Diane Trautman for Harris County Tax Assessor-Collector

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In 2008, I was proud to be the Democratic nominee for Harris County Tax Assessor. We ran a great campaign with over half million Harris County residents casting a vote for me. The support from the community for my campaign touched me deeply, and I want to thank you and all of my supporters across Harris County for their help.

As you may recall, my opponent decided to resign three weeks after winning and the Harris County Commissioner's Court appointed an interim tax assessor until 2010. The interim tax assessor has had problem after problem in running the office including top employees having conflicts of interest, resisting requests to hand over voter registration records, impeding the voter registration process, and failure to properly staff vital parts of the office. As a result, I believe that public trust in the integrity and services provided by the Harris County Tax Office is at an all time low.

So at the urging of my friends, family, and supporters, I have decided to run again for Harris County Tax Assessor/Collector in 2010 because I think that we must restore integrity, trust, and service to the Harris County Tax Office.

Over the past year, so much has occurred at the Harris County Tax Assessor's office that highlights the need for change there. Here are the facts:

-Paul Bettencourt used his incumbency to win the election in 2008 even though he had no intention of serving. He promptly retired so partisan political operatives, rather than the voters, could choose a new Tax Assessor behind closed doors in some backroom deal.

-It was discovered that a top official in the Tax Assessor/Collector's Office was moonlighting as a paid, partisan political consultant. This staff member was actually overseeing the validation of provisional ballots where several of his clients were actually on that ballot.

-In response to a lawsuit filed against the Harris County Tax Assessor/Collector's Office, it was discovered that several thousand provisional ballots were not processed within the time allowed by law.

Our elections are too important to allow this kind of activity to continue. I want to change the way people think about the Harris County Tax Office by leading the way for ethical changes in the administration of that office that will restore integrity, trust, and service.

Please know that it will take everyone who supported me in my last race and more to be successful in 2010. There are many different ways to help: host a house party, help with fund raising, volunteer your time, block walk, introduce me to your group, allow me to use your name as a supporter, and please consider making a contribution, no matter how small, every bit will help.

All the best to you and your family,
Diane Trautman

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