As our county judge, Annise will:

I’m running for Harris County Judge to fight for a safer, more affordable Harris County. That’s a tall order in the face of the chaos unleashed by Donald Trump’s cuts to FEMA, healthcare, and infrastructure projects, and Greg Abbott’s continuing assault on local control, even as he imposes more mandates on local government.

My focus will always be on the safety and well-being of everyone in Harris County – not on personal politics or drama. I will work with others when I can, but stand and fight when I have to.

I will never back down when extreme Republicans like Greg Abbott and Donald Trump target our communities. Now, more than ever, we need strong, stable, proven leadership to guide our county through these treacherous times.

Policy Priorities

AFFORDABILITY FOR WORKING FAMILIES

Annise has always stood strong for working families. During her 18 years of service in Houston city government, Annise never voted to raise the tax rate. She helped keep jobs in Houston by starting the Hire Houston First program, which gave a preference to local firms that hire local employees. And she found millions of dollars of savings in the budget, to avoid cuts to vital city services.

— Fight for greater opportunities to help our families thrive, such as concentrating on jobs and the economy, standing up for public schools and safer streets, lowering housing and childcare costs, and making affordable, accessible health care for all a county priority — Implement policies to lower the cost of housing by removing unnecessary barriers to responsible housing development (e.g., safe housing that does not contribute to flooding and has the infrastructure to support it), supporting reforms to the permitting process, and incentivizing smaller, neighborhood-scale homes such as garage apartments, courtyard style developments and other developments of eight units or less — Work to implement a Hire Harris County First program to give preferences to local firms who hire locally or participate in certified apprenticeship programs for local residents — Support a living wage of at least $20 per hour (and advocate for local authority to implement it) and policies that raise pay through county contracting standards, workforce programs, and advocacy for higher state and federal minimum wages — Protect local economic stability by investing in infrastructure, supporting workforce development, and defending local authority when federal or state actions threaten funding or jobs — Partner with labor and employers on apprenticeship programs, protecting disaster recovery dollars, and ensuring public projects create good local jobs

BUDGET & FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY

As Houston’s former City Controller and Mayor, Annise cut millions of dollars in government waste and balanced the city budget without raising the city’s tax rate. She authored the ordinances that created the city’s emergency reserve fund and established a maintenance set-aside for capital projects

EMERGENCY SERVICES

As Houston’s Mayor, Annise was in charge of the city’s emergency response and worked closely with the County and surrounding cities to keep Houston safe during multiple natural disasters and other emergencies. We have to acknowledge the likelihood that we will be on our own when a disaster strikes – with no help from the federal or state government – and plan accordingly.

— Expand public emergency management education so residents and businesses can better prepare — Back the County’s professional emergency management team, while ensuring they execute at the highest level — Ensure that all the 34 cities in Harris County are included in emergency preparation and response efforts — Stay in regular communication with our regional partners and enter into interlocal agreements that will take the guesswork out when a disaster happens — Pre-position equipment and resources before a storm hits — Share resources during emergency response — Coordinate with local hospitals, shelters, and non-profits to ensure community preparation and provide robust/ timely disaster relief

AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE

Routine health care continues to be out of reach for too many Harris County families. It’s only going to get worse with cuts planned for Medicaid, Medicare and Affordable Care Act policy subsidies – and with rule changes that make it harder to access those services. We need to make sure that county health care systems are operating efficiently and can respond to increased demand for services as the cuts work their way through our health care system nationally.

— Strengthen Harris Health, expand preventive and mental health services, and ensure county resources address chronic health inequities rather than only crisis care — Ensure better coordination, including interlocal agreements, between the county and the City of Houston health departments, to further reduce existing duplication of services and costs — Use her position as the leader of the third largest county in the nation to push back against Trump cuts that are targeting our families and communities — Provide oversight of the budget for Harris Health, the county’s hospital district — Continue to push the state to accept Medicaid expansion – the fastest way to get health insurance coverage for millions of Texans, many right here at home in Harris County — Work to strengthen and expand our existing network of FQHCs (Federally Qualified Health Centers)

REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS AND CARE

Annise has always been pro-choice and has worked her entire career to promote leaders and policies that protect abortion access for Texans. She will never back down, even in the face of state preemption.

PUBLIC EDUCATION

Annise is a product of public schools and a lifelong supporter of public education. She has fought for greater educational opportunities to help families, students, and teachers thrive, like expanding after-school programs and appointing an education czar when she was Mayor of Houston.

— Fight to stop Trump cuts to public education — Fight to keep Abbott’s voucher scam from draining more money from public schools — Fight to end the takeover of HISD by the Texas Education Agency. This is only one of many unjust, if not unlawful, examples of state preemption over local government — Evaluate the County’s pilot project on early childhood education and work to find replacement funding to improve and continue it — Monitor and support the work of the Harris County Board of Education

FLOOD PREVENTION

As Mayor of Houston, Annise fought to improve hurricane readiness and flood prevention, helping create the Rebuild Houston Fund which has since invested nearly $2 billion in flood prevention projects and repairs.

— Fight against Trump’s cuts to FEMA and federal funds for flood prevention — Fight Abbott’s attempts to take over the Harris County Flood Control District and appoint political cronies who will send our local tax dollars out of Harris County — Get to the bottom of and fix problems in the county flood control department—around procurement, implementation and prioritization of projects — Work with our federal and state delegations to fight for Harris County’s fair share of federal and state funding for flood prevention and other infrastructure projects — Work with our federal partners to expedite action by the Army Corps of Engineers on longer term solutions such as the Ike Dike and Addicks and Barker Reservoirs mitigation — Work with her colleagues on the court to encourage basic hurricane preparedness actions such as upgraded drainage and maintenance of roads, ditches, and storm sewers – both ongoing and especially in advance of oncoming storms — Advocate for consistent and accurate floodplain maps

PUBLIC SAFETY

Annise has consistently supported a balanced public safety strategy focused on removing violent offenders from our streets and diverting people with mental health needs away from incarceration and into appropriate treatment.

— Give law enforcement the tools they need to do their jobs — Prioritize treatment over incarceration, supporting diversion programs like the County’s HART program or the City of Houston’s Sobering Center, which Annise helped start when she was mayor. — Support proven public health strategies to reduce gun violence –– now the number one cause of death in children in America –– including investing in prevention, mental health services, safe storage education, data-driven violence intervention programs, and trauma-informed care — Maintain strong safety protocols in county facilities and continue to support training, accountability, and partnerships that improve public safety while respecting constitutional limits — Support further investments to modernize the county jail and improve jail safety, and to expand jail-based programs that promote rehabilitation and decrease recidivism — Work with the Sheriff Ed Gonzalez on a new jail facility to house mentally ill prisoners

HOMELESSNESSS

As Mayor of Houston, Annise worked with stakeholders and non-profit service providers to significantly reduce homelessness. Her previous work is still considered a national model, and she hopes to reinvigorate it throughout Harris County.

— Build on important steps already begun by the County to address homelessness, such investing in prevention, housing stability, and coordinated services as part of a broader regional strategy to reduce homelessness through coordination with nonprofit and community partners — Closely review outcome data and strengthen coordination across county departments and partners, scale programs that successfully move people into stable housing, and focus on prevention strategies that reduce the number of families and individuals entering homelessness in the first place — Continue working with nonprofits and community partners to provide wraparound services to prevent and reduce cyclical homelessness

ENVIRONMENT AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Annise has spent much of her public service career working at the intersection of climate risk, economic resilience, and local governance. She served on President Barack Obama’s State, Local, and Tribal Leaders Task Force on Climate Preparedness and Resilience and on the Global Commission on the Economy and Climate, chaired by Mexican President Felipe Calderón. She was a steering committee member of the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group and served on the board of the Texas Environmental Research Consortium.

Annise helped launch the Mayors National Climate Action Agenda and worked to integrate climate resilience into urban policy. Under her administration, the City of Houston became the largest municipal purchaser of renewable energy and operator of the largest electric vehicle fleet in the United States, demonstrating that climate action and fiscal responsibility can go hand in hand.

Additionally, Annise has a proven record of being able to create a healthy and climate forward county for all. She created Houston's first and only bike share program and grew it to 100 stations and 700 bikes available to riders across central Houston neighborhoods.

Policy Priorities

AFFORDABILITY FOR WORKING FAMILIES

As County Judge, Annise will:

BUDGET & FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY

As County Judge, Annise will:

EMERGENCY SERVICES

As County Judge, Annise will:

AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE