Susan Combs

Susan Combs (born February 26, 1945)^[1] is an American politician, having served elected office in Texas and as the assistant secretary of policy, management and budget at the U.S. Department of the Interior under President Donald Trump.

Susan Combs
Assistant Secretary of the Interior (Policy, Management, and Budget)
In office June 5, 2019 – April 25, 2020
President	Donald Trump
37th Comptroller of Texas
In office January 1, 2007 – January 1, 2015
Governor	Rick Perry
Preceded by	Carole Keeton
Succeeded by	Glenn Hegar
10th Agriculture Commissioner of Texas
In office January 5, 1999 – January 1, 2007
Governor	George W. Bush Rick Perry
Preceded by	Rick Perry
Succeeded by	Todd Staples
Member of the Texas House of Representatives from the 47th district
In office January 12, 1993 – January 26, 1996
Preceded by	Libby Linebarger
Succeeded by	Patty Keel
Personal details
Born	(1945-02-26) February 26, 1945 (age 80) San Antonio, Texas, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Joe Duran
Children	3
Education	Vassar College (AB) University of Texas at Austin (JD)
Website	www.susancombs.com

A Republican, Combs served from 2007 to 2015 as the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Prior to her tenure as comptroller, Combs had served two terms as commissioner of the Texas Department of Agriculture from 1999 to 2007, taking the reins as the first woman elected to that office in 1998. Combs also served two terms in the Texas House of Representatives.^[2]

Early life and family

Combs was born in San Antonio. She grew up in a ranching family in West Texas. She runs a cow-calf operation on her family's ranch in Brewster County; the ranch has been in her family since the turn of the 20th century. She lives in Austin with her husband, Joe W. Duran, a computer scientist. She is the mother of three sons.^[3] Combs graduated from Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York,^[3] majoring in French and religion. She worked in international advertising in New York City, in the financial markets on Wall Street, and for the U.S. government before returning to Texas to obtain credentials from the University of Texas Law School at Austin.^[3] After graduation from law school, she served as an assistant district attorney in Dallas, Texas.

Political career

Combs' first electoral outing was for the 47th legislative district, in Travis County. She won the Republican runoff election by seven votes over intraparty challenger Bill Welch. Combs polled 2,279 votes (50.07 percent) to Welch's 2,272 (49.92 percent). The two had led a five-candidate field in the primary.^[4] In the general election, Combs handily defeated the Democrat Jimmy Day, 45,355 (65.4 percent) to 23,987 (34.6 percent).^[5] Combs served two terms in the Texas House of Representatives from 1993 and 1996, resigning midway in her second term to join the staff of U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison as the lawmaker's state director. She was succeeded by fellow Republican Patty Keel of Austin.

Texas agriculture commissioner

Combs served as the Texas agriculture commissioner from 1999 to 2007, being the first woman to serve in the position.^[3] She succeeded Rick Perry as commissioner, who was instead elected as lieutenant governor.

As agriculture commissioner, Combs worked with the Environmental Defense Fund to protect the golden-cheeked warbler.^[6] In partnership with Combs and the Texas Department of Agriculture and a coalition of other organizations, Environmental Defense Fund coordinated the development of a market-based credit exchange.^[6] It allowed Fort Hood to quickly obtain offsets from nearby landowners to counteract losses from live-fire training activities and troop movement through core habitat areas. Over a three-year period, there were eight auctions, or bid rounds, conducted – one every three to four months – and there were 21 successful bidders out of a total of 44.^{[citation needed]}

Texas comptroller of public accounts

Combs was elected as Texas comptroller of public accounts to succeed Carole Strayhorn. Combs served as comptroller from 2007 to 2015. In 2010, Combs was unopposed for a second term as comptroller in the Republican primary, and she faced no Democratic opponent in the November 2 general election. Unsuccessful nominees of the Green and Libertarian parties did seek the position. Combs did not seek reelection to a third term as comptroller or any other statewide office in the 2014 elections.^[7]

In 2015, Combs endorsed Carly Fiorina for president.^[8]

Assistant secretary of the interior

On July 10, 2017, U.S. president Donald Trump nominated Combs to be the assistant secretary for policy, management, and budget at the United States Department of the Interior.^[9] Earlier in the year, Trump had considered naming Combs to be the secretary of agriculture, a position which went instead to Sonny Perdue, a former governor of Georgia.^[10] Her nomination to be the assistant secretary for policy, management, and budget was approved on a party-line vote in the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. However, the full Senate did not take up her nomination and sent it back to the White House at the end of 2017. In 2018, the Trump administration re-nominated Combs to the same position. More than 70 conservation organizations sent a letter to the Senate opposing her nomination. She was confirmed by the United States Senate with a vote of 57–36 on June 5, 2019.^[11][12][13] On April 13, 2020, Combs submitted her resignation, which went into effect on April 25, 2020.^[14]

Other activities

Combs served on the boards of the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association in Fort Worth and the Texas Wildlife Association. She has also served on the boards of the Texas Beef Council and the Texas Production Credit Association.^[15]

After leaving state politics in 2015, Combs launched the Texas Smart Schools Initiative, intended for parents and officials as a data-driven approach to show which public schools and districts are achieving the highest student performance for the lowest cost.^[16][17] The material, arranged on a five-star scale, was made available without charge.^[18] It is funded from her leftover campaign contributions.^[16] "Public education is one of the largest items in the state budget; so Texans need to know where their dollars are getting the highest return in terms of student performance," Combs said.^[19] Also with leftover campaign cash, Combs formed a 501(c)(4) nonprofit called the Anywhere Woman Project, an online platform aiming to help women ask questions and exchange ideas.^[18]

In 2016, Combs launched "HERdacity" a "nonprofit online platform and mobile app" intended to "give women with shared interests and career ambitions a forum to exchange ideas and offer each other support."^[20] HERdacity's goal is to help women have the "audacity" to seek their own paths. In addition, she wrote a memoir entitled Texas Tenacity.^[20]

As a member of the Texas House of Representatives in the 1990s, Combs championed legislation prohibiting state wildlife officials from gathering endangered species data from private lands without permission, according to the Austin Chronicle. It also sought to restrict the state from sharing endangered species data with the Fish and Wildlife Service.^{[citation needed]}

In August 2019, the Women's Suffrage Celebration Commission elevated Combs to chairwoman. Prior to that, Combs was a Commission member, appointed to that position in December 2018.^[21]

Awards

At the December 2, 2014, meeting of the Texas Interagency Task Force on Economic Growth and Endangered Species, Dr. Benjamin Tuggle presented Susan Combs, Texas Comptroller and Chair of the Task Force, with a plaque in recognition of her efforts to promote conservation in the State of Texas and the Southwest Region.^[22] Dr. Tuggle thanked the Comptroller for her dedication and commitment to expanding species research efforts and supporting on the ground conservation efforts in the State of Texas.^[22] He praised the Comptroller for her ability to bring together diverse stakeholder groups to tackle difficult conservation issues for a number of species including the dunes sagebrush lizard, the lesser prairie-chicken and the golden-cheeked warbler.^[22] Her willingness to work with the Fish and Wildlife Service on challenging issues benefited both the wildlife in Texas as well as the State's landowners and economy.^[22]