On Friday, Judge Lina Hidalgo called for a Special Meeting of Commissioners Court scheduled for Wednesday, August 31, at 10:00 a.m. to authorize outside counsel to pursue legal action against relevant state officials, including Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar, in response to the Comptroller’s recent claims regarding Harris County’s budgeting decisions under Chapter 120 of the Texas Local Government Code.
Earlier this week, Comptroller Hegar threatened to cut Harris County’s budget based on false claims that Commissioners Court “defunded” the budgets of two Republican Constables, echoing utterly false dog whistle “defunding” claims that have intensified as the November 2022 Election approaches, where the Judge is on the ballot.
In reality, Harris County Commissioners Court has increased the annual budgets of all public safety agencies, including the eight Constables’ offices and the Sheriff’s Office–which has primary responsibility for addressing violent crimes and responding to 911 calls–every year since taking office in 2019. This year, Harris County preliminarily approved a record $1.4 billion budget for justice and safety—a full two-thirds of the County General Fund budget. In addition, instead of letting Constables’ unspent funds sit unused, Commissioners Court instituted a policy that led to millions of dollars of public safety investments.
Hegar’s effort would prevent Harris County from adopting a budget that increases funding to Harris County law enforcement by $96.7 million, including new investments in the Sheriff’s and Constables’ offices, and a proposed $10 million increase to the District Attorney’s Office. If their efforts succeed, all of these investments would be cut.
Judge Lina Hidalgo released the following statement:
“This is yet another example of Governor Abbott cruelly trying to hurt the residents of Harris County for political gain. In this latest stunt, he and his far-right allies threaten to defund Harris County itself–programs from public health to public safety to veterans’ services and more. They’re willing to harm our people–who are also their constituents–by manufacturing a cynical narrative that has no basis in law or fact. I’m proud to tout our $1.4 billion in funding for justice and safety, and I will continue to fight to keep Harris County fully funded, including through legal action.”