Hi there — here’s what’s moving in Fort Bend, in plain words.
The one thing no hurricane checklist tells you to pack
Photo: Jill Carlson via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)
Every hurricane list says water, batteries, canned food. None of them says cash.
When Beryl came through on July 8, 2024, it cut power to 2.2 million homes and businesses across the Houston area. More than 800,000 were still dark four days later. About 226,000 were still waiting after eight days.
Here is what that meant on the ground. ATMs run on electricity. So do card readers. So do gas pumps. The stores that managed to open were taking cash only, and the machines to get cash were dark.
A few hundred dollars in small bills, somewhere safe at home, is the difference between buying ice and standing in a line that cannot help you.
Pull it before the storm has a name, not after.
Sources: Texas Tribune, July 8, 2024 · ABC News · NBC News · Axios Houston
The storm tax break most homeowners never claim
Photo: 2C2K Photography via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)
If a storm damages your home, Texas will lower your property taxes for that year. Most people never ask.
It is written into Texas Tax Code Section 11.35. If your property is at least 15% damaged, and the Governor has declared your county a disaster area, you can apply for a temporary cut to the taxable value of your home.
How much comes off depends on the damage. Fifteen to thirty percent damage takes 15% off. Thirty to sixty percent takes 30% off. Sixty percent or more takes 60% off. A total loss takes all of it.
The form is 50-312. It goes to the Fort Bend Central Appraisal District, not to your insurance company. Their number is 281-344-8623.
The part that catches people is the clock. You have 105 days from the day the Governor declares the disaster. After that the break is gone for the year, no matter how bad the damage was.
Source: Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, Tax Code Section 11.35 · Fort Bend Central Appraisal District
Who’s paying for 26 more miles of Grand Parkway
Source: Texas Department of Transportation, SH 99 Grand Parkway Segment C project document library
Fort Bend is getting 26 more miles of Grand Parkway, and it is not coming out of your tax bill.
In May, Fort Bend County commissioners voted to hand the Texas Department of Transportation primary control of the extension that will run from south Sugar Land down to Highway 288 near Rosharon.
That vote matters for one plain reason. When the county builds a road this size, the cost usually comes back to homeowners as a bond. This time the state carries it, at no cost to the county.
Work you can already see is closer in. TxDOT began widening the frontage road along Highway 99 in March, between Westheimer Parkway and Bay Hill Boulevard, and expects that stretch to take about 18 months. The county has also secured $58.6 million for frontage road work around Cinco Ranch — close to 10 lane miles serving Katy and Richmond.
The full 26-mile extension is a long way out. TxDOT expects it finished around 2032.
Sources: Community Impact, May 19, 2026 · Fort Bend Herald (H-GAC funding) · TxDOT project updates
Tax-free weekend starts Friday — school starts the Tuesday after
Photo: Djmaschek via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Ridge Point High School, Fort Bend ISD
Tax-free weekend starts Friday. School starts the Tuesday after.
From Friday, August 7 through Sunday, August 9, Texas drops the sales tax on almost anything under $100 — clothes, shoes, backpacks, school supplies.
The exceptions catch people every year. Computers, software and textbooks are still taxed. So are gym bags, duffle bags and framed backpacks. The rule is per item, so a $99 pair of shoes is tax free and a $101 pair is not.
Fort Bend ISD and Lamar CISD go back on Tuesday, August 11. Katy ISD returns August 12, Houston ISD August 10.
Sources: Texas Comptroller, publication 98-490 · ABC13 Houston
Wondering what your home would sell for right now? Text me your address and I will send you what homes like yours are actually closing for on your street. No obligation, no sales pitch — just the real numbers. 713-398-6566.