What are the three main reasons you are running for this office? Do you see any potential conflicts of interest?

1. After 3 years serving as County Attorney, I have proven that I do not shirk from difficult legal issues or lawsuits.  A few examples of this are the Don Collins / Robert Middleton juvenile capital murder case that sat idle for 15 years, the TexCom federal lawsuit in which TexCom sued the County and our Commissioners Court for billions of dollars, and the Texas Open Meetings Act and Road Bond election issues.
2. My office has represented the County with expertise and professionalism equal to that of any county attorney’s office in the state. I have increased the responsiveness to our clients and to the public.
3. I have kept my campaign promises (1) to make minimal use of outside law firms; (2) to improve responsiveness and accessibility to our clients throughout the county government; (3) to significantly enhance our litigation skills and expertise; and, (4) to ensure that my staff has the required skills, tools, and training to provide prompt, expert legal advice and services.  I was committed to doing what was right, in the right manner, and for the right reasons without regard to political pressures.  By utilizing my 38 years of private sector experience that I gained prior to taking office, coupled with my 3 years of experience leading, guiding, and transforming the County Attorney's Office, I have demonstrated that I have the knowledge, experience and expertise required to lead a successful office.

I further pledged that I would assemble a top-notch team of attorneys, investigators, and legal support staff to ensure that these much-needed changes were implemented in a timely and fiscally conservative manner.

1. The County Attorney's Office was voted Department of the Year in 2013 (my first year in office); I was voted Boss of the Year in both 2014 and 2015; one of my staff was voted Employee of the Year in 2014; and 3 of my staff have been voted Employees of the Month.  It is my understanding that the County Attorney's Office has never received any such awards in the history of the office.

What do you see as the 3 major challenges for your office over this next term?

1. Retention of quality staff while maintaining a fiscally responsible budget.
2. Continued county growth which creates additional issues for the County and corresponding increased demands upon my office.
3. Increasing urbanization / suburbanization of the County creating pressures and demands upon County government which may conflict with the limited constitutional authority of the County.

What goals do you have in mind, if you are elected, and to which you want to be measured against in the coming term?

In my next term, I will continue to build on the successes of the office by continuing to improve efficiency.  I have restructured the functions in the office to five specific areas, so that legal matters are handled by subject-matter experts as efficiently and effectively as possible.  Client satisfaction will continue to be a priority.

Do you favor term limits? Please explain why or why not.

Yes, but there are both pros and cons to term limits.  One would hope that the limits on the number of terms an officeholder could serve would be appropriately determined by the voting public.  The public has the ability to impose “term limits” by voting.  If the public is dissatisfied with the performance of an official, the official should not be re-elected. Voters should not be prohibited from re-electing experienced, qualified individuals to represent them.  Imposing term limits does not differentiate between poor and outstanding performers.  Thus, even an outstanding performer will be forced out of office.

Conversely, term limits help ensure that new ideas and processes are injected continually into the government system.  Ideally, then, officials would be less likely to be influenced by special interest groups and more likely to be running for office because of a desire to serve.

Unfortunately, the reality seems to be that without term limits, some, if not many, incumbents become extraordinarily difficult to replace come election time, even though their job performance may be subpar. 

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.

1. For 6 - 8 years, I have been a member of the Conroe Noon Lions Club, and served one term on their Board of Directors.  I am also a member of the Montgomery County Tea Party, the Texas Patriots PAC, and the Montgomery County Eagle Forum.  I regularly attend meetings of each of these organizations.
2. I am an associate member of all six (6) of the Republican Women's Clubs in Montgomery County - namely the Lake Conroe Area Republican Women, the North Shore Republican Women, the Montgomery County Republican Women, the Woodlands Republican Women, the East Montgomery County Republican Women, and the Magnolia Area Republican Women.  I regularly attend meetings of each of these organizations.
3. I am a lifetime member of the Montgomery County Fair Association.

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

I have never been affiliated with any political party other than the Republican Party.

List all individuals/groups you have represented or lobbied for before any governmental entity during the past five years.

With the exception of my current position as the elected County Attorney for Montgomery County, I have never lobbied for or represented any governmental agency.

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

My office does not set the budget for the County.  I can only submit a budget to the County Auditor and the Commissioners Court which I have done each year in a fiscally conservative manner.  Both the work product of my office and the demands upon my office have substantially increased compared to the prior administration, yet the overall staffing of my office has not increased since I was elected. 

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?

In general, a Texas county is prohibited from spending more than the anticipated revenue, so essentially a county budget must be balanced.  I have no control over the county budget other than the budget for my office. I have consistently proposed a fiscally responsible and conservative budget for my office.   

When is a Certificate of Obligation warranted?  Though statutory (created by legislature), would you publicly condemn/prevent its use for anything other than a true emergency for which it's intended?

As County Attorney, I cannot publicly comment on the use of CO’s that are within the statutorily authorized boundaries.  My office made a comprehensive review of the outstanding CO's issued by Montgomery County.  That review found that all of the CO’s were validly issued for a legitimate statutory purpose.  (A copy of this comprehensive review is attached for your reference.)

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

As County Attorney, I cannot publicly comment on the use of CO’s that are within the statutorily authorized boundaries.  My office made a comprehensive review of the outstanding CO's issued by Montgomery County.  That review found that all of the CO’s were validly issued for a legitimate statutory purpose.  (A copy of this comprehensive review is attached for your reference.)

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?  

As County Attorney, I cannot publicly oppose the valid use of public funds.  My duty is to see that the proper procedures are used and the contracts adequately protect the County if the policy maker (Commissioners Court) decides to use public funds for such purposes.

In light of census data showing average taxpayer salaries of $40K, what salary would be appropriate for the office you are seeking?

1. The salary for the County Attorney is set by Commissioners Court.  For the past 3 years, I have not requested an increase in salary.  When I took office, I received the same salary as my predecessor.  It is my understanding that when my predecessor left office, he had some 30 years of experience.  When I took office, I had 38 years of private sector experience.
2. I have not received any raises, other than the same cost of living allowances (COLA's) approved for all county employees by the Commissioners Court.
3. I will not seek an increase in my base salary.

What are the criteria for granting tax abatements?

Tax abatement policy is set by the Commissioners Court and is reviewed every two (2) years.  My office works with the Tax Assessor and the Commissioners Court to ensure that the policy is legally sufficient.  We have also worked with the Tax Assessor and Commissioners Court on drafting policies for other types of tax increment financing methods such as TIF's (Tax Increment Financing) and TIRZ's (Tax Increment Reinvestment Zones).

As property assessments increase, giving government a bigger piece of an ever-increasing pie, should tax rates decrease so that tax revenue remains constant or grows at a reasonable rate? What is a reasonable growth rate for tax revenue?

It is concerning to me that the tax burden on the citizens of Montgomery County continues to grow. While as County Attorney, I am not responsible for the adoption of a tax rate, as a taxpayer, I am very concerned that tax dollars are spent in a fiscally responsible manner.

What's your opinion on Toll Roads, in general?  What's your position on county using taxpayer money to fund Tomball Toll Road, yet using toll fees for maintenance?

Toll roads are one of the basic three (3) options for funding roads (the other being the state fuel tax and local tax funds through debt or maintenance budget).  As County Attorney, I cannot make policy on such a matter.  My role is to advise the policy makers (Commissioner Court) on the legality of the use of toll roads and to aid in the implantation of the policy adopted by Commissioners Court.  Legally, the County is not misusing “taxpayer money” to fund the Tomball Toll Road. 

Do you think the county needs to zone areas to control population densities and development patterns?

A county in Texas currently has no constitutional power to enact zoning ordinances as described.  Previous efforts by the legislature to expand county land use regulation have been defeated.  

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

Absolutely.  Becoming a public servant means putting the public's interest ahead of your own.  If a private matter affects the performance of the official's duties, it is most likely not private. 

Do you support awarding any contract with less than three qualified bidders and if so, when is it appropriate?

My office does not decide the method by which county contracts are awarded.  We do, however, make every attempt to see that the various methods used and the contracts resulting therefrom are valid.

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

With regard to the office of the County Attorney, I believe that religious and moral views cannot be taken into account in the administration of our work.  The United States Constitution prohibits treating people differently based upon religious and (to some extent) moral views.  I could not uphold my oath to uphold the laws of the Constitution and the State of Texas if I allowed religious and moral views to have a role in the legal representation of the county.

What is your opinion of the Joe Corley Jail and Mo. County Mental Health debacles and what has been/can be done to prevent the reoccurrence of an event like that?  

This question is ambiguous and very broad, so it is difficult or impossible to properly address without more specificity.  However, my office undertook a thorough review and investigation from a civil aspect regarding these facilities and the associated transactions, and our findings were presented to Commissioners Court. The U.S. Attorney's office and our District Attorney's office investigated the transactions from a criminal aspect.  State laws have been changed and additional restrictions and procedures have been statutorily enacted regarding design build and the use of local government corporations.  I believe that the scrutiny to which those transactions were subjected, my willingness to review and investigate the transactions, and the change in state laws will cause any proposed future transactions to be scrutinized, vetted and reviewed more thoroughly than in the past.  

What position did you take on the May 9, 2009 road bond? Why? What amount of road bonds are needed for Montgomery county and why is that the appropriate amount?

1. As the elected County Attorney, I was precluded from taking a position on the May 9, 2009 road bond other than to support the legality of the calling of the election by the Commissioners Court.
2. For your convenience, I have attached a copy of the opinion my office submitted on September 25, 2015 regarding the bond election.

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?

Yes.  I am an active member of the Montgomery County Tea Party and the Texas Patriots PAC.  I am also an active member of the Montgomery County Eagle Forum.  I have never held any special position in any of these groups.  I don't recall exactly, but I first became involved with and a regular attendee of these organizations' meetings some six or so years ago.  (I don't believe that MCTP existed at that time.)

Rank these issues (individually or as groups) by their importance with "1" being most important to you: abortion, ALAC, balancing the budget, civil unions and homosexual marriage, diversion of dedicated funds, English only, immigration, obamacare, property tax, sanctuary cities, school budgeting, CScope, toll roads, transportation, voter ID & water.

1. As an attorney, the legal aspects of all of these issues are important.  Take American Laws for American Courts (ALAC) as just one example.  Over the past few years, we seem to be hearing more and more about Sharia law being applied in our courts, yet Sharia law is totally and completely incompatible with our Constitution.  Sharia law has absolutely no place within our form of government.
2. Certainly, some of these issues are heavily controlled and affected by our local and municipal governments, such as transportation and sanctuary cities. Other issues, like abortion and Obamacare, involve policy decisions which are made at the federal level.