HOUSTON - A bi-partisan, 3-2 majority of Harris County Commissioner's Court advanced a $4 billion budget plan Tuesday, which relies on financial restraint rather than the additional taxation proposed by Judge Lina Hidalgo.

New Harris County budget approval

Commissioners are contending with a deficit deepened by a long-overdue $100 million pay raise for county law enforcement officers and a whole slate of progressive social initiatives launched over the past few years.

The courtroom was packed by activists opposing higher deputy pay and supporting additional funding for initiatives including low-income housing, indigent health care, legal services for the undocumented, mental health and anti-crime youth programs.

But commissioners Adrian Garcia, Lesley Briones and Tom Ramsey say the

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