Eagle Pass-Maverick County Delegation Meets with State Legislators & Agencies
By: Ricardo E. Calderon, Eagle Pass Business Journal, Inc., Copyright 2023
A delegation of over 50 persons representing Eagle Pass and Maverick County governmental entities, non-profit organizations, businesses, and public officials visited with state legislators and agencies in Austin, Texas during Tuesday and Wednesday, February 6-7, 2023, to discuss Eagle Pass and Maverick County’s legislative priorities and needs for the next biennium 2023-2025 and future years.
The Eagle Pass-Maverick County legislative delegation was led by Maverick County Judge Ramsey English Cantu and Eagle Pass Mayor Rolando Salinas, Jr.
The Eagle Pass-Maverick County delegation held personal meetings with Texas State Senator Roland Gutierrez, State Representative Heriberto Morales, Jr., Texas Department of Transportation Executive Director Mark Williams, Texas State University System Vice-Chancellor Sean Cunningham, Texas Water Development Board Chairwoman Brooke Paup, Texas Education Agency Deputy Commissioner Mike Meyer, and Texas Economic Development Administration Representative Robert Peche, Texas Association of Community Health Centers Deputy Director of State Affairs Daniela De Luna-Olivares, and individual meetings with various state senators and representatives.
The 88th Texas Legislative Session, a biennial meeting of the Texas legislature, is from January 10 to May 29, 2023 at the State Capitol in Austin, Texas.
This year the 88th Texas Legislative Session is important because the state general revenues fund has a surplus of $33 Billion that the legislature will decide how to spend these funds in various public programs and legislative priorities during the next two years.
The Eagle Pass-Maverick County legislative delegation members pitched the top priorities and needs for our border community. Among the priorities presented are the completion of construction of Loop 480 by the Texas Department of Transportation and the expansion of U. S. Highway 57 into four lanes from Eagle Pass to U. S. Interstate Highway 35 at Moore, Texas, a length of 98 miles, the construction of a four year state university affiliated with Sul Ross State University-Rio Grande College and the Texas State University System, expansion of water and sewer infrastructure, increased funding for public education, increased funding for public healthcare organizations and providers, increased funding for international trade infrastructure, development of a third international bridge and infrastructure, improvement and upgrade of the Maverick County Memorial International Airport, increased funding for border security and law enforcement agencies, and other matters.
The objective of the legislative delegation is to obtain larger public funding from Texas state government and legislators for the Texas-Mexico border communities, particularly Eagle Pass and Maverick County.
The Eagle Pass-Maverick County legislative delegation also attended a breakfast hosted by the city and county’s lobbyist Marc Rodriguez, a luncheon sponsored by PFM, a social and business mixer sponsored by IBC Bank, and a dinner sponsored by the tax collection law firm of Linebarger, Goggan, Blair, and Sampson.
