Judge halts state takeover of Harvey fund
City retains its control of $1.3B in storm aid; General Land Office says it will appeal case
A Travis County judge on Tuesday blocked the Texas General Land Office’s attempt to take over Houston’s federally funded Hurricane Harvey home repair programs, allowing the city to retain control of nearly $1.3 billion in recovery funds.
State District Judge Tim Sulak granted the city’s request for a temporary injunction, which Mayor Sylvester Turner’s administration filed earlier this month, a few weeks after the GLO notified the city of its takeover plans.
Sulak’s ruling followed a day and a half of testimony during which the GLO argued the city’s homeowner assistance program — which provides repairs, rehabilitation and reconstruction of Harveydamaged homes — has operated too slowly under Turner’s administration. The city had completed 65 repairs through Monday, Houston Housing Department Director Tom McCasland testified.
The city countered by accusing the GLO of “slow-walking” the program through bureaucratic maneuvers and arguing that the agency, in its takeover attempt, violated provisions of a contract that required both sides to agree on changes to the funds.
GLO spokeswoman Brittany Eck said the agency would appeal the ruling. She ripped city officials over the lawsuit, saying in a statement that they chose to “pay attorneys to keep Houstonians in the city’s own failed housing program.”
“The decision by the city of Houston to prioritize litigation versus rebuilding housing for those who have been waiting nearly three years is reprehensible,” Eck said. “City officials and their attorneys continue to hinder disaster recovery for the most vulnerable Houston residents three years after Hurricane Harvey.
The GLO also provided a breakdown of the city and state’s recovery programs, noting that the state-administered program has completed repairs and reconstruction on more than 1,600 homes across the 48 Texas counties other than Harris that received federal Harvey recovery funds.
Turner said in a statement that
he was “grateful the judge saw through the politics of (the) GLO’s actions.”
“We are pleased that the judge acted quickly to protect Houstonians,” Turner said. “The ruling today stops the GLO from taking actions that would have harmed our city’s most vulnerable populations affected by Harvey, including lowincome, disabled individuals and people of color, who are protected by the Fair Housing Act through the City’s programs.”
Sulak appeared to base his decision on the city’s argument regarding its contract with the GLO, writing that he lacks the “experience or the expertise to come up with magic solutions” to what he defined as “insoluble problems,” such as the debate over which agency is best suited to operate the recovery programs.
“The court and the law couch these very human concerns in terms of contracts,” Sulak wrote.
Before he issued the ruling, Sulak said district courts typically serve as a “virtual way station” for cases involving governmental disputes and predicted the losing side would appeal his decision, no matter which way he ruled.
The temporary injunction is set to remain in place until a final ruling is granted on the city’s request for a permanent order. A spokeswoman for state Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, said the senator plans to file an amicus brief in support of the GLO takeover.
“Almost three years following Hurricane Harvey, the progress remains slow at best and must be corrected,” Bettencourt wrote in a letter sent to the Travis County court Friday. “The State of Texas suffered catastrophic damage due to Hurricane Harvey and cannot afford to have any funds returned to the federal government when they expire in August 2024.”
In April, Harris County officials ceded control of their Harvey home repair program to the GLO. Sulak said his ruling would not affect that agreement.