June 2015 - Middle Rio Grande Development Council

June 2015
From the Desk of the
Executive Director
Pictured are TARC Executive Director Judge Penny Redington and Middle Rio Grande Development Council Board President Real County Judge Garry Merritt, not pictured is MRGDC Executive Director Nick Gallegos
The Texas Association held its TARC Board of Directors and Executive Director’s Council Meeting on June 18th at the Hilton Austin Airport hotel in Austin, Texas. This annual
event included the TARC Executive Director’s Meeting, a Legislative Meeting, and the
Board of Directors’ Council Dinner. The association continued their meetings next day
with the Budget and Bylaws Committee meeting, and the TARC Board of Directors’
Meeting.
The Texas Association of Regional Councils (TARC) was organized in 1973 by interglacial agreement among Texas' 24 regional councils of governments. The statewide association assists the regional councils in strengthening their capabilities to serve their local
government members; provides a forum for the regular exchange of information and ideas; educates other governmental entities, public and private organizations, and the general
public about the services and functions of regional councils; and represents the councils
before both state and federal agencies and legislative bodies. Each of the regional councils
pays membership dues to participate.
Regional councils, or councils of governments (COGs) are voluntary associations of
local governments formed under Texas law. These associations deal with the problems
and planning needs that cross the boundaries of individual local governments or that require regional attention.
Regional services offered by councils of governments are varied. Services are undertaken
in cooperation with member governments, the private sector, and state and federal partners, and include but are not limited to the following:
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planning and implementing regional homeland security strategies;
operating law enforcement training academies;
promoting regional municipal solid waste and environmental quality planning;
providing cooperative purchasing options for governments;
managing region-wide services to the elderly;
maintaining and improving regional 9-1-1 systems;
promoting regional economic development;
operating specialized transit systems; and providing management services for member
governments.
In addition, Texas’ regional councils of governments are responsible for regional planning
activities that may differ from region to region, but typically include planning for economic growth, water supply and water quality, air quality, transportation, emergency preparedness, and the coordinated delivery of various social services. Many councils of governments establish and host region-wide geographical information systems (GIS) as well as
databases on regional population, economic, and land-use patterns.
After years of drought our region has been
blessed with some much welcomed rain. Our
creeks and rivers are flowing again and tourism in the Hill Country is predicted to be one
of the best in years. But as the Hurricane Season approaches, tropical storms in the Gulf of
Mexico might bring some unwanted floods in
some parts of our region and possible evacuations from the valley counties into our region
is possible. Our 2-1-1 Information and Referral Services Program and Regional First Responders will be on standby and in communications with the State Operations Center to
assist in case of any evacuation.
Governor Abbott has declared 110 Texas
Counties including four in the Middle Rio
Grande that include Edwards, Real, Uvalde
and Zavala as Disaster Counties as the results
of May’s severe weather, that included tornados and flooding. We have been in contact
with our counties declared disasters to assist in applying for any funds available through
the state or federal government.
As previously reported, in the past six month period our organization has been going
through some transitioning of duties, with staff being reassigned to best fit the program
objectives and meeting the performance measures of our programs to be eligible to apply
for future funding. Our projected operating budget is being addressed after receiving notices of reduction of grant funds to our programs due to state and federal funding cuts
reaching nearly $400,000.00 for this year. Our fiscal department and Division Directors
are making the necessary budget adjustments to offset the funding shortfall. Our strategic
plan is to seek other funding sources and to step up the level of engagement in seeking
funding using an innovative approach to the assessment and cost of needed projects.
Our Regional Interoperable Communications System used by emergency response agencies, has been the focus of discussion for some time now in the continuation of regional
services, of which funds are depleting. Forrest Anderson, Director for 9-1-1 and I, have
been busy holding meetings and discussing possible funding streams and were successful
thanks to Joe Alcala in arranging meetings with Steven Schar, Policy Advisor for the Governor’s Office and Congressman Will Hurd last week in obtaining their support and assistance with securing funds for the continuation of our regional communication system and
administration. We stressed that the MRGDC system is the only Level 5 regionally
rated system in the State of Texas for interoperable communications capability and that
this level provides for communications across federal, state, and local agencies and responders on one system. We are now in the process of scheduling a regional meeting with
all the stakeholders that utilize the system to explain what will happen when the system
shuts down in six months if funding is not secured.
Meetings with the USDA, EDA and the UTSA Institute for Economic Development staff
have taken place as our Planning and Operations Department under the direction of Mr.
John Ruiz, Jr. take on a more aggressive and innovative approach in seeking the needed
funding for regional projects.
We thank the board for their continued support and look forward to reporting positive
results of our efforts at the next board meeting.
- Nick Gallegos, Executive Director
(L-R) McMullen County Judge James Teal, Dimmit County Judge Frank Ponce, Dewitt County
Judge Daryl Fowler, not pictured is Live Oak County Judge Jim Huff who served as the Moderator for the Panel.
During the 4th Annual Eagle Ford Shale Consortium Conference that took place on May
27-29th at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in San Antonio, was Dimmit County Judge Frank Ponce,
who served as one of the panelists consisting of four County Judges that addressed the
perspective county issues encountered as a result of the Eagle Ford Shale oil and gas exploration. The title of the discussion was “Reflecting on the Past and Planning for the
Future”. Other County Judges on the panel were Dewitt County Judge Daryl Fowler,
McMullen County Judge James Teal and Live Oak County Judge Jim Huff.
MRGDC Board Officers
President
Honorable Garry A. Merritt
Real County Judge
1st Vice-President
Honorable Ramsey English Cantu
City of Eagle Pass Mayor
2nd Vice-President
Honorable Francisco Ponce
Dimmit County Judge
3rd Vice-President
Henry Garcia
Kinney County Member-at-Large
Secretary Treasurer
Honorable William Mitchell
Uvalde County Judge
MRGDC
Executive Director
Nick Gallegos
Workforce Solutions Middle Rio Grande Board Elects
New Officers For 2015-16
Pilot Travel Centers Opens in Carrizo Springs
Workforce Solutions Middle Rio Grande Executive Director Ricky McNiel and WFS
Middle Rio Grande Deputy Director Tolie Quesada along with the 2015-16
Workforce Solutions Middle Rio Grande Board Officers.
Workforce Solutions Middle Rio Grande Board elected new officers for
2015-2016 at their annual meeting held on June 11, 2015 in Uvalde, Texas. The WFS Middle Rio Grande Board Officers are as follows: Maria
Martinez, Chair; Juan Martinez, Vice-Chair; Skip Baker, Treasurer; Arturo Mancha, Secretary and Raul Perez, Parliamentarian.
Pilot Travel Centers (PTC) is the nation's largest operator of travel centers. PTC
currently operates and licenses over 300 locations in more than 40 states, offering
outstanding value and service at attractive and convenient locations. Pilot Travel
Center partnered with Workforce Solutions Middle Rio Grande to hire 120 employees based upon referrals made through www.workintexas.com website. A
total of 90 employees were hired from direct referrals. Pilot Travel Center advertised in local newspapers advising potential applicants to pick up applications at
the Workforce Solutions Center in Carrizo Springs. The newspaper ad also highlighted several hiring events that were all scheduled at the Workforce Solutions
Center in Carrizo Springs. Pilot Travel Center’s management staff utilized our
Workforce Solutions Center to provide information, conduct on site interviews
and orient/train their new hires. Pilot Travel Center’s management staff were
housed at the Workforce Solutions Center for several weeks working alongside
the Workforce Solutions Center Staff in an effort to screen, interview and hire the
personnel needed for their new operation in Carrizo Springs.
AAA Advocates for the Elderly with Fundraiser
Elda Garcia, AAA Director
Vicki Mize, Chairman of the AIRS Accreditation Commission
and Lydia Saenz, MRGDC 2-1-1 Database Supervisor
2-1-1 Receives the AIRS Accreditation Award
The Middle Rio Grande 2-1-1 Area Information Center was recognized and received the Alliance of Information and Referral Services (AIRS) Accreditation
Award, at the 37th Annual Education and Training Conference held on May 2730, 2015, at the Sheraton Dallas Hotel in Dallas, Texas. Out of the twenty-two
I&R Programs that received an award four of the agencies were from Texas.
The AIRS Accreditation is the primary quality assurance mechanism for affirming Information and Referral (I&R) excellence. The Accreditation Award is a
multi-phase process that assesses more than 200 distinct components of an I&R
services operation and culminates in a detailed onsite visit. It is endorsed by
national, state and provincial entities as a benchmark for all I&R providers.
Whether an I&R Program is national or local, comprehensive or specialized in
nature, or offered in a nonprofit or government setting, AIRS Accreditation is
the best way to demonstrate the overall quality and effectiveness of a 2-1-1 Area
Information Center. The award is good for a period of five years. Congratulations to the MRGDC 2-1-1 Staff on their accomplishment.
In keeping with its mission of providing a comprehensive array of aging and disability
services, supports and opportunities in our local communities, the Area Agency on Aging
(AAA) of Middle Rio Grande Development Council is in the final stages of planning a
benefit event to assist the appointed member of the Texas Silver-Haired Legislature
(TSHL) with travel costs associated with traveling to trainings and conferences.
The TSHL was created by the Texas Legislature in 1985 to better the lives of
Senior Citizens in the State of Texas. “The vision of the Texas Silver-Haired Legislature
is that the applied wisdom, energy, and experience of aging will improve the lives of all
Texans through education, knowledge, and involvement in legislation and governmental
affairs.” (www.tshl.org)
The Middle Rio Grande region consists of nine counties: Dimmit, Maverick, Val
Verde, Uvalde, Edwards, Real, Kinney, La Salle, and Zavala. AAA’s overall goal is to
assist the elderly in the region to stay healthy, independent, and active in their communities. The appointed member of the TSHL’s duty is to represent our nine county region by
speaking on behalf of the elderly. Without a member present for our region, there would
be no one to make recommendations or take action on critical issues involving the elderly.
Middle Rio Grande-AAA will be planning other benefit events throughout the
year to continue assisting our appointed member of the TSHL. Any contributions and/or
support is greatly appreciated. For more information on the TSHL, log on to
www.tshl.org.
In addition to the benefit event for the TSHL, the AAA Staff will be attending
several trainings and conferences within the next few months to become familiar with new
Medicare changes and information related to the services the agency provides. The Area
Agency on Aging staff is dedicated to assisting the elderly in our service area as well as to
their families.
MRGDC Board Officers
President
Honorable Garry A. Merritt
Real County Judge
1st Vice-President
Honorable Ramsey English Cantu
City of Eagle Pass Mayor
2nd Vice-President
Honorable Francisco Ponce
Dimmit County Judge
3rd Vice-President
Henry Garcia
Kinney County Member-at-Large
Secretary Treasurer
Honorable William Mitchell
Uvalde County Judge
MRGDC
Executive Director
Nick Gallegos
By: Joe Alcala
Environmental Law Training Course
Held in Eagle Pass
By: Roxanne Camarillo
Middle Rio Grande Development Council’s 1st Vice President and City of Eagle Pass Mayor
Ramsey English Cantu served as a panelist on the Mayors panel during the 4 th Annual Eagle
Ford Shale Conference held on May 27-29.
The 4th Annual Eagle Ford Consortium Conference held on May 27-29th at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in San Antonio, was another successful event despite having to downsize the
conference due to budget cutbacks in many of the South Texas oil and gas operators and
affiliated businesses affected by the drop of price in the barrel of oil.
“We consider this to be a great opportunity to do what we call a sober analysis,” said Leodoro Martinez, Chairman of the Eagle Ford Shale Consortium, whose remarks opened
the group’s 4th annual conference at the Grand Hyatt in San Antonio. Crude oil prices
were above $100 per barrel last summer but have since fallen below $60. The consortium
felt the impact as attendance at the conference was down this year to somewhere between
300 and 400 people.
South Texas communities are getting ready to take a budget hit as the value of their mineral wealth dips with the price of oil. Local governments tax property, including minerals, to
run everything from police departments to road crews. But the value of that mineral
wealth — and the tax base for communities — is at risk of dwindling, too.
The conference held a “Pre-Conference” session entitled “Connecting CompaniesBusiness Opportunities between Mexico and the Texas Eagle Ford Shale”
This session provided attendees with an opportunity to listen to a diverse group of speakers representing Mexico and the United States that shared their knowledge and expertise
on the Business opportunities in Exploration and Production Activities , Land use in Mexico, Infrastructure and Logistics, Workforce Development and Academic Collaboration as
well as a session entitled “Financing Your Energy Project with Mexico”.
The three day event was extremely informative and provided attendees with an opportunity to meet one-on-one with well known speakers, and special guests. The audience received a special welcome by Governor Greg Abbott who made a special video welcome
presentation during the opening of the event and stressed the importance of Texas as a
major world player in providing the energy needs of the world.
Among other special guests were Congressman Will Hurd of the 23 rd District of Texas,
who spoke to attendees about the success of the Eagle Ford Shale was a matter of national
Security. “American energy security isn’t just about securing resources, this is an issue of
national security”, Hurd said. Congressman Hurd served nearly a decade at the Central
Intelligence Agency. His background in intelligence and national security, border security
and immigration, reflects his security experience in his first career working undercover in
hotspots such as Pakistan and Afghanistan.
On the last day of the conference, a surprise visit was made by United States Representative Joaquin Castro and was welcomed by attendees who listened to his insights and perspective on the Eagle Ford Shale and Texas as a major oil and gas producer. U.S. Rep.
Joaquin Castro has pushed for Congress to lift the decades long ban on exporting crude oil
— an idea that has broad support among politicians in oil-rich Texas. Crude oil exports
have been banned since 1975, and though there’s an increasing call for the ban to be lifted,
that’s not likely a fast or easy road. “That is a conversation and a big discussion that is
going to take awhile to resolve,” said Castro, “You can expect it is not going to change
overnight.”
This year’s conference had some of the most recognized names as Keynote speakers that
included: Andres Alcantar, Chairman of the Texas Workforce Commission, James A.
Bowen, CEO of First Trust Portfolios, Christi Craddick, Chairman of the Texas Railroad
Commission, Christopher Guith, Senior VP , Institute for 21 st Century Energy-U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Roland Mover, CEO Port of San Antonio, and Gerald Schwebel, Executive Vice President Corporate International Division, IBC Bank of Laredo.
The Eagle Ford Consortium mission has always remained the same, to provide a mechanism for community leaders, local and state elected officials, state and local agencies and
the energy industry to collaborate and create partnerships to best serve the needs and well
being of the counties and surrounding communities within the Eagle Ford Shale. Our vision is to create a long term sustainable economic environment long after the oil boom is
over, said Chairman Leodoro Martinez. Our consortium membership is open to all who
want to make a difference in their communities.
We would like to thank the Middle Rio Grande Development Foundation for their support
in this years’ annual conference.
An Enhanced Basic Environmental Law Training Course was held on May 20th and 21st
at the International Center for Trade in Eagle Pass, TX. In partnership with Capital Area
Regional Environmental Task Force the event was a great success! Those in attendance
were Police Chiefs, Code Enforcement and Code Compliance Officer’s, Justice of the
Peace, along with their administrative staff, Public Works staff and Parks and Recreations
Director and staff. The course enlightened the basic and intermediate aspects of investigating environmental crimes.
The training consisted of two days covering an array of topics such as Civil vs Criminal
Environmental Crimes, Illegal Dumping, Investigation of Public Nuisances (Class C to
Class B), Presentations of Environmental Crime Case Scenarios, and also covered a base
topic on the stress that Law Enforcement officers endure throughout their career.
We extended our appreciation to the Instructors and welcomed their return for next program year. All individuals in attendance received a certificate at the end of the training for
completing the course of study of Intermediate Environmental Law.
Patricia D. Shorter, Regional Representative, Austin Regional EDA Office, speaks to a capacity crowd at the
2nd Annual EFSCDP Best Practices Conference at the UTSA Campus in San Antonio
By: Joe Alcala
The University of Texas of San Antonio held their EFSCDP 2 nd Annual “Best Practices”
Conference at the downtown UTSA Campus on June 10th. A capacity group of over 70
attendees representing the 21 counties that comprise the Eagle Ford Shale Community
Development Program, were on hand to listen to presentations from panelists and special
guests that included Patricia D. Shorter, Regional Representative with EDA in Austin,
that provide a PowerPoint presentation on the eligibility process for applying for grants
through EDA. Attendees had the opportunity to meet with her after the presentation to
discuss some of the projects they were working on in their communities and the possibilities for funding.
This annual “Best Practices” one-day conference was designed to facilitate the collaboration and creation of partnerships within the shale region and share common best practices
from one county group to another county group. These groups are citizen coalitions that
are created after the communities engage in a three-month training session covering topics
such as trust, future vision and strategic development. The workshops last about 4 hours
and take place every two weeks in the Eagle Ford communities. The citizen coalitions are
often recognized by their county judge and given a day of the year, in recognition of their
efforts. Creativity counts when seeking funds or in-kind match for their community projects.
Bob Velasquez, Executive Director of the EFSCDP leads the program that consists of
Bruce Hughes, Mario Neira, Jerry Gonzales and Joe Alcala. The UTSA Eagle Ford Community Development Program is in its third year of operations and receives its funding
from the United States Department of Commerce through the Economic Development
Administration. Visit the EFSCDP website at www.efscdp.org for more program information.
PUBLICATION INFORMATION
All contents of this publication are the property of MRGDC. Reproduction is allowed for purposes of dissemination of information only. All other reproduction is prohibited without express permission of the MRGDC Editorial Board. For further
information about the Regional Update, please contact Ronnie S. Rivera, at (830) 876-3533 or via e-mail at ronnie.rivera@mrgdc.org.
EXECUTIVE EDITORIAL BOARD:
NEWSLETTER STAFF:
Nick Gallegos, Executive Director
Ronnie S. Rivera, Director of WF Solutions Systems
Joe Cruz, Controller
Joe Alcala, EFS Planner
John Ruiz, Jr., Director of Planning and Operations
Middle Rio Grande Development Council is an equal opportunity employer/service provider and auxiliary aids and services may be made available upon request to individuals with disabilities. For information please contact our VOICE
telephone number 830-876-3533 or our TDD telephone number 830-876-1260.
MRGDC Board Officers
President
Honorable Garry A. Merritt
Real County Judge
1st Vice-President
Honorable Ramsey English Cantu
City of Eagle Pass Mayor
2nd Vice-President
Honorable Francisco Ponce
Dimmit County Judge
3rd Vice-President
Henry Garcia
Kinney County Member-at-Large
Secretary Treasurer
Honorable William Mitchell
Uvalde County Judge
MRGDC
Executive Director
Nick Gallegos