HARRIS COUNTY, Texas — The office of Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo released heavily redacted documents related to a 2024 trade mission to Taiwan and Japan after Texas officials ordered disclosure, according to public records obtained by Houston Public Media.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office directed the county to release the records following a public information request. The documents, which totaled nearly 360 pages, showed extensive redactions, with many pages fully blacked out except for limited planning materials such as emails, Zoom invitations, and an invoice for catering.
The trade mission took place in October 2024 and formed part of an economic development delegation led by the Greater Houston Partnership. The trip aimed to attract foreign investment to Harris County, which includes Houston, the fourth-largest city in the United States.
The released materials contained limited details about Hidalgo’s schedule, expenses, and agreements resulting from the trip. Some documents included a $1,030 invoice for catering, as well as emails referencing meetings with government and business officials in Taiwan and Japan.
Campaign finance records showed that Hidalgo used campaign funds to pay for travel-related expenses after county commissioners declined to fund the trip. The records indicated more than $16,000 in hotel costs in Taipei and Tokyo, more than $22,000 in airfare, and over $10,000 in reimbursements to county staff who participated in the delegation.
Hidalgo said in an interview that she considered the trade missions part of her economic development work and said she used campaign funds because she lacked office budget support for the trips.
Some Harris County commissioners and outside observers raised concerns about Hidalgo’s absences from commissioners court meetings during international travel. Political science professor Brandon Rottinghaus of the University of Houston said the absences raised accountability concerns.
Legal experts cited in reports said the scope of the redactions appeared broader than what the state authorized. County officials cited exemptions including protection of economic development information and internal policy deliberations.
Harris County spokesperson Tami Frazier said some partners requested confidentiality for proprietary information and said the delegation’s meetings with companies such as Foxconn and Inventec focused on potential investment and expansion in the county.
The Greater Houston Partnership said trade missions often take time to produce measurable economic results and have been part of long-term efforts to attract international investment to the region.
