HOUSTON – A heated exchange at Houston City Council Wednesday put renewed attention on former City Controller Chris Brown and his $127,000-a-year role as a senior adviser in Mayor John Whitmire’s administration.
Brown appeared before council publicly for the first time to defend his work after questions were raised about his attendance, hours and responsibilities in the position.
Brown was appointed senior adviser for financial integrity in January 2024 after serving as Houston’s elected controller from 2016 through 2023. His annual salary is $127,321, according to records previously obtained by the Houston Chronicle.
The controversy intensified after a Chronicle investigation found Brown had swiped into city facilities 13 times over nearly 600 workdays and had sent 12 emails from his city account during the first part of 2026.
Brown defends his work
During Wednesday’s meeting, Brown told council members his job is advisory, remote and project-based. He said he worked an average of about 15 hours a week before the investigation was published, but said his workload is now full time.
Councilmember Alejandra Salinas pressed Brown about those hours and questioned whether the public was receiving the work it was paying for.
“You’ve represented to the public just now that you are working 15 hours per week,” Salinas said, before pointing to Brown’s reported attendance and email records.
Brown pushed back, saying his work could not be measured simply by the number of times he swiped into City Hall or the number of emails he sent.
He said he had worked on roughly 19 projects and sometimes worked as many as 60 hours a week. Brown also pointed to his experience in city government and financial reforms as part of the value he brings to the administration.
Mayor Whitmire also defended Brown during the discussion, saying the role was not designed as an hourly position and that Brown’s expertise was valuable to the city.
Tensions escalate over investigation
The discussion became even more heated when current City Controller Chris Hollins began giving council members an update on his office’s investigation into Brown’s employment.
Hollins’ office launched the investigation in June after the questions raised by the Chronicle report. The investigation is examining Brown’s role, work activity and use of taxpayer-funded resources.
Hollins’ office said Wednesday that it is still waiting on records from the mayor’s administration.
In a statement released the same day, Hollins said his office has been seeking the records for more than 100 days and that the requests remain outstanding. He also said the office has not reached any conclusions about Brown’s employment and is continuing to follow the facts.
During the meeting, Whitmire and Hollins repeatedly spoke over one another as Hollins attempted to discuss the investigation.
The confrontation eventually prompted Whitmire to call a 10-minute recess. Some council members also left the room during the dispute. After the meeting, Hollins continued to defend the investigation and said his office still needs additional records to complete its review.
For now, the investigation remains ongoing, and Hollins’ office has not announced any findings against Brown.
