Candidates Letitia Plummer and Orlando Sanchez are running to lead Harris County government.

What you need to know: Plummer, a Democrat and Orlando, a Republican, will face off in November’s general election to become Harris County’s next judge. The judge oversees the Harris County Commissioners Court, which governs the county. The court and county judge are responsible for the about five million residents who live in Harris County.

Before you go: Early voting begins Oct. 19 and runs through Oct. 30, according to the Texas Secretary of State's website. Election day is Nov. 3 and polls will be open from 7 a.m.-7 p.m.

Registered voters can cast their ballot at any polling location during early voting and election day.

The German Gift House expanded with a new location on Sept. 11. The new shop is located at 318 C Main St. inside Market Square.

The details

Owned by Ursula Sledge, the business has been open for over 10 years. German Gift House II offers a variety of items, including:

• German gifts

• Food

• Collectibles

Lone Star College System leaders are aiming to pay off $404 million in bond debt by approximately 2030 or 2031. To help achieve this, Kristy Vienne, the vice chancellor of administration and finance, proposed an interest and sinking tax rate of $0.0219 per $100 valuation for fiscal year 2026-27. This proposed rate would bring the outstanding bond debt balance to about $311 million.

Explained: The college system's proposed total tax rate for fiscal year 2026-27 is $0.1058 per $100 valuation, which is lower than the current rate of $0.106. While some taxpayers in the Harris Central Appraisal District are expected to see a drop in their annual property tax bill, others in the Montgomery Central Appraisal District and the San Jacinto County Appraisal District are expected to see higher bills due to increased median property values. Taxpayers could also see higher bills if:

• Their home or land value increases

• They lose a property tax exemption

• Their property value exceeds the 10% appraisal cap

Going forward: A public hearing on the proposed tax rate is scheduled for Oct. 1.

Some Texas Republican leaders have vowed to get rid of the property taxes that homeowners pay to their local public school districts, and lawmakers are analyzing how much it would cost to do so.

The big picture: Texas school districts collect about $29 billion per year in maintenance and operations taxes, which cover schools' daily expenses.

Of that $29 billion in school tax revenue, the state comptroller's office estimates that about $8.6 billion is paid by homeowners, and the rest comes from commercial and industrial property taxes.

This means the state would need to spend at least $8.6 billion annually to zero out homeowners' school property tax bills, officials said.

Quote of note: "Broadly speaking, you have a question about how much you want to fund schools, and then separately, where does that money come from?" Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath said during a Sept. 15 legislative hearing. "If you have a target of how much you want to spend, you need to make sure you have enough variable revenue sources to reach that."