Hire Houston First- the Next Big Step

Today I announced that the Hire Houston First ordinance will be going to City Council next month.  Hire Houston First is a program that will allow the City to give preference to local companies hired for tax-payer funded projects.    Local firms hiring local workers will keep our tax dollars in our own community and multiply them many times over.

I first discussed Hire Houston First in 2009.  In order to get the program up and running here we first had to work with our Houston delegation to the State House and Senate to clear the way by changing state law.  I appreciate their support in getting this approved, and I look forward to working with City Council to get it implemented.

If approved by Council, the City will be able to give preference to firms principally located in the Greater Houston area if their bids are competitive.

In these tough times, our leaders should be doing everything we can to create new jobs and keep Houstonians working.  Investing in our local economy is just good common sense.  In the long run, we will make money for taxpayers as increased economic activity generates more tax revenue for the city.

For more about Hire Houston first, please click here.  The next step in the process is asking City Councilors to approve the ordinance.  If you would like to contact your Council member and ask them to support Hire Houston First, you can click here.

And here's a clip from the press conference earlier today.