Bill White (mayor)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

William Howard White (born June 16, 1954) is an American attorney,
businessman A businessperson, businessman, or businesswoman is an individual who has founded, owns, or holds shares in (including as an angel investor) a private-sector company. A businessperson undertakes activities (commercial or industrial) for th ...
and
politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...
who was the 60th mayor of Houston from 2004 to 2010. He was the Democratic nominee for
Governor of Texas The governor of Texas heads the state government of Texas. The governor is the leader of the executive and legislative branch of the state government and is the commander in chief of the Texas Military. The current governor is Greg Abbott, who ...
in the 2010 election, in which he lost to incumbent Republican
Rick Perry James Richard Perry (born March 4, 1950) is an American politician who served as the 14th United States secretary of energy from 2017 to 2019 and as the 47th governor of Texas from 2000 to 2015. Perry also ran unsuccessfully for the Republica ...
. Before serving as Mayor, White was an attorney and businessman and served as U.S. Deputy Secretary of Energy under President
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...
from 1993 to 1995. White is on the membership roster of the
Council on Foreign Relations The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) is an American think tank A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, mi ...
. He is a member of the
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...
.


Family and personal life

White was born and grew up in
San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= U.S. state, State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , s ...
. He is the son of Bill and Gloria Avalon White, both public schoolteachers. He and his wife have helped lead various charitable and civic organizations. White is an avid cyclist and every year he leads Houston's annual "Bike to Work Day." He also created the annual biking event "Tour de Houston" through historic Houston neighborhoods. Bill White's wife
Andrea Andrea is a given name which is common worldwide for both males and females, cognate to Andreas, Andrej and Andrew. Origin of the name The name derives from the Greek word ἀνήρ (''anēr''), genitive ἀνδρός (''andrós''), that ref ...
is the daughter of Arthur John Ferguson (1917–2008), a
Louisiana State University Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...
graduate in
mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and mathematics principles with materials science, to design, analyze, manufacture, and ...
originally from
New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster.
; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...
, and the former Patsi Wells, a native of
Baton Rouge Baton Rouge ( ; ) is a city in and the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-sma ...
. Andrea White has written several novels, one of which received the
Golden Spur Award Spur Awards are literary prizes awarded annually by the Western Writers of America (WWA). The purpose of the Spur Awards is to honor writers for distinguished writing about the American West. The Spur awards began in 1953, the same year the WWA wa ...
as well as being named to the Texas Bluebonnet List. White and his wife Andrea are the parents of three children, Will, Elena and Stephen. The Whites are members of St. Luke's United Methodist Church in Houston.


Education and career

White graduated from Churchill High School before attending
Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
on
American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is a non-profit organization of U.S. war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militi ...
scholarships and graduating
magna cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some So ...
with a degree in economics. At Harvard his roommate was Mir
Murtaza Bhutto Ghulam Murtaza Bhutto (; 18 September 1954 – 20 September 1996) was a Pakistani politician and leader of al-Zulfiqar, a Pakistani left-wing militant organization. The son of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the former Prime Minister of Pakistan, he earne ...
— son of former Pakistan's Prime minister
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Zulfikar (or Zulfiqar) Ali Bhutto ( ur, , sd, ذوالفقار علي ڀٽو; 5 January 1928 – 4 April 1979), also known as Quaid-e-Awam ("the People's Leader"), was a Pakistani barrister, politician and statesman who served as the fourth ...
. He then attended
The University of Texas School of Law The University of Texas School of Law (Texas Law) is the law school of the University of Texas at Austin. Texas Law is consistently ranked as one of the top law schools in the United States and is highly selective—registering the 8th lowest a ...
, where he was elected editor-in-chief of its law review and graduated with highest honors. White also served as an administrator on the Board of Directors for the Baylor College of Medicine. White began his career as a lawyer at Susman Godfrey, LLP, a leading law firm in Houston, from 1979 to 1993, where he practiced business litigation and anti-trust law, and eventually became partner. He served as U.S. Deputy Secretary of Energy under President
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...
from 1993 to 1995. He organized Frontera Resources, a developer of oil and gas in the
Caspian Sea The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, often described as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia; east of the Caucasus, west of the broad steppe of Central Asia ...
region, and was also the chairman of the
Texas Democratic Party The Texas Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Texas and one of the two major political parties in the state. The party's headquarters are in Austin, Texas. President Lyndon B. Johnson was a Texas Democ ...
, from 1995 to 1998. He was the president and CEO of WEDGE Group, an energy, construction and real estate company, from 1997 to 2004.


Community and business activities

White has served on the board of directors for the
North American Electric Reliability Council The North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) is a nonprofit corporation based in Atlanta, Georgia, and formed on March 28, 2006, as the successor to the North American Electric Reliability Council (also known as NERC). The original ...
. He was chairman for both the World Trade Division and the Environmental Advisory Committee, and served on the executive committee, for the
Greater Houston Partnership The Greater Houston Partnership (GHP) is the largest chamber of commerce in the Houston area. The Partnership is an economic development organization for the Greater Houston area. The mission of the Greater Houston Partnership is to make Houston o ...
. He has also served on the board of directors for the Houston Quality of Life Coalition. He is an official sponsor and supporter of the Amazing Faiths Project of Houston.


Mayor of Houston

In 2003, White, a
Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...
, ran in Houston's officially nonpartisan mayoral election to succeed
term-limited A term limit is a legal restriction that limits the number of terms an officeholder may serve in a particular elected office. When term limits are found in presidential and semi-presidential systems they act as a method of curbing the potenti ...
Mayor
Lee Brown Lee Brown may refer to: *Lee Brown (footballer) (born 1990), English footballer, for Portsmouth FC * Lee P. Brown (born 1937), police department chief and mayor of Houston * Lee Bradley Brown (1971–2011), British tourist allegedly beaten to death ...
, who was the first African-American mayor of the city. Running as a moderate with business experience, he appealed to Democrats and Republicans despite having little name recognition. One of White's opponents in the race was Republican Orlando Sanchez, a Cuban-American and a former Houston City Councilman, who had unsuccessfully challenged Brown in a heated 2001 bid to become Houston's first Hispanic mayor. Also running was Democratic Texas State Representative
Sylvester Turner Sylvester Turner (born September 27, 1954) is an American attorney and politician who is serving as the 62nd mayor of Houston, Texas. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Turner was a member of the Texas House of Re ...
, who had run for mayor in 1991 (against then-incumbent
Kathy Whitmire Kathryn Jean Whitmire (née Niederhofer; born August 15, 1946) is an American politician, businesswoman, and accountant best known as the first woman to serve as Mayor of Houston The following is a list of people who have served as mayor of t ...
and real estate developer
Bob Lanier Robert Jerry Lanier Jr. (September 10, 1948 – May 10, 2022) was an American professional basketball player who was a center for the Detroit Pistons and the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Lanier was inducted int ...
). In that race, Turner was embroiled in an insurance scandal exposed in an investigation by Houston's
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...
affiliate,
KTRK-TV KTRK-TV (channel 13) is a television station in Houston, Texas, United States, airing programming from the ABC network. Owned and operated by the network's ABC Owned Television Stations division, the station maintains studios on Bissonnet Street ...
that eventually led to a 1996 lawsuit; Lanier went on to defeat Whitmire. In the November election, White, along with Sanchez, defeated Turner. In the runoff, White defeated Sanchez with 63 percent of the vote. White was a member of the
Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition Everytown for Gun Safety is an American nonprofit organization which advocates for gun control and against gun violence. Everytown was created in 2013 when Mayors Against Illegal Guns and Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America joined force ...
, a
bi-partisan Bipartisanship, sometimes referred to as nonpartisanship, is a political situation, usually in the context of a two-party system (especially those of the United States and some other western countries), in which opposing political parties find co ...
group with a stated goal of "making the public safer by getting illegal guns off the streets." The Coalition is co-chaired by Boston Mayor
Thomas Menino Thomas Michael Menino (December 27, 1942 – October 30, 2014) was an American politician who served as the 53rd mayor of Boston, from 1993 to 2014. He was the city's longest-serving mayor. He was elected mayor in 1993 after first serving three ...
and New York City Mayor
Michael Bloomberg Michael Rubens Bloomberg (born February 14, 1942) is an American businessman, politician, philanthropist, and author. He is the majority owner, co-founder and CEO of Bloomberg L.P. He was Mayor of New York City from 2002 to 2013, and was a ca ...
. White resigned from the group in July 2009. White's staff said that the group's focus had grown from its original effort to prevent the sale of stolen guns. Regarding a recent proposal to allow those with concealed gun permits to carry them into other states, White's staff added that he resigned the day that the group took out a newspaper advertisement denouncing that proposal.


First term

White's first term as mayor of Houston began on January 2, 2004. He gained popularity during this term, which led to significant support for his reelection. During this term, Houston hosted
Super Bowl XXXVIII Super Bowl XXXVIII was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Carolina Panthers and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots to decide the National Football League (NFL) c ...
, the 2004 MLB All-Star Game, the 2006 NBA All-Star Game and the
2005 World Series The 2005 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2005 season. The 101st edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the American League (AL) champion Chicago White Sox and the National ...
. These events have been great boosts to Houston's economy. He also led the building of Houston's
Metro Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to: Geography * Metro (city), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urba ...
light rail system. In 2004, White, his wife Andrea, and then Houston ISD Superintendent Kaye Stripling assembled an education summit with about 400 local community and civic leaders to discuss Houston's then high drop-out rate. That year, White and his wife established Expectation Graduation, a program designed to reduce high school drop-out rates. In the aftermath of
Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...
, thousands of residents of New Orleans were displaced. White offered refuge for the victims in the
Astrodome The NRG Astrodome, also known as the Houston Astrodome or simply the Astrodome, is the world's first multi-purpose, domed sports stadium, located in Houston, Texas. It was financed and assisted in development by Roy Hofheinz, mayor of Houston ...
, the
George R. Brown Convention Center The George R. Brown Convention Center (GRB), opened on September 26, 1987, is located on the east side of Downtown Houston, Texas, United States. The center was named for internationally recognized entrepreneur, engineer, civic leader, philan ...
, and a large building formerly housing an
Auchan Auchan () is a French multinational retail group headquartered in Croix, France. It was founded in 1961 by Gérard Mulliez and is owned by the Mulliez family, who has 95% stake in the company. With 354,851 employees, of which 261,000 have 5% s ...
location. He also helped set up programs to help them find long-term housing, job placement, and education within Houston. He was later awarded the
John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award The Profile in Courage Award is a private award given to recognize displays of courage similar to those John F. Kennedy originally described in his Profiles in Courage, book of the same name. It is given to individuals (often elected officials) wh ...
for his service in the light of this catastrophe. Just weeks after
Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...
, it looked as though Houston would become the target of
Hurricane Rita Hurricane Rita was the most intense tropical cyclone on record in the Gulf of Mexico and the fourth-most intense Atlantic hurricane ever recorded. Part of the record-breaking 2005 Atlantic hurricane season, which included three of the top ten L ...
. White mobilized the citizens of Houston to evacuate. During a series of press conferences, White and Harris County
County Judge The term county judge is applied as a descriptor, sometimes as a title, for a person who presides over a county court. In most cases, such as in Northern Ireland and the Victorian County Courts, a county judge is a judicial officer with civil ...
Robert Eckels The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...
instructed Houstonians on when to evacuate. Officials employed a strategy that called for the evacuation of flood prone areas first. This evacuation, however, led to many problems as it caused multi-hour backups on all freeways in Houston. This prompted White to later lead an evacuation plan reform for Houston. In 2005 White initiated the SafeClear Program, designed to quickly clear roads and freeways of stalled vehicles. The program requires stalled vehicles to be towed off freeways in Houston as soon as possible. It was created to keep traffic down, as Houston has severe backups during the morning and evening
rush hours A rush hour (American English, British English) or peak hour ( Australian English) is a part of the day during which traffic congestion on roads and crowding on public transport is at its highest. Normally, this happens twice every weekday: ...
. It was also meant to make the freeways safer by keeping them cleared of stalled vehicles. This program led to controversy when it was first started, however, for several reasons. It originally required motorists to pay for the towing of their stalled vehicle, but at reduced prices set by the city. Tow truck drivers claimed that the program hurt their business and nine wrecker companies filed lawsuits against the city. White testified in court in the case. In addition the SafeClear Program has been blamed for causing the deaths of people, who seemed to be trying to get their cars off the freeway without having to pay fees to the tow truck drivers. The cause of death of these people, however, is uncertain.
State Senator
John Whitmire John Harris Whitmire (born August 13, 1949) is an American Lawyer, attorney and politician who is the longest-serving current member of the Texas Legislature, Texas State Senate. Since 1983, he has represented Texas Senate, District 15, Distri ...
recruited 30 out of 31 Texas State Senators' votes to make the SafeClear program illegal. White responded to the controversy and criticism by changing the rules of the program and the towing laws, including free towing for limited distances funded by the city. The program was adapted to include strict licensing of SafeClear wreckers including criminal background checks, allowing the towed motorist to be towed for one mile for free, preventing the City leasing stretches of state-owned highway to private wrecker companies, and requiring revenue generated from the program to enter a mobility fund. White also worked with John Whitmire to address the objections of the senators, keeping the program alive but in a different format. He also rode with a wrecker and conducted several studies of the program. Despite the controversy, independent studies have found that the program has helped. Studies show that the program has been successful in decreasing accidents. A study, conducted by
Rice University William Marsh Rice University (Rice University) is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas. It is on a 300-acre campus near the Houston Museum District and adjacent to the Texas Medical Center. Rice is ranke ...
and
Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...
found that the number of freeway crashes decreased by 10.4%, or nearly 2,000 crashes. According to these results, drivers in Houston saved approximately $35 million by the implementation of the program. However Suzanne Poole, president of the Houston Professional Towing Association, says those numbers are misleading and actual crashes are actually higher. In reference to the program's objective to decrease traffic congestion, a study by
KHOU-TV KHOU (channel 11) is a television station in Houston, Texas, United States, affiliated with CBS. It is owned by Tegna Inc. alongside Conroe-licensed Quest station KTBU (channel 55). Both stations share studios on Westheimer Road near Uptown ...
found that average drive times increased at 86% of freeways into Houston six months after the program was implemented compared to before the program. However, some claim that more cars were on the roads during these six months and that construction on the freeways, particularly on
US 59 U.S. Route 59 (US 59) is a north–south United States highway (though it was signed east–west in parts of Texas). A latecomer to the U.S. numbered route system, US 59 is now a border-to-border route, part of the NAFTA Corridor Highway Sy ...
, caused drive times to increase. Nonetheless, SafeClear remained one of the most controversial, and one of few controversies, during his time as mayor. White also lowered Houstonians' property tax in 2006 and again during the next four years gaining him support from some local Republicans. White also helped lead to neighborhood water sewage improvements, a reform of the city's pension fund, a crackdown on Houston's high crime rate and began a local recycling campaign known a
"Stop Trashing Houston"
to discourage littering.


Second term

In 2005, White was challenged for re-election by minor and perennial candidates and won re-election with 91 percent of the vote–the highest percentage received by a mayoral candidate in Houston in 60 years. During his second term, White focused his work on improving graduation rates in the city's high schools, enforcing air pollution standards, reducing the possibility of flooding in newer areas, adopted a more flexible system of working hours, and to create public-private initiatives with private business and community organizations to stimulate growth in the city's most neglected subdivisions. His moderate leanings were shown by his defense of businesses, such as
Shawn Welling Shawn may refer to: *Shawn (given name) *Shawn (surname) See also * Sean * Shaun Shaun is an anglicized spelling of the Irish name Seán. Alternative spellings include Shawn, Sean and Shawne. Notable persons with the given name include: Peop ...
's Planet Funk, which faced closure in mid 2005.City Council Proceedings
Official record, August 16, 2005.
In 2005, White formed the Mayor’s Wellness Council and launched th

fitness campaign. Houston had previously been rated “Fattest City in America" by Men’s Fitness magazine. In 2006, White proposed a series of eight city propositions aimed at improving infrastructure without a tax increase. All eight city propositions passed in a November 2006 election. White worked to create the
Discovery Green Discovery Green is an public urban park in Downtown Houston, Texas, bounded by La Branch Street to the west, McKinney Street to the north, Avenida de las Americas to the east, and Lamar Street to the south. The park is adjacent to the George R. ...
park in Houston, which held its groundbreaking in October 2006. Mayor White's 2008 inauguration was held at the park. The park officially opened to the public in April 2008 with a ribbon cutting led by White. In 2007, the
FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...
released a report showing an increase in Houston's murder rate. While some speculated about the impact of Hurricane Katrina victims who settled on the Southwest side of town, Mayor White released
statement
concerning the FBI's findings: "With the regard to the 2006 figures now being reported, the FBI calculated a murder rate per 100,000 people for Houston based on census estimates of a 2,073,729 population as of July 1, 2005. That was before Houston’s population swelled by well over 100,000 people. On the basis of U.S. Post Office change of address information we estimated the 2006 population at 2,198,755. While it is normally fair to make year-to-year comparisons based on population estimates that lag crimes by a year or more, the unusual increase in Houston’s population for 2006 makes our City’s figures for the murder rate per 100,000 not quite comparable to the rate in other communities in 2005." Energy conservation topped the Mayor's list of concerns in 2007. Via the City'

Mayor White encourages energy conservation through tips and tools, education about tax incentives, and raffles. In 2007, White was honored the
John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award The Profile in Courage Award is a private award given to recognize displays of courage similar to those John F. Kennedy originally described in his Profiles in Courage, book of the same name. It is given to individuals (often elected officials) wh ...
for his service during
Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...
. He was also awarded the
FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...
's Director's Community Leadership Award for lowering Houston's crime rate stating that "Mayor White made public safety one of his highest priorities, as evidenced by Houston's decreasing crime rate." White proposed closing The Center Serving Persons with Mental Retardation. Mayor White's position was that the Center's lease of one dollar per annum to the city of Houston was not legal. Seven previous Mayors had honored the lease. White felt the city's revenue stream could be enhanced by evicting the Center and its mentally retarded clientele and using the land for commercial purposes. The Center will have to borrow 6 million dollars and relocate in the settlement reached with the city. During White's second term he focused on reducing the number of car accidents in Houston. To do this, he started a campaign to stop drunk driving. He led a summit, hosted by
Mothers Against Drunk Driving Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) is a non-profit organization in the United States, Canada and Brazil that seeks to stop drunk driving, support those affected by drunk driving, prevent underage drinking, and strive for stricter impaired drivi ...
. He also presented a plan to increase enforcement, education, and public awareness. This included installing signs around the Houston area warning of drunk driving and urging people to dial *DWI if they suspect someone of drunk driving. In 2007, he also launched the "Mobility Response Team", a task force staffed by traffic officers that patrol within the loop fixing traffic problems. They also report traffic light outages, issue parking citations, help clear and direct traffic around minor accidents. Also, at the recommendation of Houston Police Chief
Harold Hurtt Harold L. Hurtt is an Assistant Director at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for the Office of State, Local and Tribal Coordination, which consists of outreach programs and communications coordination between various outside law ...
, White had 50 red-light cameras installed around Houston. Originally four intersections were used to test the traffic cameras in September 2006. The trial cameras met the requirements and were approved for using throughout the city. The red-light cameras caused controversy, though, even leading to some lawsuits. Many people argued that this was just a way for the city to make money at the expense of public safety. However, White has stood behind his decision to keep the red light cameras. Studies have revealed mixed results of the effectiveness of red-light cameras. A study in Houston in 2008 revealed an increase in accidents at intersections with red light cameras, although it also revealed a decrease in citations. A city-financed study of red-light cameras at Houston intersections shows traffic accidents doubled at those intersections in their first year. The study also found that citations decreased. However, other studies have found that red-light cameras reduce accidents and citations. A study by
Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...
found that accidents were reduced in Texas by 30%. Several studies funded by insurance trade groups which study traffic safety, have found the cameras had a dramatic effect and reduced accidents by as much as 30 percent. A study released in 2008 from the Texas Transportation Institute found a 30 percent reduction across the state. A study in Lubbock, Texas of red light cameras showed a 52% increase in accidents, so the City Council voted against installing them. A news investigation found that the Houston intersections with cameras often had yellow lights that were too short, and violated Texas Department of Public Safety recommendations. Houston suburb
Sugar Land Sugar Land is the largest city in Fort Bend County, Texas, United States, located in the southwestern part of the metropolitan area. Located about southwest of downtown Houston, Sugar Land is a populous suburban municipality centered around th ...
found that the combination of lengthening yellow lights and installing cameras reduced violations by 96 percent. This finding is consistent with a March 2005 Texas Transportation Institute study of 181 Texas intersections during a three-year period which found that increasing the length of yellow-light time by one second reduced violations by 53 percent and crashes by 40 percent. He was rated ''
Governing Magazine ''Governing'' is a website, edited and published in Washington, D.C., that covers state and local government in the United States. Originally a national monthly magazine, it was published in print 1987 and 2019. It covers policy, politics, and the ...
s Public Official of the Year in 2007.


Third term

White's third term began in January 2008 with his inauguration at the Discovery Green Park. White made fighting pollution in and around the Houston area a top concern during his third term. He put pressure on local factories to limit pollution. He particularly emphasized reducing
carcinogenic A carcinogen is any substance, radionuclide, or radiation that promotes carcinogenesis (the formation of cancer). This may be due to the ability to damage the genome or to the disruption of cellular metabolic processes. Several radioactive substan ...
benzene Benzene is an organic chemical compound with the molecular formula C6H6. The benzene molecule is composed of six carbon atoms joined in a planar ring with one hydrogen atom attached to each. Because it contains only carbon and hydrogen atoms, ...
emissions. He launched the Benzene Action Plan in 2007 which monitors benzene emissions and aims to reduce concentrations in the air. He forced Houston's largest refinery
Lyondell Chemical Company LyondellBasell Industries N.V. is a multinational chemical company incorporated in the Netherlands with U.S. operations headquartered in Houston, Texas, and offices in London, UK. The company is the largest licensor of polyethylene and polypro ...
, located along the
Houston Ship Channel The Houston Ship Channel, in Houston, Texas, is part of the Port of Houston, one of the busiest seaports in the world. The channel is the conduit for ocean-going vessels between Houston-area terminals and the Gulf of Mexico, and it serves an incr ...
, to publicly defend its carcinogenic emissions. This received criticism from some businesses claiming White overstepped his powers as mayor, while he received praise from some citizens. In thanks to his fighting of pollution in Houston, White was awarded the HERO Award (Houston-Galveston Environmental Research & Outreach Award) on September 15, 2008. In August 2008, White traveled to
Stavanger, Norway Stavanger (, , US usually , ) is a city and municipality in Norway. It is the fourth largest city and third largest metropolitan area in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the administrative center of Rogaland county. Th ...
, one of Houston's
sister cities A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inter ...
, for an energy conference. On June 9, 2008, White revealed plans to increase solar energy capacity for the city of Houston. Solar panels were installed on the Code Enforcement building and the roof of the City Hall Annex building. Houston was chosen as one of the U.S. cities in the Solar America Cities program designed increase the use of solar technology. The U.S. Department of Energy is providing assistance to the city in expanding its solar energy capacity. In 2008, White also hosted the inaugural class of a new program called City Hall Fellows. The program brought on ten promising recent college graduates to assist with special projects with department directors, through a one-year paid fellowship. Founded by Bethany Rubin Henderson, who was named an
Echoing Green In audio signal processing and acoustics, an echo is a reflection of sound that arrives at the listener with a delay after the direct sound. The delay is directly proportional to the distance of the reflecting surface from the source and the list ...
Fellow in 2009 and is currently serving as a
White House Fellow The White House Fellows program is a federal fellowship program established via Executive Order by President of the United States Lyndon B. Johnson in October 1964, based upon a suggestion from John W. Gardner, then the president of Carnegie Corp ...
, the City Hall Fellows program also included the Civic Leadership Development Program, giving members of the cohort exposure to civic, business, and community leaders dealing with some of the most pressing challenges and most promising opportunities facing the region. Citing the budget crises that accompanied the Recession, Mayor
Annise Parker Annise Danette Parker (born May 17, 1956) is an American politician who served as the 61st Mayor of Houston, Texas, from 2010 until 2016. She also served as an at-large member of the Houston City Council from 1998 to 2003 and city controller fro ...
cancelled the program after just two years. Texas Governor
Rick Perry James Richard Perry (born March 4, 1950) is an American politician who served as the 14th United States secretary of energy from 2017 to 2019 and as the 47th governor of Texas from 2000 to 2015. Perry also ran unsuccessfully for the Republica ...
and state officials had originally convinced the
Environmental Protection Agency A biophysical environment is a biotic and abiotic surrounding of an organism or population, and consequently includes the factors that have an influence in their survival, development, and evolution. A biophysical environment can vary in scale f ...
to give Houston until 2019 to meet ozone standards, but Houston met the standards in 2009. The air went from a peak of 120 ozone molecules per billion molecules of air down to 84 molecules per billion. Following several issues with Houston's Bureau of Animal Regulation and Care (BARC), including the so-called “Corridor of Cruelty”, abuse and neglect, staff problems, funding, White addressed several issues with the bureau and moved it out of Houston's health department to be run as a separate agency. On October 16, 2009, the city of
Bridge City, Texas Bridge City is a city in Orange County, Texas, United States. It is 100 miles east of Houston, near the Gulf of Mexico. The population was 9,546 at the 2020 Census. The town borders the Neches River and Cow Bayou. It is part of the Beaumont– ...
honored Bill White with a ceremony and
commemorative plaque A commemorative plaque, or simply plaque, or in other places referred to as a historical marker, historic marker, or historic plaque, is a plate of metal, ceramic, stone, wood, or other material, typically attached to a wall, stone, or other ...
for his leadership during and after
Hurricane Ike Hurricane Ike () was a powerful tropical cyclone that swept through portions of the Greater Antilles and Northern America in September 2008, wreaking havoc on infrastructure and agriculture, particularly in Cuba and Texas. Ike took a sim ...
and his work to repair the damage caused by the storm. White's third term ended on January 2, 2010. Due to term limits, he was unable to run again for mayor of Houston.


2010 Texas gubernatorial election

There had been speculation that White might run for higher office. On December 12, 2008, it was announced that White had decided to run for the United States Senate seat currently held by Republican
Kay Bailey Hutchison Kay Bailey Hutchison (born Kathryn Ann Bailey; July 22, 1943) is an American attorney, television correspondent, politician, diplomat, and was the 22nd United States Permanent Representative to NATO from 2017 until 2021. A member of the Republi ...
, should she resign to challenge incumbent
Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
Rick Perry James Richard Perry (born March 4, 1950) is an American politician who served as the 14th United States secretary of energy from 2017 to 2019 and as the 47th governor of Texas from 2000 to 2015. Perry also ran unsuccessfully for the Republica ...
, as was expected at the time. On November 23, 2009, Democrat
Tom Schieffer John Thomas Schieffer (born October 4, 1947) is an American diplomat and entrepreneur who served as U.S. Ambassador to Australia from 2001 to 2005 and as U.S. Ambassador to Japan from 2005 to 2009. Schieffer is the founder and President of Envoy ...
dropped out of the 2010 Texas governor's race, endorsing Bill White for the race despite White being a candidate for the U.S. Senate. Later that same day, Mayor White announced that he would "consider" running for governor. On December 4, White officially announced that would run for governor. White won the Democratic primary for governor on March 2, 2010 and faced off against Perry, the Republican nominee. Polls showed Perry with a comfortable lead. However White did show strong support among Independent voters, young voters under 35, and minorities. In an interview with ''The Texas Observer'' on June 11, 2010, White discussed how he would combine his experiences in both business and politics to provide Texas with better leadership. White was defeated by incumbent Republican Governor Rick Perry in the general election on November 2, 2010. Shortly after this loss, White declined to run for the United States Senate seat vacated by Republican
Kay Bailey Hutchison Kay Bailey Hutchison (born Kathryn Ann Bailey; July 22, 1943) is an American attorney, television correspondent, politician, diplomat, and was the 22nd United States Permanent Representative to NATO from 2017 until 2021. A member of the Republi ...
in the 2012 U.S. Senate election.


Later career

In 2014, Bill White published (with the Manhattan publishing house PublicAffairs) ''America’s Fiscal Constitution: Its Triumph and Collapse,'' on the subject of the growing national-debt crisis. The volume received generally positive and respectful national attention. In ''The Wall Street Journal,'' reviewer
Edward Chancellor John "Edward" Horner Chancellor (born December 1962), is a British financial historian, finance journalist, and former investment strategist. In 2016, the ''Financial Analysts Journal'' called him "one of the great financial writers of our era", a ...
noted that "Mr. White suggests a return to the austere principles that governed the issuance of public debt from the birth of the Republic until recently... To this end, ''America's Fiscal Constitution'' serves a noble purpose." Bethany McLean wrote, in a review for the Sunday ''New York Times'': "This book will be music to the ears of budget hawks everywhere... In his measured way,
hite Hite or HITE may refer to: *HiteJinro, a South Korean brewery **Hite Brewery *Hite (surname) *Hite, California, former name of Hite Cove, California *Hite, Utah, a ghost town * HITE, an industrial estate in Pakistan See also *''Hite v. Fairfax ...
is critical of both George W. Bush and Barack Obama... This is an important book, but not an easy one." Shortly after the book's release, White (then working as a senior adviser at the global financial advisory and asset management firm
Lazard Lazard Ltd (formerly known as Lazard Frères & Co.) is a financial advisory and asset management firm that engages in investment banking, asset management and other financial services, primarily with institutional clients. It is the world's lar ...
) told Maggie Galehouse of the ''Houston Chronicle'', “I have no itch to run for public office... I like my life exactly as it is.”


Electoral history


2003


2005


2007


2010


See also

*
Politics of Houston The politics of Houston in the U.S. state of Texas are complex and constantly shifting in part because the city is one of the fastest growing major cities in the United States and is the largest without zoning laws. Houston was founded in 1836 and ...
*
List of mayors of Houston The following is a list of people who have served as mayor of the city of Houston in the U.S. state of Texas. Until 2015, the term of the mayor was two years. Beginning with the tenure of Bob Lanier, the city charter imposed term limits on offi ...


References


External links

* * *
Profile
at CityMayors.com *
Bill White for Texas Governor
''Official campaign website''

at GreenHoustonTX , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:White, Bill 1954 births Living people American United Methodists Clinton administration personnel Harvard College alumni Mayors of Houston Politicians from San Antonio State political party chairs of Texas Texas Democrats United States Deputy Secretaries of Energy University of Texas School of Law alumni Lawyers from San Antonio