Glenn Hegar Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

August 22, 2022

The Honorable Greg Abbott, Governor

The Honorable Dan Patrick, Lieutenant Governor
The Honorable Dade Phelan, Speaker of the House
The Honorable Lina Hidalgo, Harris County Judge
Harris County Commissioners Court

Re: Funding or Resources for Certain Primary Law Enforcement Agencies

On July 8, 2022, the criminal justice division of the Office of the Governor referred complaints filed
by Harris County Constable Mark Herman, representing Precinct 4, and Ted Heap, representing
Precinct 5, to my office for investigation. The complainants allege, in part, that Harris County reduced
the resources available to the Harris County Constables Office for the 2021-2022 fiscal year.

The information reviewed by my office indicates that the Harris County Commissioners Court took
action that significantly limited the funds available to the Harris County Constables Office for the
2021-2022 fiscal year and has proposed a 2023 fiscal year budget that will reduce funding available to
the Constables.

We are continuing to investigate three key allegations that the Harris County Commissioners Court
has moved to reduce funding available to the Harris County Constables Office:
1) Harris County abruptly ended a long-standing policy to “automatically rollover” unspent
departmental funds from one fiscal year to the next fiscal year, resulting in a loss of more than
$3 million in funds previously dedicated to the Constables Office in FY 2021-2022 being
returned to the general fund.
2) Harris County proposed a planning budget for FY 2022-2023 on Feb. 8, 2022 that reduced
funding to the Constables Office by over $12 million, as compared to short FY 2022. While the
recently published revised planning budget for FY 2022-2023 increases funding to the
Constables Office, it still represents a $3 million reduction in overall funding.
3) The budgeting practices of Harris County may not provide the Constables Office with full
authority to expend their allocated budget to meet public safety needs.

Harris County will need voter approval before it can adopt its FY 2022-2023 budget because it
implements a reduction described by Local Government Code, Section 120.002(a). If the county
proceeds with the Constable budget as proposed without obtaining voter approval, the county may not
adopt an ad valorem tax rate that exceeds the county’s no-new-revenue tax rate.

Comptroller.Texas.Gov 512-463-4000

P.O. Box 13528 Toll Free: 1-800-531-5441, ext. 3-4000

Austin, Texas 78711-3528 Fax: 512-305-9711

August 22, 2022
Page Two

I urge the Harris County Commissioners Court to review its budgetary support for its Constables
Office and restore funding lost due to the decision to end “rollover” budgeting. It must reverse its
proposal to reduce funding FY 2023 or it must allow its residents to voice their opinion through an
election held for the purpose of approving these actions. Further, the County should eliminate any
excessive restrictions that prevent the Constables Office from accessing its budget.

Texans depend on law enforcement agencies every day and consistent budgetary support for these
agencies is more important than ever. Law enforcement officers, like the Harris County Constables, are
Texas’ first line of defense against increasingly dangerous situations. My family and I are grateful for
the public service of the Constables.

If you have any questions, please contact Will Counihan, director of the Data Analysis and
Transparency division, at will.counihan@cpa.texas.gov or 512-936-0758.

Sincerely,

Glenn Hegar

Comptroller.Texas.Gov 512-463-4000

P.O. Box 13528 Toll Free: 1-800-531-5441, ext. 3-4000

Austin, Texas 78711-3528 Fax: 512-305-9711