granting a reprieve

Harris County forgives hundreds of small business loans for struggling locals

Dr. Randy Mitchmore (center, pictured with his staff) is one of the hundred of recipients of the new gift.

The global pandemic has wreaked havoc on local small businesses; many have struggled without savings, credit, and capital to continue on during the downturn. For some immediate relief, Harris County and the Houston-Galveston Area Council (HGAC) offered some 444 area small businesses interest-free loans of up to $25,000 earlier this year.

The loans would be forgiven in five years, per the initial Harris County COVID-19 Forgivable Loan Program agreement.

Now, in some feel-good, holiday news, the loans have been converted into grants, thanks to federal CARES Act funding received by the county, according to a statement by Harris County and Houston-Galveston Area Council.

“Many of the owners have already made use of the funds they received. Knowing that they don’t have to pay it back, that it’s all theirs, gives them one less thing to worry about at a time when so many have been impacted,” said Omar Fortune, manager of the Houston-Galveston Area Local Development Corporation (H-GALDC), in a statement. (The organization handled the underwriting process and distribution of loans to small businesses.) “We’re pleased to be able to provide this gift to these small businesses that are so important to our region. That it’s happening during the holiday season makes it even more special.”

Originally launched on April 9, the Harris County COVID-19 Forgivable Loan program distributed $10 million to the 444 small businesses by the summer. On October 6, Harris County approved the loan conversion to grants, according to a press release. Small businesses that had already begun paying back their loans have had their payments reimbursed by the county, according to HGAC.

Local business owners are “ecstatic” upon hearing the news, according to H-GAC. “ This whole experience has been an emotional roller coaster, but I’m extremely positive about the future,” said Museum District-area dentist, Dr. Randy Mitchmore, in a statement. “I’m proud to own a small business, and we have a direct impact on the local community. I’m also grateful for this program and that it was able to help small businesses as intended.”

charity

disrupting the workforce

Texas makes top-10 list of states where AI could disrupt the most jobs

Photo by Christin Hume on Unsplash

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A new nationwide report examining where AI could "reshape" the most jobs has ranked Texas No. 9 among the most at-risk states for AI job disruption.

The new SmartAsset report compared all 50 states and the District of Columbia to calculate the estimated percent of the workforce employed in the 26 occupations with the highest AI exposure, as determined by June 2026 research by the Virginia Economic Information and Analytics Division.

The findings revealed that 500,000 Texas workers, or 3.55 percent of the total workforce, are employed in occupations with "high exposure to potential AI disruption."

This also places the Lone Star State as the 9th most at-risk state in the U.S. where AI exposure can lead to "declining hiring demand, wage pressure, task automation, and other forms of disruption."

"States with larger concentrations of highly exposed occupations could experience more pronounced labor-market changes, particularly in roles where core tasks are more vulnerable to AI-driven restructuring," the report's author wrote.

Texas' biggest cities, like Houston and Austin, are known for their thriving tech and business industries, and the study noted that many of the occupations within those sectors are the most at risk. The Virginia Economic Information and Analytics Division said the top five most AI-exposed occupations in the U.S. are: mathematicians, proofreaders, correspondence clerks, court reporters, and media and communication workers. Additionally, computer programmers, database administrators, web developers, telephone operators, and communications equipment operators round out the top 10 most at-risk positions.

These are the 16 remaining occupations most exposed to AI disruption, in order:

Data Entry Keyers
Statistical Assistants
Office Support Workers
Interpreters and Translators
Database Architects
Software Quality Assurance Analysts
Medical Transcriptionists
Software Developers
Writers and Authors
Payroll Clerks
Web Designers
Miscellaneous Computer Occupations
Insurance Claims Processors
Telemarketers
Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Programmers
Bookkeeping and Accounting Clerks

A separate SmartAsset report from April 2026 found about 20.5 percent of Texas workers use AI to do their jobs in some capacity. That trend will continue to shift further as employers and employees choose to adopt — or reject — AI implementation.

Across the U.S., Washington topped the list as the state with the highest concentration of AI-exposed jobs, with nearly 5.7 percent of the state's workforce employed in the 26 most at-risk positions. SmartAsset said Washington's high prevalence of technology companies is a significant factor that skyrocketed the state to the top of the list.

"Home to major technology companies including Microsoft, Amazon, T-Mobile and Expedia, the state has large numbers of computer programmers and software developers, two occupations with high exposure," the report said.

Meanwhile, Mississippi ranked No. 51 with the lowest concentration of AI-exposed jobs in the nation. About 22,500 workers in Mississippi, or 1.93 percent of its workforce, are at risk for AI disruption.

The top 10 states where AI could reshape the most jobs are:

No. 1 – Washington
No. 2 – Virginia
No. 3 – District of Columbia
No. 4 – California
No. 5 – Utah
No. 6 – Maryland
No. 7 – Colorado
No. 8 – New Hampshire
No. 9 – Texas
No. 10 – North Carolina

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