HOUSTON – City Controller, Chris Hollins shared his side of the story after Houston Mayor John Whitmire held a news conference Thursday morning calling him out over alleged “pay to play” conflicts for an upcoming conference.
Hollins held a press conference to address Mayor Whitmire’s allegations at 2 p.m. Thursday. The conference took place at the Office of the City Controller at City Hall.
Hollins’ office said the following in a statement announcing the presser:
“Controller Hollins will provide information on the reasons the Mayor’s representation of the office’s efforts to coordinate this event are inaccurate, how the planning aligns with the precedent and history of the Houston Investor Conference as hosted by Controller Hollins’s predecessors, and details on how proceeds from the conference will support the Bank of Houston program, an initiative formed to improve financial literacy and close the banking equity gap for Houstonians.”
Hollins started the press conference by saying that the entire controversy is a waste of time that Mayor Whitmire started to deflect from his own shortcomings.
“The mayor is wasting all of your time today,” Hollins said. “He owes you an apology for this. This is a huge nothing-burger that is meant to distract from the mayor’s failed leadership on fiscal responsibility as a city.”
The dinner in question is the City of Houston Investor Conference.
The sponsorship package associated with the conference and featured on the City of Houston’s website offers access to networking opportunities for people who donate $100K to the conference.
One of the benefits in the $100K sponsorship package is a “private dinner with Controller and other special guests at Investor Conference (or equivalent major event of sponsor’s choice).”
After downplaying the significance of the situation, Hollins called out multiple controversies from Whitmire’s time as a state senator, including an alleged growth of the prison system under his watch. He also pointed out multiple alleged conflicts of interest from Whitmire’s mayoral administration in Houston.
KPRC 2′s Rilwan Balogun asked Hollins to explain the dynamic between the payment and his office, and he said the situation is only about urging people to support charity. He added that he is not doing anything that the city’s previous controllers didn’t also participate in.
“Again, every conference... has sponsorships,” Hollins said. “Something comes with the sponsorship besides a pat on the back. On this one we said... I’ll even go to dinner with you. I’m happy to support a nonprofit.”
KPRC 2′s Rilwan Balogun also reached out to Chris Brown, the city’s immediate previous controller, who said he did not have sponsorships for investor conferences.
“It’s unusual,” Brown said in a phone interview. “We historically sold tickets but that was to offset the cost of the event… that money was being used to cover the cost.”
He said the cost for previous events fluctuated between $7,000 and $12,000.
Brown didn’t want to opine about the war of words between Whitmire and Hollins.
Brown did say, he did not offer a private dinner with him for any sort of sponsorship during his time as controller.
INFO FROM BEFORE THE 2 P.M. PRESS CONFERENCE
Shortly after Mayor Whitmire’s news conference ended around 11:30 a.m., Rilwan went to find Hollins for comment after reaching out via email and was told the Controller would be available for a news conference later on in the day.
Shortly after Mayor Whitmire’s press conference suggesting Controller Chris Hollins could be participating in “pay-to-play.”
— Rilwan Balogun (@KPRC2Rilwan) October 17, 2024
We took a visit to the 8th floor to ask Hollins. He didn’t come out but someone else, surprised to see us, did.
I’m told Hollins will speak at 2 @KPRC2 pic.twitter.com/68n9Szc41r
This all comes after the mayor appeared visibly distraught in his news conference beginning by saying he was “alarmed...[and] quite frankly, disappointed” after getting several calls regarding what appeared to be “pay to play.”
“It needs to stop,” he said. “I can’t believe no one in the Controller’s office didn’t say ‘no.’”
Mayor Whitmire was initially expected to be part of the investor’s conference but has since said he will not be attending and called for it to be canceled. He also encouraged other city employees not to attend. He also expressed remorse for having to bring this news before the media.
“I’d rather be working on public safety and infrastructure,” Whitmire said. “I’m sorry... I’m encouraging you not to go... and I invite everyone to attend a true conference.”
Since then, the mayor said the language in the agenda is “being altered” but said he was sounding the alarm to media officials as part of his commitment to transparency and accountability.
“It’s just unacceptable, and the only thing I would ask of you is to review it; take your time; reach your own conclusions,” Whitmire concluded. “It’s shocking that city officials reach out to vendors and set goals for what they need to meet as a sponsor for a city-sponsor/held event, which is supposed to be informative and inviting for city business.”
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