On July 10, 2017, U.S. president Donald Trump nominated Combs to be the assistant secretary for policy, management, and budget at the United States Department of the Interior.

[2] Earlier in the year, Trump had considered naming Combs to be the secretary of agriculture, a position which went instead to Sonny Perdue, a former governor of Georgia.

The administration cited Combs' career in public office and in the private sector as a small business owner with a ranch in the Big Bend section of West Texas as factors in her selection.

"[3] Her nomination to be the assistant secretary for policy, management, and budget was approved on a party-line vote in the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

Prior to her tenure as comptroller, Combs had served two terms as commissioner of the Texas Department of Agriculture from 1999 to 2007, taking the reins as the first woman elected to that office in 1998.

In partnership with Combs and the Texas Department of Agriculture and a coalition of other organizations, Environmental Defense Fund coordinated the development of a market-based credit exchange.

[13] It allowed Fort Hood to quickly obtain offsets from nearby landowners to counteract losses from live-fire training activities and troop movement through core habitat areas.

The Recovery Credit System was designed to connect buyers and sellers directly, putting mitigation dollars straight in the hands of participating landowners.

[16] "Public education is one of the largest items in the state budget; so Texans need to know where their dollars are getting the highest return in terms of student performance," Combs said.

[19] Also with leftover campaign cash, Combs formed a 501(c)(4) nonprofit called the Anywhere Woman Project, an online platform aiming to help women ask questions and exchange ideas.

[20] In 2016, Combs launched "HERdacity" a "nonprofit online platform and mobile app" intended to "give women with shared interests and career ambitions a forum to exchange ideas and offer each other support.

[21] As a member of the Texas House of Representatives in the 1990s, Combs championed legislation prohibiting state wildlife officials from gathering endangered species data from private lands without permission, according to the Austin Chronicle.

It also sought to restrict the state from sharing endangered species data with the Fish and Wildlife Service...Following her nomination in July, some 70 conservation groups sent a letter to the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee urging members to reject her confirmation.

[23] He praised the Comptroller for her ability to bring together diverse stakeholder groups to tackle difficult conservation issues for a number of species including the dunes sagebrush lizard, the lesser prairie-chicken and the golden-cheeked warbler.