Harris County liable to shedding $600m in federal funding
Harris County Choose Lina Hidalgo warns that the county may lose as much as $600 million in federal grants on account of President Trump’s funding freeze. Final month, the White Home introduced a short lived halt on federal funds to make sure alignment with Trump’s coverage agenda. Nonetheless, ongoing authorized battles have left the funding in limbo, creating uncertainty for county leaders about when—or if—reimbursements for essential packages will arrive.
The stalled funds assist important companies, together with infrastructure, catastrophe aid, flooding mitigation and healthcare, with the bulk earmarked for catastrophe response. Packages in danger embrace the Ryan White Program, Ship Channel Safety grants, and the City Space Safety Initiative. Moreover, funding for 50 sheriff’s deputies is on the road, elevating considerations about public security and emergency preparedness.
Apple to open Houston manufacturing facility, creating hundreds of jobs
Apple is investing in Houston with a brand new 250,000-square-foot manufacturing facility set to open in 2026 as half of a bigger $500 billion US enlargement. The ability will produce servers for Apple Intelligence, the AI system powering options like photograph clean-up instruments and writing help on iPhones, iPads and Macs. Apple says the energy-efficient servers can even assist its Non-public Cloud Compute system for safe AI processing. Manufacturing companions will start manufacturing later this yr, creating hundreds of jobs. The tech large can also be increasing knowledge facilities throughout a number of states and investing $5 billion into a sophisticated manufacturing fund.
Fort Bend provides down-payment help for homebuyers
The Fort Bend County Housing Finance Company is launching a down-payment help program to assist 60 eligible homebuyers. Households incomes 120% or much less of the world’s median earnings can obtain $5,000 for dwelling purchases. The funds, which have to be repaid upon resale, refinancing, or switch, will probably be awarded on a first-come, first-served foundation beginning in March. This system is funded by charges from builders working with the county to construct multifamily housing. For extra data, homebuyers can have their lenders contact Sonia Aldrett at 713-383-7273 or Sonia@CovenantCapital.org.
TxDOT warns of toll fee rip-off focusing on Texas drivers
Texas drivers are being warned about rip-off textual content messages claiming they owe a toll steadiness. The Texas Division of Transportation (TxDOT) says these messages are a type of phishing, often called “smishing,” designed to steal private data. Whereas TxTag does ship official texts, it by no means points last fee reminders by way of textual content. Prospects can confirm their notification preferences by logging into their TxTag account or calling 1-888-468-9824. Should you obtain a suspicious message, report it to the FBI’s Web Crime Criticism Heart at www.ic3.gov.
