RICHMOND, Texas (Covering Katy News) — Fort Bend County Judge KP George's money laundering conviction has prompted the Governor's Office to freeze 27 state grants covering everything from domestic violence prevention to cybersecurity and emergency services, as county commissioners met Thursday for the first time since his conviction and voted to take away his authority to sign county documents.
Gov. Greg Abbott's office notified Fort Bend County Auditor Ed Sturdivant in a March 20 letter that all 27 grants were being put on hold the same day a jury found George guilty of two counts of money laundering. George was a Democrat when the alleged crimes occurred, and later switched to the Republican Party. He had been listed as the person authorized to sign off on all 27 grants on behalf of the county.
The 27 frozen grants cover a wide range of public safety and community programs, including:
- SWAT team operations
- Hazmat sustainment
- Collapse search and rescue
- Cybersecurity training and mitigation
- Emergency medical services
- Special response vehicles
- Victim assistance programs
- Violence Against Women Act funding
- Human trafficking investigation and prosecution
- Youth community outreach
- Mental health services coordination
- Community preparedness and CERT training
- Regional intelligence analysis
- Emergency public information systems
- Mobile command unit enhancement
- Care coordination services
The Governor's office gave the county 10 days to turn over any legal documents related to the case, explain whether any grant money was connected to the criminal charges, and designate a new authorized signer for all 27 grants.
Because George was convicted of a felony, he can no longer execute grant applications and other legal documents on behalf of the county. On Thursday, Fort Bend County Commissioners Court voted to assign that authority to Commissioner Grady Prestage, the court's longest-serving member. Commissioners also designated Prestage as presiding officer if George is suspended or removed once his conviction becomes final at sentencing. Additionally, commissioners asked County Auditor Ed Sturdivant to assess whether the county faces any financial risk as a result of George's conviction.
The other commissioners on the court are Andy Meyers (R), Vincent Morales (R) and Dexter McCoy (D).
Commissioners also asked County Auditor Ed Sturdivant to look into whether the county faces any financial risk as a result of George's situation.
Who we are: Covering Katy News is independently owned and operated by professional journalists with more than 50 years of combined experience. Unlike many other local media outlets, we do not accept special purpose district funding — such as from MUDs, drainage districts or other taxing entities — nor do we accept funding from any government source, whether municipal, county, state or federal. We are self-sustaining — no outside investors — supported entirely by local advertisers. Our owner and publisher, Dennis Spellman, and his staff live locally, so we understand local issues. Since 2022, Spellman has also served county residents in a communications role for Fort Bend County Pct. 3. Since our founding in 2011, our editorial decisions have been made independently — and that will never change.