Susan Combs

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Susan Combs
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 79) San Antonio, Texas, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Joe Duran
Children	3 sons
Education	Vassar College (BA) University of Texas, Austin (JD)
Website	www.susancombs.com

Susan Combs (born February 26, 1945)^[1] is an American politician, having served elected office in Texas and served as the Assistant Secretary of Policy, Management and Budget at the U.S. Department of the Interior as an appointed official under President Donald J. Trump.

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.^[2] 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. The administration cited Combs' career in public office and in the private sector as a small business owner with a ranch in the Big Bend section of West Texas as factors in her selection. U.S. Senator John Cornyn said that he will work for Combs' confirmation and called her "always a fierce advocate for rural Texans."^[3] 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.^[4][5] On April 13, 2020, Combs submitted her resignation which went into effect on April 25, 2020.^[6]

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.^[7] On July 10, 2017, Combs was nominated by U.S. president Donald Trump to be the assistant secretary of the interior for policy, management and budget.^[8] As a former Texas state comptroller, the Texas legislature gave control of the state's endangered species program from the Department of Parks and Wildlife to Comb's office, which managed state fiscal and tax matters.^[9] However, because of the economic impact of certain endangered species designations, the office of comptroller was viewed as necessary to oversee the State's endangered species program. She also worked with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to protect the dunes sagebrush lizard, ensuring that the lizard's habitat was protected while also ensuring the economic value of the oil and gas economy.