by Legislative Media | Nov 18, 2017 | Politics
Featured, from left: Mayor Pro Tem David Torres; Councilmember Place 1 Jorge “Coach” Salinas; Mayor Richard Molina; Councilmember Place 2 Gilbert Enríquez; and Councilmember Place 3 Homer Jasso, Jr., following swearing-in ceremonies for Salinas, Molina, and Enríquez on Wednesday, November 15, 2017 in the Council Chamber at Edinburg City Hall.
Photograph By MARK MONTEMAYOR
The new leadership of the five-member Board of Directors for the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation, which is the jobs-creation arm of the Mayor and Edinburg City Council, will hold its first public session in the Council Chamber at Edinburg City Hall beginning at 6 p.m. on Monday, November 20, 2017, the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation has announced. The meeting comes following action on Wednesday, November 15, 2017 by the Edinburg City Council, which includes the mayor and four councilmembers, where they unanimously approved the appointment of new individuals to serve on the Edinburg EDC Board of Directors. Those appointees are: Gilbert Enríquez, who is City Councilmember Place 2; Miguel “Mike” Farías, who is a current member of the Board of Trustees, Place 7, of the Edinburg Independent Consolidated Independent School District; Julio César Carranza, Developer and Mortgage Lender, Landmark Mortgage, LLC; Noé Sauceda, Owner, TeacherBuilder.com; and Isael Posadas, President, SDI Engineering, LLC. Agustín García is Executive Director for the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation. The following morning at the Edinburg Conference Center at Renaissance, the city will generate statewide positive publicity when Austin-based The Texas Tribune, which has the largest statehouse news bureau in the United States, will be holding a legislative round-up titled “A Conversation on Health Reform”. The Edinburg Conference Center at Renaissance is located at 118 Paseo Del Prado. From 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m on Tuesday, November 21, 2017, Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa, D-McAllen, Rep. Óscar Longoria, D-La Joya, Congressman Filemón Vela, D-Brownsville, and John Krouse, Dean of the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine, will be the panelists who will give their views on the state and future of medical care. Evan Smith, co-founder and CEO of The Texas Tribune, will moderate this event, which is free and open to the public.
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by Legislative Media | Oct 16, 2017 | Politics
Featured, from left: McAllen City Commissioner Omar Quintanilla; Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa, D-McAllen; McAllen Mayor Jim Darling; Dr. John Krouse, UTRGV Vice President for Medical Affairs and Dean of the School of Medicine; and UTRGV President Guy Bailey, on Wednesday, October 11, 2o17 at the Medical Education Building in Edinburg.
Photograph By PAUL CHOUY
The City of McAllen presented a $1 million check to The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine on Wednesday, October 11, 2017, at the Medical Education Building on the Edinburg Campus. The contribution is in support of the school’s mission to educate students and residents and provide increased access to healthcare. The payment is part of a memorandum of understanding UTRGV signed with McAllen and other Valley cities to support and ensure the success of the School of Medicine. “We are grateful for the City of McAllen’s support of the School of Medicine,” said UTRGV President Guy Bailey. “These funds will support UTRGV and the School of Medicine in its mission to engage in innovative research, clinical care and the training of the next generation of physicians for the Rio Grande Valley.” McAllen Mayor Jim Darling said the payment by the City of McAllen is its contribution to help improve the health and prosperity of the region. “In order to help the entire Rio Grande Valley grow and improve – as a community, in business, and most importantly, in our health – then a strong and vibrant UTRGV School of Medicine is tantamount to help make that possible,” he said. Dr. John H. Krouse, Dean of the School of Medicine and Vice President for Health Affairs, said McAllen’s support further solidifies the partnership between the UTRGV School of Medicine and the communities it serves. “It will allow our faculty, medical residents and students to continue providing healthcare to those who otherwise would not have access to care,” Krouse said, “and it will help fund the innovative research that addresses the healthcare needs of the Valley community.”
Featured, seated, from left: Rep. John Zerwas, M.D., R-Katy, the Chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations, and Rep. Óscar Longoria, D-La Joya, the Vice-Chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations, prepare to lay out the proposed $217+ billion, two-year state budget late last spring on the floor of the Texas House of Representatives. On Friday, October 13, 2017, Longoria was appointed by Zerwas to serve as Vice-Chairman of the newly formed Subcommittee on Disaster Impact and Recovery, which is part of the 27-member House Committee on Appropriations.
Photograph By HOUSE PHOTOGRAPHY
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by Legislative Media | Sep 24, 2017 | Politics
Featured, from left: Marissa Castañeda, Senior Executive Vice-President, Chief Operating Officer, Doctors Hospital at Renaissance; Rep. Sergio Muñoz, Jr., D-Mission; Rep. R.D. “Bobby” Guerra, D-McAllen; Rep. René Oliveira, D-Brownsville; Cary Zayas, News Anchor, KRGV-TV in Weslaco; Rep. Armando “Mando” Martínez, D-Weslaco; and Edna X. De Saro, Senior Vice President and Marketing Director at Lone Star National Bank. The group met at the KRGV-TV studios, one of the locations for donations, on Wednesday, September 20, 2017.
Photograph By JUSTIN CANTÚ
The Rio Grande Valley’s state House and Senate members have collectively donated $10,000 to help victims of Hurricane Harvey, the devastating superstorm that hit most of the Texas coastal region, including Houston, on Friday, August 25, 2017, stalling over that region of the state for days, causing billions of dollars of property damage, displacing tens of thousands of residents, and killing at least 81 people. The contribution is going towards the Valley Relief Fund, coordinated by KRGV, Lone Star National Bank, and other area businesses. All monetary donations to the Valley Relief Fund will go to the Salvation Army and American Red Cross. “The devastation of Hurricane Harvey and its aftermath are on a scale of historic proportions,” said Rep. R.D. “Bobby” Guerra, D-McAllen. “This is one way the Rio Grande Valley can help in the efforts to restore those communities affected. I’m honored to belong to a delegation that is willing to step up and help our fellow Texans.” Muñoz also shared his thoughts, and offered the following prayer from the Holy Bible for everyone hurt by Hurricane Harvey: “Do not fear for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous hand! – Isaiah 41.10.”
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by Legislative Media | Feb 13, 2017 | Politics
Featured: At the front podium on the floor of the Texas House of Representatives, Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg, on Tuesday, February 7, 2017, praises the virtues of the Rio Grande Valley and its beneficial economic and social impact on Texas and the United States. Flanking him, from left, are: Rep. Óscar Longoria, D-La Joya; Rep. R.D. “Bobby” Guerra, D-McAllen; Rep. Armando “Mando” Martínez, D-Weslaco; Rep. Ryan Guillén, D-Rio Grande City; Rep. René Oliveira, D-Brownsville; Rep. Eddie Lucio, III, D-Brownsville; and Rep. Sergio Muñoz, D-Mission.
Photograph By DAVID PIKE
Deep South Texas continues to grow as one of the state’s most important regions for trade, commerce, and culture, state lawmakers were reminded on Tuesday, February 7, 2017, during Rio Grande Valley (RGV) Day at the Texas Capitol, the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation has announced. Among the messages delivered to the state leadership was the Texas Legislature would be wise to continuing investing state resources and creating state laws and policies that will help the region’s extraordinary transformation in the past two generations from once being a major agricultural and ranching area, into building on its status as a growing national center of international trade, energy development, even future space flights. Those were among the highlights pointed out to the 181-member Texas Legislature and other statewide officials, including Gov. Greg Abbott and Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush, who met with a large delegation of Valley business, community, and political leaders during the one-day lobbying effort. Included among the 35 organizations and the more than 200 individuals who participated in the day-long event were the Edinburg Mayor, Edinburg City Council, the Board of Directors of the Edinburg EDC, the Edinburg Chamber of Commerce, and the Edinburg Consolidated Independent School District. The Edinburg EDC, of which Agustín García, Jr. is Executive Director, is the jobs-creation arm of the Edinburg Mayor and Edinburg City Council. The Edinburg EDC Board of Directors is comprised of Mayor Richard García as President, Harvey Rodríguez, Jr. as Vice President, Elías Longoria, Jr. as Secretary/Treasurer, and Richard Rupert and Dr. Peter Dabrowski as Members.
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by Legislative Media | Feb 3, 2017 | Politics
Featured: Mayor Richard García makes a point to the audience during his State of the City Address on Thursday, April 24, 2014 at the Edinburg Conference Center at Renaissance.
Photograph By MARK MONTEMAYOR
Mayor Richard García has joined 28 other border leaders in asking Congress to oppose President Trump’s “reckless policies regarding our U.S. Border and Mexico, our neighbor and trading partner,” according to a letter dated Tuesday, January 31, 2017. The Edinburg Mayor, along with Hidalgo County Judge Ramón García (no relation), Brownsville Mayor Antonio “Tony” Martínez, and Rio Grande City Mayor Joel Villarreal were among the elected and appointed officials who signed the correspondence. The group’s concerns revolve around the public statements and actions, through presidential executive orders, issued by Trump about the Border Wall, immigration policies, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), and “border tax” on imports to the U.S. from Mexico. “The President’s recent executive actions and rhetoric threaten not only lasting damage to our country’s relationship with Mexico but severe economic consequences to Border communities and the United States as a whole,” contend the Edinburg Mayor and the other leaders. “We have much to lose as a nation with the approach that the President is taking and we urge you to stand up for our communities and economy in the face of this divisive and dangerous antagonism toward the Border and Mexico.” Executive Orders (EOs) are legally binding orders given by the President, acting as the head of the Executive Branch, to Federal Administrative Agencies. Executive Orders are generally used to direct federal agencies and officials in their execution of congressionally established laws or policies, according to ThisNation.com. Trumps’ executive orders are available online at:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_executive_actions_by_Donald_Trump
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