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Home » 2018-03-06 Republican primary » Montgomery County » County Judge » Mark Keough

Mark Keough
Party Republican
Website keough4texas.com
Born
Education Cedarville Univ.; Dallas & Grace Thological Seminarys
Occupation County Judge
Religion Christian Pastor
Marital Married
Children 4

Mark Keough

declared

County Judge Mark J. Keough was first elected to the office of County Judge for Montgomery County in 2018 and is in his first term. As County Judge, he oversees the day to day operations of county government and presides over Commissioners Court, where the body acts as the “legislative” branch of county government. In addition to serving as County Judge, Mark is also the Senior Pastor of The Woodlands Bible Church in The Woodlands, Texas.

During his first term as County Judge, Montgomery County Commissioners Court took monumental action on key issues that were of high priority for the citizens of the county.  His official first act as County Judge was to cut his own salary and since that time he has refused any salary increases the court has approved.  Additionally, when it came to budgeting the court under Keough's leadership passed a budget that adopted the "no new revenue" tax rate in 2019, the first time in county history this had been done.  Since that time in 2020, and in 2021 the court has continued to adopt the "no new revenue" tax rate during the budget process.  Also, in 2019 the fight to end the tolls on the 242 overpass at I-45 came to an end, after Judge Keough successfully got the court to vote to remove the tolls after several weeks of pushing for their removal and negotiating with TxDOT.

Prior to taking on his role as County Judge, Mark served as a member of the Texas House of Representatives for two terms, serving the southern portion of Montgomery County. Before running for public office in 2014 he spent 26 years in the private sector in the automotive industry. During which time he had the privilege of being a General Sales Manager, General Manager and Dealer Principle of a number of Houston Metropolitan Ford dealerships with his last position in the industry as General Sales Manager of Northside Lexus. He holds Masters Degrees from Dallas Theological and Grace Theological Seminaries as well as a Bachelor’s Degree from Cedarville University. He has completed studies at the University of Cincinnati and most recently at the University of Texas at Austin.

Politically Mark calls himself a constitutional conservative, as he is an advocate for small business, free markets, fiscal responsibility, and an advocate for smaller government. He is an avid hunter and fisherman, and enjoys shooting sporting clays. He is the father of four children and grandfather to three. Mark resides in The Woodlands with his wife Kimberly and their two dogs. The Keough’s have called Montgomery County their home since 1996 with their primary residence in The Woodlands, but also a lovely home on Lake Conroe in Willis.

 

Video Interview 12/3/21 Source

Submitted by john wertz on 2022-01-18 05:14:47

 

Campaign Finance Reports Source

Submitted by kenneth vaughn on 2018-02-28 23:04:46

             2017                                   2018

                                                                  

   Jan - Jun      Jul - Dec                   30 Day Report     8 Day Report

 

MCTP PAC Rating of: 91 ENDORSED Source

Submitted by john wertz on 2018-01-25 13:02:07

Pros:

  • God centric, with beliefs of laws based on Judeo-Christian ethics and said he will defend those in government if challenged
  • Pro-life; marriage between a man and a woman
  • Had an 88 Fiscal Responsibility Index (includes voting record) from Empower Texans in the Texas House
  • Contract of Principles with Montgomery County
  • Wants an Ethics policy with punitive measures for bad behavior that seems pervasive throughout most of the court
  • Strong proponent of zero-based budgeting and eliminating wasteful spending (noted in questionnaire-under Budget category-down below).
  • Wants to prioritize spending on the two main functions of county government….Law Enforcement, Road and Bridge maintenance and construction
  • Staunchly against the use of Certs of Oblication (CO's), because the county has $130 Million in reserves.
  • If elected, would reverse course on the 249  toll road returning it to TxDOT...  More

Video Interview Source

Submitted by john wertz on 2018-01-16 05:14:14

 

Articles ..... Source

Submitted by john wertz on 2016-01-24 22:24:53

“Ethics” Bills Ferret Out Self-Serving Politicians

Questionnaire

General

This is a Republican primary race.  Do you promise, if elected, to abide by the RPT platform? And if not, please enumerate what problems you have.

Yes, the platform is very simple to understand and abide by as an elected official.  After all the platform and its 266 planks were voted on during the last Republican Convention by a majority of delegates from across this state representing the republican voters.  It is a guide by which every elected republican leader should follow, as it tells the official how the party feels about specific issues, and which direction the leadership should take on an issue.  

What political party registrations have you held in the last 20 years?

As there are no party registrations in Texas, I can say I have only participated in Republican party elections in my entire life. 

What are the 3 largest challenges currently facing this position/office and your road map to address them?

Transparency- This is one of the most basic functions of government, being transparent with the people.  I plan on addressing this by working more closely with the citizens of this county.  Everyone should have a voice, and decisions made should be brought before the court and discussed openly and with citizen participation. 

Ethics/Conflicts of interest- We need an ethics policy for this county that comes with punitive measures for breaking it.  Right now the policy has no teeth, and it is freely broken.  Removing any actual or perceived conflicts of interest will also be a priority. I have no business relationships with any county employee or vendor.  Vendor contracts should be sent out for bid and presented in court for a decision to be made in the open and in front of the citizens.

Eliminating Wasteful spending- The county currently has millions of dollars in wasteful spending, one of the most glaring examples of that is the use of county funds on the HWY 249 toll road project.  This project should be eliminated, and given back to the state for them to build.  As County Judge I will pursue in conjunction with  TxDOT a reversal of the decision to toll only the Montgomery County portion of 249 and fight to get our portion built as a FREE public use road.  

Budget

Will you vote to limit budget increases to a factor based on population growth and inflation? Explain.

Yes, Currently Montgomery County’s budget has outpaced population growth plus inflation for more than a decade.  This has led to increased taxes on the citizens and business owners which has led to more tax dollars being wasted.  Being fiscally responsible would mean to limit the budget and its growth. Prioritizing the budget to address the proper functions of county government and working to reduce the tax rate to account for increased values of properties.  

What are the top 3 areas where the budget for this office needs to be adjusted?

The Specific budget for the office of County Judge is relatively small in comparison to the other departments within Montgomery county.  But taking into account the entire budget of the county we need to prioritize our spending for the two main functions of county government….Law Enforcement, Road and Bridge maintenance and construction.  Both of these areas are vital right now for Montgomery County. Given our current level of growth we must have roads to minimize congestion and we must have enough law enforcement officers to handle the demand as the criminal element continues to move into our county form surrounding counties.  I will so begin the process of zero base budgeting  justifying every expense before allocating monies to that line item, I will work with the Commissioners to make the case for eliminating the wasteful spending, prioritizing those savings to the core functions of government.  

Do you support using zero-based budget practices for every governmental entity, elected and appointed?

Yes.  As already mentioned in another answer going line by line through the budget and justifying the expense before allocating funds for that line item will be crucial.  The current system of adding to the previous years budget is a formula for increasing the budget and growing government.  When every line is addressed starting at zero, the possibility of “green Housing” funds for “slush funds”  not seen by the public will be eliminated.

What are the balanced budget “rules” for Texas counties in general and for Montgomery County in particular & how/when would you balance the Montgomery County budget & pay off debt?

Unfortunately Texas Counties are not statutorily required to balance their budgets.  They are however required to ensure the expense of a department shall not exceed the budget for that department.  In Montgomery County this requirement is often broken as Commissioners regularly amend the budget to increase departments total budget throughout the year and outside of the required emergency threshold.  Looking through many years budgets one can see how an adopted budget has grown during that fiscal year to be many millions of dollars more in revenue and expenditures for many departments.  Unforeseen expense occurs every day but that is why we have a contingency fund.  The current process deceives the tax payer, by preventing them from knowing exactly how much excess revenues exist.  As County Judge my primary responsibility is the county budget, I plan on implementing zero based budgeting, and eliminate non-emergency amendments to the budget.  Unspent funds throughout the county should not be swept into off budget accounts, rather they should be applied to the next year’s budget first so a buy down of the tax rates can be achieved.  

Spending

Do you oppose the use of public funds, other than for needed infrastructure, to subsidize the cost of private facilities such as stadiums, arenas, hotels and other such entities?  

Government entities such as Montgomery County should never use general revenue to fund or subsidize any private facility.  General funds are to be used to fund the core functions of government and getting into business ventures is not the core function of County Government.  

Will you vote to award any contract with less than three qualified bidders?

NO.  with exception to contracts that are not required by law to have multiple bidders or in a real emergency where for public safety or meeting one of the core functions of county government, the court cannot wait for three bidders or three bidders did not enter a bid on a potential contract. 

Taxes

What are your criteria for granting tax abatements and under what, if any, conditions should the county offer incentives for corporations? Why?

The use and abuse of tax abatements across multiple government entities that can issue them is huge.  For this reason, I would only support issuing a tax abatement to a corporation who has chosen to locate in Montgomery county for the first time.  Where they would bring the necessary jobs to meet the required criteria for consideration and will be developing property that is currently on the tax rolls as timber or ag exempt.  Thus, bringing that property into the rolls at a much greater value.  All abatement's must be strictly watched and monitored to ensure compliance and when and if necessary revoked.  

Do you support the granting of public tax dollars for economic development in areas that are not economically disadvantaged? Why?

NO, The proper role of county government is not to involve itself in the development of the economy.  Government should get out of the way of the community and the economy will develop itself.  By keeping spending under control, limiting budget growth and lower the tax burden will all spur more economic growth than any one program devised by government.  

Debt

Will you vote for or against Certificate of Obligation Bonds?  When is a Cert. of Obligation warranted?  Though statutory(created by legislature), would you publicly condemn it's use for anything other than a true emergency for which it's intended?

CO’s are too costly and circumvent the tax payers who must pay them back.  I will not support the use of CO’s under any circumstance.  Emergencies arise from time to time, but with more than 130 million of our tax dollars sitting in invested accounts there is no emergency I can foresee that would require the use of a CO, when invested funds could be reallocated to cover the emergency or contingency funds used for such an emergency.  

Ethics

Is there anything in your background of an embarrassing nature that should be explained before your election? Arrests/Convictions? Bankruptcys?

NO

Do you believe the private conduct of a public official is relevant to that official’s suitability for office?

Yes, A public official has been entrusted with a “sacred obligation” to be the highest example of leadership.

When an elected official has lost the trust of the citizens, they forfeit the ability to lead effectively.

What special interest groups have you belonged to or attended meetings of? Include business, social, civic, educational, environmental or any other cause for which you have advocated or supported with time or money.

Texas Right to Life, Montgomery County Right to Life, Texas Values, Texas Patriots PAC, Montgomery County Tea Party, The Woodlands Chamber of Commerce, Conroe Chamber of Commerce (meetings only) Texas Public Policy Foundation(meetings only), Meals on Wheels (participated in helping to raise funds), Montgomery County Youth Association (contributed food to the local facility), Life Member of the NRA, and Texas Rifle Association.  

How much of a problem is county hiring based on the "good old boy" / "loyalty to leadership" instead of one's ability to efficiently and ethically perform their tasks and functions? and what can realistically be done about it?

Hiring and retaining the most qualified employees is the job of any good manager.  In Montgomery County we don’t have a lack of qualified employees to choose from we have a poor management situation.  As County Judge, I will be ensuring we hire and retain the most qualified employee that also doesn’t violate the hiring and ethics policy.   

How will you improve the transparency and access to financial and other records for the public?

This is a major issue within any government, and in Texas we have a right to exam and receive a copy of any document in the possession of our government. I will follow the law and be a good stewards of the peoples records.  As a state Legislator I introduced a bill “Transparency in Local Government Act" in the 84th session in which counties would be required to  keep an online ledger of checks written, the recipient of the check, the purpose of the check.   “No surprises in spending” should be the norm in county Government. Counties much larger and far more liberal do this and we should as well.  That bill did not pass due to major opposition from counties just like Montgomery.  As County Judge I will work with commissioners to implement this program here in Montgomery County and give the tax payers full access to know where and how their money is being spent. 

Transportation

What's your position on Toll Roads?

As State Representative I fought against the expansion of toll roads throughout Texas.  As County Judge I will do everything in my power to reverse course on the 249  toll road returning it to TxDOT and fighting to end the tolls on it.  Also we owe very little on the 242 toll bridge and it should be paid off as quickly as possible so we can end tolls on it too.  By doing this we can then dissolve the Montgomery County Toll Road Authority.  

What amount of road bonds are needed for Montgomery county and why is that the appropriate amount?

Before we can even begin to look for additional road bonds, the county commissioners must first utilize the bonds for the projects already approved.  Before ascertaining a total amount for roads, an assessment of the entire county wide transportation situation must be done. I intend to implement a mobility plan that will bring the commissioners together on the overall picture  by working with the citizenry in open meetings such as workshops , townhalls etc.  

Will you vote for increasing the public debt of Montgomery County to fund road construction/maintenance?

Bonds are necessary for future infrastructure projects but should not be used to maintain what we already have.  Ongoing expenses should be budgeted out of general revenue and not bond debt. I will only support future road bonds that have been discussed openly through workshops with the public and commissioners.  These workshops will be a regular occurrence in developing any bond package.  Once developed, the results will be presented to the public for approval at the polls. 

Other

Are you active with any Tea Party or conservative grassroots organization? If so, list which, how long and what capacity? If not, what's your opinion of Tea Party groups here as to their effectiveness?

I attend Tea Party and conservative organizations meetings when I can. I have not served in any capacity other than participant over the last five years.  However, I was endorsed by two local tea parties while running for State Representative.  

Do religious and moral views have any role in the county governance process? Why or why not?

Yes they do. The foundation of our country was based upon a set of values that reflect a Judeo Christian foundation. This has been clearly enunciated in our public attestation of biblical moral values, in our founding documents, in our public places, in our public prayers and in regularly recited pledges to both our national and state flags. 

While we resist state sponsored religion, this does not mean that we should propose the elimination of anything religious. To eliminate religion is a religious commitment in and of itself. 

On a personal note, I live within a fixed theological perspective that allows for all people to exercise their religious beliefs. Publicly,  however when those religious beliefs threaten our historical, Judeo Christian based  way of life as a county I will openly oppose those beliefs.