Harris County pulls $90,000 no-bid tax office contract amid questions

Harris County Commissioners Court pulled a $90,000 no-bid Tax Office contract after questions surfaced about Tax Assessor-Collector Annette Ramirez’s prior acquaintance with Sahar Robertson, the owner of SWR Strategies. The deal did not win approval, leaving county taxpayers with another test of how closely Harris County enforces its procurement rules.

The proposed contract would have sent the work to SWR Strategies without competitive bidding. When the item came before Commissioners Court, the reaction was blunt: “Not happening.” For county vendors and residents watching how public money is spent, the key issue was not only the size of the contract, but whether a prior relationship between Ramirez and Robertson influenced who was selected.

Ramirez is still early in her first term. She was sworn in as Harris County Tax Assessor-Collector and Voter Registrar on January 1, 2025, after winning the November 5, 2024 election. Her background gives her unusual familiarity with tax work: she spent more than 20 years at Aldine Independent School District as assistant general counsel, handling property tax collection, litigation and real estate matters.

That experience has made the contract dispute more politically sensitive, not less. Ramirez’s office has emphasized transparency and taxpayer stewardship, and it says the county’s purchasing rules are meant to comply with the Texas Local Government Code and best business practices. The Harris County Purchasing Department has said county purchases are supposed to follow those standards, which is why any perception of favoritism draws immediate scrutiny.

The county’s Auditor’s Office also sits in the middle of that oversight structure. It audits compliance, processes accounting transactions and provides a public channel for reporting fraud, waste or abuse. Harris County says its confidential hotline and website allow employees, vendors, grant applicants and members of the public to report concerns anonymously.

The SWR Strategies episode comes as the tax office is already managing major technology and collections contracts. On June 12, 2025, Commissioners Court considered a renewal option with Appraisal & Collection Technologies, LLC worth $4,432,050 for the period from July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026. Court records show the contract had previously been awarded on June 27, 2023, with Renewal No. 1 approved on April 23, 2024.

For now, the $90,000 SWR Strategies item stopped at the courthouse door. The court did not approve it, and the county’s safeguards, not just the optics, are now under the microscope.