Primary Department: County Administration
Primary Department Head/Elected Official: Erica Lee Carter, County Administrator
Secondary Department: Economic Equity and Opportunity
Secondary Department Head/Elected Official: Jie Wu, Interim Executive Director
Regular or Supplemental RCA: Regular RCA
Type of Request: Position
Project ID (if applicable): N/A
Vendor/Entity Legal Name (if applicable): N/A
MWBE Contracted Goal (if applicable): N/A
MWBE Current Participation (if applicable): N/A
Justification for 0% MWBE Participation Goal: N/A - Goal not applicable to request
Grant Indirect Costs Rate (if applicable): N/A
Justification for 0% Grant Indirect Costs Rate (if applicable): N/A - Not a grant item
Request Summary (Agenda Caption):
title
Request for approval to transfer two general fund Early Childhood positions from the Department of Economic Equity and Opportunity, including associated budget and equipment, to the Office of County Administration effective September 19, 2026.
end
Background and Discussion:
Motions from the June 11, 2026, Commissioners Court directed “that OCA coordinate communications across departments to better connect families with available early childhood education and care resources, using existing County touchpoints.” The transfer of two existing vacant positions in the Department of Economic Equity and Opportunity (DEEO) Early Childhood Initiatives (ECI) division will enable the Office of County Administration (OCA) to drive early childhood directives and enhance countywide engagement as directed by Court.
DEEO’s remaining ARPA-funded ECI staff will focus on closing out ARPA activities with the support of OCA’s ARPA PMO team. This transfer does not impact ECI programs, contracts, or staffing funded by ARPA.
OCA requests approval to transfer two general fund Early Childhood positions, budget, and equipment from DEEO to OCA and authorization to work with the Office of Management & Budget (OMB), Human Resources & Talent (HRT), DEEO, and any other relevant departments in connection with the technical and administrative logistics with final completion of the transition to be completed by no later than September 19, 2026.
Expected Impact:
With the transition to OCA, these positions will be able to drive early childhood Court directives and continue to increase connections for countywide engagement with children aged 0 to 5 and their families. With ECI-focused staffing capacity, OCA can leverage its experience launching or stabilizing programs, supporting the execution of priority Court-directed projects, and coordinating across County departments to ensure that the June 2026 ECI Court directives are planned and implemented successfully.
If the request is approved, a total of $367,917 in general funds will be reallocated from DEEO to OCA starting in FY27.
Alternative Options:
The positions remain in DEEO.
County Strategic Plan Goal: 3. Make our economy more inclusive.
County Strategic Plan Objective: K: Provide workers with training and other supports (e.g. child care) to participate fully in the local economy.
Justice/Safety Initiative (Goal 1): Choose an item.
Infrastructure Initiative (Goal 2): Choose an item.
Economy Initiative (Goal 3): K1: Advance child care quality and accessibility through workforce development programming and child care slots.
Health Initiative (Goal 4): Choose an item.
Climate/Resilience Initiative (Goal 5): Choose an item.
Housing Initiative (Goal 6): Choose an item.
Additional notes related to the Strategic Plan:
Prior Court Action (if any):
|
Date |
Agenda Item # |
Action Taken |
|
06/11/2026 |
330 & 344 |
To direct OCA to coordinate communications across departments to better connect families with available early childhood education and care resources, using existing County touchpoints. |
|
08/08/2023 |
21 |
Approval to move the Early Childhood Initiatives Division in the Office of County Administration to the Department of Economic Equity & Opportunity, including transferring certain positions, employees, contracts, budget, equipment, and resources as part of the restructuring of the Office of County Administration; and authorization to work with the Auditor's Office, Office of Management & Budget, Human Resources & Risk Management, the Purchasing Department, Universal Services, the Department of Economic Equity & Opportunity, and any other relevant departments in connection with the restructuring with final completion of the transition to be completed by December 31, 2023. |
|
|
|
|
Location:
Address (if applicable):
Precinct(s): Countywide
|
Fiscal and Personnel Summary |
|
Service Name |
Early Childhood Initiatives |
|
|
|
Current Fiscal Year Cost |
Annual Fiscal Cost |
|
|
Labor |
Non-Labor |
Total |
Recurring Expenses |
|
Funding Sources |
|
|
Existing Budget |
|
|
|
|
|
1000 - General Fund |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$367,917 |
|
Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Total Existing Budget |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Additional Budget Request (Requires Fiscal Review Request Form) |
|
|
Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Total Additional Budget Request |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Total Funding Sources |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$367,917 |
|
Grants - Proposed Budget (For Grants Items only) |
|
|
Labor |
Non-Labor |
Total |
No. of Grant Years |
|
Local Match Source - Existing Budget: Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
|
Local Match Source - Additional Budget Request: Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
|
Grant Funds Applied for/Awarded (Total) |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
|
Personnel (Fill out section only if requesting new Position Control Numbers (PCN)s) |
|
|
Current Position Count for Service |
- |
- |
- |
- |
|
Additional Positions Request |
- |
- |
- |
- |
|
Total Personnel |
- |
- |
- |
- |
|
County Attorney’s Office Legal Review (for Harris County Code Items only) |
|
CAO Reviewer Name and Title |
|
CAO Review Completion Date |
Click or tap to enter a date. |
Anticipated Court Date: 9/8/2026
Anticipated Implementation Date (if different from Court date): 9/19/2026
Emergency/Disaster Recovery Note: Not an emergency, disaster, or ARPA related item
Contact(s) name, title, department:
County Administrator Erica Lee Carter, MPP, Office of County Administration and Jie Wu, Interim Executive Director, Department of Economic Equity and Opportunity
Attachments (if applicable): N/A