Having developed a reputation as a reformer during her tenure as Texas’ Comptroller, Travis County’s Susan Combs has been nominated by President Trump to serve in the Department of the interior.
The Department of the Interior oversees the national parks and other federal lands, the Fish and Wildlife Service, and numerous other federal agencies. Combs has been nominated to be the Assistant Secretary of Policy Management and Budget at the U.S. Department of Interior.
Combs served in the Texas House in the mid-1990s before being elected statewide as the Commissioner of Agriculture in 1999. But it was in the office of Comptroller, a position she held from 2007 to 2015, that Combs earned a national reputation for promoting a variety of transparency and accountability tools making government more responsive to taxpayers.
After two terms, Combs chose to not seek re-election to Comptroller.
U.S. Sen. John Cornyn released a statement about Combs’ appointment:
Having served at multiple levels of state government, Texans have long benefited from the leadership and tireless work ethic of Susan Combs.
As Agriculture Commissioner and then Comptroller of one of the nation’s largest economies, she has a clear record of promoting pro-growth policies and efficiently managing large organizations.
Always a fierce advocate for rural Texans, Susan will be a tremendous asset to the Department, and I look forward to supporting her nomination.
In addition to being an attorney and elected official, Combs has long managed her family’s cattle ranch operations in Brewster County. She and her husband have three sons.
