Kaohsiung's city council opened the last full session of its current term, a routine but symbolically loaded moment for local politics as both the council and mayor head toward the end of their terms.

• The council speaker framed the session around finishing unfinished work, saying terms end but the city's progress should not.
• Councillors were thanked for four years of scrutiny of city hall and for pushing local complaints up the chain.
• Mayor Chen Chi-mai was singled out for topping a national satisfaction survey among Taiwan's six big cities for the third time running.
• This is also the last budget the current council will review, with pressure on city hall and councillors to pass the coming year's spending plan cleanly.

Outlook: Expect a push to lock in construction projects and approve the budget before the term runs out in the coming months.