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Edinburg unemployment rate for January 2016 comes in at 4.8 percent; 2015 annual figure of 5.1 percent best in city since 2007

Photograph By DIEGO REYNA

Featured: Ellie Torres, Secretary/Treasurer for the Board of Directors of the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation, earlier this year in the Council Chamber of Edinburg City Hall.

Photograph By DIEGO REYNA

Edinburg’s unemployment rate for January 2016 of 4.8 percent kept pace with McAllen and its Valley-leading 4.7 percent showing for the same month, and marked the sixth time since January 2015 that Edinburg’s monthly unemployment rate was under five percent, the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation has announced. In addition, the annual unemployment rate in Edinburg for 2o15 was 5.1 percent, the best performance for the city since 2007, when the annual figure came in at 4.7 percent. Edinburg’s latest showing was better than the U.S. unemployment rate for January 2016, which was 4.9 percent, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics (http://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS14000000).

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Proposed law to prevent Texas governments from keeping secret any expenditure paid for with tax funds will be filed by Rep. Terry Canales

Photograph By MARK MONTEMAYOR

Featured: Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg, addressing the Public Affairs Luncheon, sponsored by the Edinburg Chamber of Commerce and the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation on Thursday, January 21, 2016 at the Edinburg Conference Center at Renaissance.

Photograph By MARK MONTEMAYOR

A proposed law that would prevent Texas governments from approving contracts whose payments are secret will be filed in 2017 by Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg, who said he is a strong champion of the people’s right to know. Canales said Texas governments – from school districts to state universities and agencies – should not be allowed to keep secret any expenditures paid for with tax funds.

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Edinburg gives initial approval to provide a maximum of $30 million – to be spread out over up to 30 years without raising city property tax rate – to help in the construction of $150 million Hidalgo County Courthouse

Photograph By MARK MONTEMAYOR

Featured, from left: Precinct 1 Hidalgo County Commissioner A.C. Cuellar, Jr. of Weslaco; Hidalgo County Judge Ramón García; Mayor Richard García; Councilmember J.R. Betancourt; and Mayor Pro Tem Richard Molina. This image was taken on Tuesday, March 8, 2016 in the Council Chamber of Edinburg City Hall.

Photograph By MARK MONTEMAYOR

The Mayor and Edinburg City Council on Tuesday, March 8, 2016, gave their initial approval to provide a maximum of $30 million – to be spread out over up to 30 years and without raising the city property tax rate – to help in the construction of a $150 million Hidalgo County Courthouse, the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation has announced. If all goes as planned by the county, construction on the courthouse may begin near the end of this year, if weather permits. The county anticipates a completion date of October 2018. The action took place following a 2 p.m. joint work session with the Hidalgo County Judge and Hidalgo County Commissioners Court, held in the Council Chamber of Edinburg City Hall, and sets into motion a plan that will eventually lead to the construction of a state-of-the-art judicial center, which will be located in downtown Edinburg, next to the current county courthouse complex.

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Ismael “Kino” Flores, Jr., son of former longtime Rep. Flores, D-Palmview, appointed as Associate Judge of Title IV-D Master Court 2 in Edinburg

Photograph By VANESSA FLORES

Featured: Edinburg attorney Ismael “Kino” Flores, Jr., the newly-appointed Associate Judge of the Title IV-D Master Court 2 in Hidalgo County, and the Honorable Missy Medary of Corpus Christi, who is Presiding Judge of the Fifth Administrative Judicial Region.

Photograph By VANESSA FLORES

Edinburg attorney Ismael “Kino” Flores, Jr., son of former longtime Rep. Ismael “Kino” Flores, D-Palmview, will be sworn in on Tuesday, March 8, 2016, as the new Associate Judge of the Title IV-D Master Court 2 in Hidalgo County, according to the Honorable Missy Medary of Corpus Christi, who is Presiding Judge of the Fifth Administrative Judicial Region. The Title IV-D Court hears cases that the Texas Attorney General has provided services under Part D, Title IV of the Federal Social Security Act. 42 U S.C. § 651 et seq.. which include locating an absent parent, determining parentage or the establishment, modification, or enforcement of child support or medical support. The court has jurisdiction in Hidalgo, Starr and Jim Hogg counties.

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Edinburg, Hidalgo County to meet on Tuesday, March 8, to approve $30 million contribution by city towards building $150 million courthouse

Photograph By DIEGO REYNA

Featured, from left: Precinct 4 Hidalgo County Commissioner Joseph Palacios; Hidalgo County Judge Ramón García; Mayor Richard García; and City Councilmember Homer Jasso, Jr. In the background are, from left: Agustín García, Jr., Executive Director, Edinburg Economic Development Corporation, and Noé Hinojosa, Jr., President and Chief Executive Officer for Estrada • Hinojosa Investment Bankers of Dallas, which is the city’s financial consultant. This image was taken at Edinburg City Hall during the Monday, February 8, 2016 joint work session on the proposed $150 million Hidalgo County Courthouse, which will be built in Edinburg.

Photograph By DIEGO REYNA

Edinburg and Hidalgo County leaders are set to meet on Tuesday, March 8, 2016 to consider approving a financial agreement that could result in the construction of a $150 million Hidalgo County Courthouse in the city’s historic downtown, the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation has announced. In addition, the elected leaders and the public will receive an update on the architectural details for the proposed courthouse from ERO Architects of McAllen. If all goes as planned, work could begin on the new courthouse before the end of this year, with a completion date of October 2018, weather permitting. The existing courthouse would continue to function while the new facility is being built. The March 8 joint session, which is open to the public and will begin at 2 p.m., will take place in the Council Chamber of Edinburg City Hall, 415 West University Drive, which is two blocks west of the existing Hidalgo County Courthouse complex.

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Titans of the Texas Legislature