taxpayers were paying 60% of the costs while students were only paying 32%,” he said. “Our goal is to be in the middle.” Head said the board agreed to pause tuition increases in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The decision caused the taxpayer portion to surpass the 35% goal. “We don’t think it’s fair for the taxpayers to be paying more than half of the cost,” he said. “There are a number of factors that aect our
Funding obtained: $556M Funding needed: $277M Harris County Bridge Subdivision Drainage program
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HARRIS COUNTY Commissioners voted Feb. 21 to pause dozens of road and bridge drain- age projects due to a $277 million funding gap for the Bridge Subdivision Drainage program. Projects under the Bridge Subdivision Drainage program target reducing ood risk for more than 45,000 homes across Harris County. The 33 proj- ects commissioners opted to pause on Feb. 21 can be resumed once funding is obtained, according to county ocials. These projects are estimated to cost a total of about $303 million to complete. “Pausing the projects is not doing away with the projects,” Precinct 2 Commissioner Adrian Garcia said. When the Harris County Flood Control District’s $2.5 billion bond was approved in 2018, the 96 projects comprising the Bridge Subdivision Drainage program were expected to cost $460 million. Now, with cost increases due to ination and supply chain issues, the same projects are expected to cost $832 million; the county has $556 million in funding ready. Under the Bridge Subdivision Drainage program, 13 projects are almost completed, 13 are under
Fall 2022
Fall 2023
Total cost: $832M
Dual-credit tuition $26 per credit hour $40 per credit hour Out-of-district tuition $214 per credit hour $231 per credit hour International/out-of- state tuition $269 per credit hour $290 per credit hour In-district tuition $96 per credit hour $103 per credit hour
Court unanimously approved a proposal by the Harris County Public Library to end library late fee nes on books and DVDs on Feb 21. “The elimination of late fees makes HCPL the open, free public resource it was always meant to be,” HCPL Execu- tive Director Edward Melton said. The HCPL has waived late fees since the COVID-19 pandemic forced the closure of all its branch locations in March 2020, and the policy is now permanent, according to an HCPL news release. In accordance with the new policy, patrons will continue to be charged for lost or damaged items, but returning items after their due dates will not result in a fee. Outstanding overdue nes will be waived, although it might take some time before these changes are reected on library accounts, according to the HCPL. N Octavia Fields Branch Library 1503 S. Houston Ave., Humble
Project status Total number of projects: 96
33: Paused 23: In design process or status yet to be determined 14: Construction to begin in 90 days 13: Near completion 13: Under construction
SOURCE: HARRIS COUNTY COMMISSIONERS COURT COMMUNITY IMPACT
construction, and 14 are set to begin construction within 90 days. The remaining projects are in the early design process. Commissioners unanimously voted Feb. 21 to fund the 26 projects that are under construction or nearly completed. Precincts 1, 2, 3 and 4 are home to four, seven, 20 and two paused projects, respectively.
SOURCE: LONE STAR COLLEGE SYSTEM COMMUNITY IMPACT
PORTER 23611 Hwy 59 (281) 354-0733 HUMBLE 19322 US-59 (281) 540-7202
KINGWOOD 1420 Kingwood Dr (281) 359-7115 ATASCOCITA 7034 FM 1960 E (281) 812-3100
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