Principal, Em Dash Strategies
Katy Aldredge
Texas Lobbyist, Government Affairs Advisor & Legislative Strategist
About Katy
Texas Government Affairs Advisor
Legislative Strategist · Public Policy Consultant
Katy Aldredge is an Austin-based Texas government affairs professional and Principal of Em Dash Strategies, with more than 15 years of experience inside Texas government.
A proud native Austinite, Katy grew up in the shadow of the Texas Capitol. Public policy was part of everyday life, and a father who worked in government relations gave her an early view of the people, relationships, and ideas that shape the state. That foundation became a career spanning nearly two decades in and around Texas government.
She has worked at nearly every level of the process: as Capitol Director and later Chief of Staff to Representative Giovanni Capriglione; as committee director or clerk on appropriations, financial services, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, data privacy, information-technology modernization, and government efficiency; and earlier in Governor Rick Perry’s administration. The through-line is not simply relationships. It is the ability to develop a policy concept, learn a technical subject, identify stakeholders, prepare a bill for committee, and stay with the work through amendments, Senate negotiations, agency questions, and executive-branch engagement.
What colleagues often notice first is how she explains complicated issues. Katy studied Elementary Education at Texas State University. Teaching and legislating are different professions, but both depend on making dense material intelligible, listening carefully, and bringing people with different interests toward a workable result.
Capitol
Experience Across Texas Government
These roles are the institutional basis for Em Dash Strategies’ Texas lobbying and government affairs work. They are staff positions — not elected office.
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Committee Director
House Committee on Delivery of Government Efficiency
February 2025 – August 2026
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Chief of Staff
Representative Giovanni Capriglione
June 2023 – August 2026
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Committee Director
House Committee on Pensions, Investments & Financial Services
February 2023 – February 2025
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Committee Clerk
House Select Committee on Artificial Intelligence & Emerging Technologies
April 2024 – December 2024
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Clerk
Texas Artificial Intelligence Advisory Council
February 2024 – December 2024
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Capitol Director
Representative Giovanni Capriglione
November 2014 – June 2023
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Committee Clerk
Joint Committee on Investment in IT Improvement and Modernization Projects
September 2021 – December 2022
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Committee Director
House Committee on Appropriations
January 2020 – January 2021
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Clerk
Texas Data Privacy Advisory Council
September 2019 – December 2020
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Committee Director
House Select Committee on Cybersecurity
April 2018 – January 2019
Her background also includes work in Governor Rick Perry’s administration. Taken together, the work covers legislative strategy, public-policy development, stakeholder engagement, coalition building, legislative analysis, executive-branch relations, state budget and appropriations, financial services, regulatory reform, open government, cybersecurity, data privacy, IT governance, AI regulation, and FinTech.
Practice
Areas of Policy Experience
Each specialty page explains the relevant committee work, legislative examples, and how Em Dash Strategies approaches the issue for clients.
Artificial Intelligence
AI governance, emerging technology, and public-sector AI policy.
Cybersecurity
State security standards, cybercrime, and public-sector cybersecurity.
Data Privacy
Consumer privacy, breach policy, and the Texas Data Privacy and Security Act.
Data Centers & Digital Infrastructure
Cloud, state IT modernization, and advanced-computing infrastructure.
Digital Assets
Bitcoin, blockchain, cryptocurrency, custody, and related financial policy.
Financial Services
Banking, insurance, public funds, FinTech, and investment policy.
Appropriations & State Budget
Budget process, riders, and legislative funding strategy.
Government Efficiency & Regulatory Reform
Agency modernization, rulemaking, and regulatory process.
Approach
How She Works
Katy’s government affairs work is built around a simple sequence: understand the substance, anticipate the process, identify who has to be in the room, and stay with the details long enough for an idea to become workable legislation — or a workable defense of the status quo.
That includes drafting and research, legislative analysis, stakeholder identification, coalition management, committee preparation, hearing strategy, amendments and substitutes, floor considerations, Senate coordination, agency engagement, and, where the outcome depends on money, appropriations and budget riders.
Outside the Capitol, she spends time with family — especially her nephews — supports Ballet Austin, follows the University of Texas, and travels when she can, particularly in France and the United Kingdom.
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Em Dash Strategies helps businesses and organizations understand the landscape, develop a strategy, and navigate Texas government.
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