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.

As County Judge, Annise will:

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

As County Judge, Annise will:

Guide the county through tough budget times, from closing the structural budget deficit to mitigating looming federal cuts and state revenue limits
Improve transparency and to make county finances more accessible and understandable to the public
Ensure the county administrator’s position is providing its promised benefits

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.

As County Judge, Annise will:

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.

As our county judge, Annise will:

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.

As County Judge, Annise will:

Continue advocating for a full repeal of Texas’ abortion ban
Continue fiercely opposing any limits on contraception
Protect and expand county science-based sex education programs, to help women (and their partners) protect themselves from unwanted pregnancies

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.

As our county judge, Annise will:

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.

As our county judge, Annise will:

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.

As County Judge, Annise will:

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.

As County Judge, Annise will:

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 my 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.

As County Judge, Annise will:

Work to accelerate flood mitigation projects, invest in green infrastructure, and prioritize communities most impacted by pollution and climate risk

Work to stop concrete crushing plants— and any other noxious uses— from being built near neighborhoods and schools
Support climate-informed capital planning so that every major infrastructure investment accounts for future flood risk, heat, and extreme weather, ensuring that communities historically overburdened by pollution and flooding receive priority investment and protection
Prioritize data-driven, equity-focused infrastructure investments, ensure bond and drainage dollars are distributed fairly, and insist on transparent criteria so long-neglected communities are no longer last in line and receive visible accountability of leadership/county government.