Trautman Will Make Second Try For Harris County Tax Office

Diane Trautman has formally announced that she will be a candidate for the post of Harris County Tax Assessor/Collector in the 2010 special election to fill the unexpired term of Paul Bettencourt, who resigned weeks after he defeated Trautman last fall amid mounting criticism over the way his office handled voter registrations in the 2008 election cycle.

Trautman will likely face Leo Vazquez, the placeholder appointment of the Harris County Commissioners’ Court to the post next November.

From her announcement email:

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 protect the integrity and public trust of the county electoral system. You just can’t have candidates running, winning, and then quitting and expect people to believe that their vote counts. And you can’t have top-level employees involved in counting ballots moonlighting in a side business that sells voter information to only one political party. I want to change the way people think about the Harris County Tax Office and the Harris County Tax Assessor by leading the way for ethical changes in the administration of that office.

I have over 30 years of administrative and leadership experience in banking and education and am involved in community service organizations across Harris County. Not only have I run a large organization with many employees but I have also taught others to do the same as an assistant professor teaching graduate classes in Ethics and Leadership.

My race for Tax Assessor-Collector will be about one thing.improving Harris County government. I will work hard to bring back honest and ethical leadership to the Harris County Tax Office by modeling appropriate officeholder behavior and expecting the same of my employees. I will insure a fair tax appraisal system for all Harris County taxpayers and be a voice for property rights. Finally, I will build a voter registration system that increases voter participation, and I will protect the right to vote for every Harris County citizen.

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