Texas Democratic candidates in comptroller primary March 1
Janet T. Dudding
Occupation: certified public accountant
Age: 62
Campaign website: https://www.janetdudding4texas.com/
Best way for voters to reach you: email: info@janetdudding4texas.com
Education:
BSBA (Accounting) University of Southern Mississippi; MBA Millsaps College
Licensed CPA: Texas and Mississippi
Have you run for or held elected office before? 2020 Democratic nominee for Texas House District 14
Please list highlights of your civic involvement (for example, service on boards/commissions or leadership positions held): Currently, I’m president of the Texas Democratic Women of the Brazos Valley, treasurer of College Station Noon Lions, on the Executive Board of the Brazos County Branch of NAACP, Nonprofit Grants Chair of Bryan Rotary, and Usher/Oblationer at St Andrews Episcopal Church, Bryan. I was Co-Healthcare Lead with Indivisible TXLEGE during the 87th Legislative Session. I worked with All On The Line Texas to virtually testify to the Texas Legislature on our communities before the count came out and then after the maps came out. I’ve visited the border with Texas Impact, then stood up with them on voting legislation this year. Working with Sierra, we stopped coal from re-igniting miles from our local elementary schools.
Have you ever been arrested, charged with a crime or otherwise been part of a criminal proceeding? If yes, please explain. Arrested, yes, I have spent the night in jail – for the rest, no.
One summer, as a 22-year-old undergrad, taking 15 hrs, I learned “the hard way” that I was sick. My menstrual period, never “regular,” had become non-stop. I had endometriosis – my ovaries were becoming the size of softballs.
I joined a friend for a beer in a bar. Our talk went south. I made a strange decision. I poured the beer over his head. I was arrested. I now know that chronic health conditions affect both physical and behavioral health. Weeks later, I had an emergency hysterectomy.
Semesters later, I broke a tooth at a party. Provided what I thought was a pain pill, I took a muscle relaxer, Parafon Forte. I phoned then headed the 2 ½ hrs to my parent’s.
Tired and in pain, I pulled off the road and fell asleep. Awakened by a knock on my window, a policeman arrested me, broken tooth and all.
I spent the night in a small-town jail before making it home … then to the dentist to fix my tooth.
Have you been involved in a civil lawsuit or bankruptcy proceeding? If yes, please explain. no
Who are your top three campaign contributors? 3 individual Bryan-College Station donors contributed $3575, $1000, $1000, respectively.
Why are you seeking this office? Comptroller is the state’s accountant. I am a certified public accountant who’s spent the last 35 years auditing, accounting for, managing and even investigating state and local governments -- a “different” kind of CPA. My first job out of school was investigating allegations that elected officials had stolen or mishandled taxpayer money. Texan’s need that kind of accountability over the taxes they pay.
Comptroller is over green jobs, green energy and reducing greenhouse gas (methane) emissions. I am a Katrina survivor. Climate change is personal to me.
Comptroller is over broadband. Affordable. Could this be a rural utility that generates local revenue?
Comptroller “helps with” property tax appraisals. Comptroller needs to audit that and then shine light on it. Texas’ property tax needs reform.
Texas also needs a new revenue stream -- legalization/decriminalization of adult-use cannabis. Billions. Follow best-practices. Expunge records. Stipulate in the enabling what % goes where.
As the state’s purchasing manager, what factors would you consider before awarding state contracts? Compliance, accountability, enforceability. Equity, inclusion, accessibility. Qualifications, expertise, experience, size, their quality control. Sustainability, carbon footprint, environmental impact. Price, cost, risk, return.
Are there other sources of revenue not currently being used Texas should look to to supplement our budget? Absolutely, Texas needs a new revenue stream. Legalization of adult-use cannabis would bring in $billions. Decriminalization saves $millions. Provide access to licenses to those adversely affected by failed policy. Licensing covers enforcement. Follow best-practices. Expunge records. Stipulate in the enabling what % revenue goes where.
What qualities make for a good comptroller and how do you embody them? The Comptroller, elected by the people of Texas must be answerable to the people of Texas. S/he is independent. S/he is the accountant - the straight-shooter, the “truth-teller.”
For the past 35+ years, this is how I’ve make a living.
Tim Mahoney
Occupation: Attorney and Planner
Age: 69
Campaign website: www.TimMahoneyCampaign.org
Best way for voters to reach you: www.TimMahoneyCampaign.org and email at CommunityTexas@gmail.com
Education:
Jesuit High School, Dallas, Texas, 1970
Austin Community College, Richland, Texas, A.A., 1975
University of Texas at Austin, B.A., 1978
LBJ School of Public Affairs, UT-Austin, M.P.A., 1983
South Texas College of Law, Houston, TX, J.D., 1990
Have you run for or held elected office before?
Precinct Chair, Texas Democratic Party, a number of precincts and years
Constable, 1982
Trustee, Austin Community College, 2014
Comptroller’s Office, Democratic Primary, 2018
Comptroller’s Office, 2022
Please list highlights of your civic involvement (for example, service on boards/commissions or leadership positions held): In 2004 I was appointed to the Urban Forestry Board (UFB) in Austin, Texas, and eventually elected as the Chair. In 2006 or so, I managed to draft a comprehensive Urban Forestry Master Plan that was passed by the UFB, but did not get traction through the City bureaucracy. In 2008, I was elected to be a Trustee for Austin Community College, which offered me the opportunity to explore the Texas educational system from the inside. I have been an active member of numerous political clubs around the State, including the Sierra Club, Environmental Democrats Caucus, Disability Caucus, and numerous regional Democratic Clubs, among other organizations. I have come to see that good public policy is not developed by anger from the sidelines, but must incorporate on-going involvement from an educated citizenry.
Have you ever been arrested, charged with a crime or otherwise been part of a criminal proceeding? If yes, please explain. Besides practicing criminal law from time to time over the last 30 years, in the late 1980’s, I was arrested and charged for possession of paraphernalia (a pipe), but that charge was dismissed.
Have you been involved in a civil lawsuit or bankruptcy proceeding? If yes, please explain. I have been an attorney since 1991, and have pursued civil litigation, defense and plaintiff, and criminal defense. I have never declared personal or professional bankruptcy.
Who are your top three campaign contributors? The top 3 contributors besides myself are J. David Moriaty and Doris Lowe.
Why are you seeking this office? To make it so Texans can have a rational, measured and on-going voice in their state government, and because I have the vision and skill sets to make the Comptroller’s office the truth teller to Texans of issues related to the Texas budget.
As the state’s purchasing manager, what factors would you consider before awarding state contracts? I would reassess the previous work of the Texas Comptroller’s office upon becoming Texas Comptroller, just to get a new perspective of current operations. Since the Texas Comptroller’s office has generally received national recognition for its work product over the last 30 years, the change I envision would involve evaluations major program areas to begin to measure effectiveness both in cost and results. Programs that come to mind are our ERCOT system, and our Family Protective Services systems.
Are there other sources of revenue not currently being used Texas should look to to supplement our budget? Besides looking at sources of revenue from the legalization of marijuana, it appears that an initial investigation would research on our current revenue sources. Such a research project would involve an evaluation of our current tax structure, and how much each source costs to produce its income stream, and how effective that income stream is in an effort to measure our economy and to guide our future economic decisions.
What qualities make for a good comptroller and how do you embody them? A good Comptroller, beyond understanding numbers, needs to understand how numbers relate to the real world, and the people in it; and how numbers might be utilized to measure a better future. I was trained as a journalist in the 1970s; I went to the LBJ School of Public Affairs (UT-Austin) in the 1980s, then to Law School. I have been a practicing attorney since 1991. I have become increasingly appalled at what passes for public policy every two years at the Texas Legislature. If we can’t find a new way of relating to each other, I’m not sure our future will be of any real value to our children.
As I have engaged in volunteer and political work, my moto has been “Let’s put the jam on the lower shelf so the little people can reach it”. This does not require any sense of Left-Right political spectrums, just a sense of common decency. I have tried to find ways where people had the staying power to understand, make, and maintain necessary changes.
Angel Luis Vega
Occupation: Strategist & Author
Age: 39
Campaign website: www.angelvega.com
Best way for voters to reach you: info@angelvega.com
Education:
Bachelor of Business Administration - InterAmerican University
Master in Management and Leadership - Webster University
Have you run for or held elected office before? N/A
Please list highlights of your civic involvement (for example, service on boards/commissions or leadership positions held):
- International Hispanic Art and Culture Association - Board of Directors Member
- Hispanic Business Initiative Fund - Advisory Board Member
- Center for Independent Living - Young Leader for Inclusion Council Member
- Habitat for Humanity - Volunteer
- Houston Food Bank - Volunteer
- Obama’s presidential campaign - Volunteer
Have you ever been arrested, charged with a crime or otherwise been part of a criminal proceeding? If yes, please explain. No
Have you been involved in a civil lawsuit or bankruptcy proceeding? If yes, please explain. No
Who are your top three campaign contributors?
Why are you seeking this office? Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts
As the state’s purchasing manager, what factors would you consider before awarding state contracts?
- Guarantee a fair and competitive process open to all
- Qualifications
- Track Record / Background / Experience
- Price/Offersing; maximize and save the taxpayer’s money
- Benefits to the taxpayers
- Inclusive and Diversity; encourage underrepresented-owned businesses to become suppliers
- Promote transparency & efficiency (before, during and after the process)
Are there other sources of revenue not currently being used Texas should look to to supplement our budget?
- I support the legalization of recreational marijuana; this will result in an increase of the State’s income, promote the creation of new enterprises across the state. Invest in the expansion of our farms businesses, and creation of thousands of new jobs. There is a potential earning of approximately 400 million dollars for Texas alone. These numbers are expected to increase as our Great State continues growing. Plus, the revenue from licensing fees.
- Eliminating corporate tax loopholes could increase the state’s revenue by 700 million dollars.
- The Governor is not releasing billions in federal funds and stimulus dollars intended for health care, public schools, and infrastructure.
What qualities make for a good comptroller and how do you embody them? I’m committed to serving with character, integrity, compassion, and a sense of urgency. I will have the ability to work in collaboration with all government officials, no matter their party affiliation. I will have the courage to make unpopular decisions, so long as they’re looking for the best interest of all the people of Texas. Since the start of my campaign, I have provided and spoken publicly about my vision for Texas’s future; I want Texans to know what I stand for and what I will advocate for. I will lead proactively and manage any risk or crisis with a sense of urgency and resilience. I want to establish a committee and appoint liaisons from different communities. Representation matters! I am committed to connecting with the community constantly, showing my support, talking to the people directly, listening and understanding the concerns and suggestions. I also want the recruitment process at the Comptroller’s office to become more inclusive, diverse, and friendly to all.
