AS COUNTY EYES BUDGET CUTS, A $2,000 RAISE FOR RIVERA AND DE LA GARZA COMPLIMENTS OF WOULD-BE COUNTY JUDGE DAN SANCHEZ

By Juan Montoya

In a little noticed (and unreported) action, a majority of the Cameron County commissioners approved raises of $2,000 each for County clerk Joe Rivera and District Clerk Aurora De la Garza effective budget year 2012-2013.

The action came during an item to publish the salaries of elected officials. The motion was made by Dan Sanchez, commissioner for Pct. 4, and was included in the minutes of the Aug. 2 meeting. Voting along with Sanchez was Pct. 2 commissioner Ernie Hernandez and Pct. 1 commissioner Sofia Benavides.

But at least for two commissioners, their official actions and their public statements are somewhat at odds.

Hernandez, in comments to the local media, said of the budget: "We are going to squeeze that turnip a little bit more."

And Sanchez, also commenting on the upcoming trimming of the budget said: "We have a duty to taxpayers to run an efficient government."

Although the budget process is still underway and the County Judge Carlos Cascos has stated that he will try to get a pay raise for county workers making under $50,000, the $2,000 raise for the two elected officials makes for a nice chunk of change for both. 

In fact, with the increase, then total compensation for both in the coming year effective Oct. 1 will be upped from a base salary of $71,745 plus $5,400 for auto allowance plus the additional $2,000, totalling $79,143.

The justification for the salaries, according to Sanchez, was that both Rivera and De la Garza have been with the county longer than has Cameron County Tax Assessor-Collector Tony Yzaguirre who, according to figures from the auditor's office commands $93,210 in total compensation.

Yzaguirre, who had the court honor his request to have his car allowance of some $7,200 transferred to his salary during the court's efforts to trim the budget by 5 percent in the 2010-2011 budget year, has been making more than either since.
"Well, he did cut the his department's auto allowance line item to zero, but he gave himself a $7,200 raise by having it transferred to his salary," said a county worker.
And even though the 2011-2012 approved budget has him listed at .a $77,530 salary, his salary at the county auditor's office has him listed at $84,730 with an additional $960 per month telephone allowance. If these numbers are correct, he is receiving about $93,210 in total compensation.  

By comparison, Cascos makes a base salary of $64,062 which is augmented by a $5,400 stipend for serving on the County Juvenile Board.

"When Yzaguirre requested that the court transfer the car allowance to his salary in 2010-2011, the commissioners were all were under the impression that he was going to retire and was requesting that to increase his retirement benefits at the highest salary," recounted a county employee. "But he didn't retire and he ran again and won. The other two thought they should paid the same."

The raises of Rivera and De la Garza, coming as it does on yet another cost-cutting year for Cameron County, is bound to raise some eyebrows. Although the county will publish the elected official salaries in the coming weeks, the action taken by the commissioners won't take effect until after the budget is approved.

"I don't think people know this has happened and probably won't be pleased that it was doe just to match their salaries with those of the tax assessor-collectors," said the same county employee. "We're supposed to be cutting the budget, not giving elected officials more raises."
When it comes to Cameron County, however, there always seems to be some political angle involved in the actions of the court. For a long time Sanchez has let it be known that he harbors dreams of filling the seat now held by Cascos as county judge and this move to appease two of the most powerful Democrats in county government isn't lost on some observers.
"Dan is running already," said a county administrator. "This is just one way of making sure that these two are on his side, or at least not against him."