WILL MARTINEZ AND BROWNTOWN EVER LEARN?

By Juan Montoya
Every so often the public officials representing the City of Brownsville do something that gets those in the know in Austin chuckling and guffawing.
Our sources in Austin say that the boys in the smoke-filled rooms there are yukking it up when the fair City of Brownsville hired lobbyist Rene Ramirez, a heavy hitter in the state capitol, to plead for their causes among his contemporaries there.
Ramirez, a former administrative assistant to Sen. Juan "Chuy" Hinojosa and former interim Hidalgo County Judge, was hired by Brownsville for the sole purpose of  "killing" the five Extra Territorial Jurisdiction bills being carried by  Senator Eddie Lucio Jr. in support of the small cities in Cameron County.
These bills were referred to the committee that Hinojosa chairs.
Rene is the former Chief of Staff for Sen. Hinojosa. He's getting paid $60,000 by Brownsville for two months work! The rrun-rrun in Austin is that Hinojosa will not even schedule these bills to be heard before his committee. The rumor is that these bills are already dead.
So why pay $60,000 for something that is already a bygone conclusion? It is an open secret that Hinojosa despises Lucio and that any bill that Eddie sponsors before this committee will be DOA.
There's more.
Brownsville is squandering money on a lobbyist who has been hired by the County of Hidalgo as their lobbyist to make sure the new UT System medical school is built in Hidalgo County.
Hinojosa is the vice chair of the finance committee that ultimately will decide on the funding of this medical school. We are told that Hinojosa already has the votes to have it built in Hidalgo county, and that Rep. Rene "SpacyX" Oliveira and Lucio are furious with him because he has these votes.

Would the city officials who persisted with hiring Ramirez on this quixotic quest against the ETJ be surprised if every single resident in Cameron County would be upset at Brownsville for hiring a lobbyist that is lobbying to get the medical school built in Hidalgo County?

Among the 23 clients in Ramirez's fold listed with the Texas Ethics Commission are included:

Anzalduas International Bridge (TX) Pay: $50,000 – $100,000 (Prospective)

Brownsville Public Utilities Board (TX) Pay: $25,000 – $50,000 (Prospective)

City of Edinburg (TX) Pay: $50,000 – $100,000 (Prospective)

City of Houston (TX) Pay: $25,000 – $50,000 (Prospective)

Cottonwood Financial Administrative Services, LLC (TX) Pay: $50,000 – $100,000 (Prospective)

Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUS)(DC) Pay: $50,000 – $100,000 (Prospective)

Doctors Hospital at Renaissance (TX)Pay: $50,000 – $100,000 (Prospective)

Edinburg Economic Development Corporation (TX) Pay: $50,000 – $100,000 (Prospective)

Flint Hills Resources Corpus Christi, LLC (KS) Pay: $0 – $10,000 (Prospective)

Flint Hills Resources, LP (KS) Pay: $0 – $10,000 (Prospective)

Hidalgo County Emergency Services District #3 (TX) Pay: $10,000 – $25,000 (Prospective)

Hidalgo County Regional Mobility Authority (TX) Pay: $25,000 – $50,000 (Prospective)

Koch Pipeline Company, L.P. (KS) Pay: $0 – $10,000 (Prospective)

LRP, Ltd. (TX) Pay: $10,000 – $25,000 (Prospective)

McAllen Economic Development Corp. (TX) Pay: $10,000 – $25,000 (Prospective)

North Texas Toll Authority (TX) Pay: $10,000 – $25,000 (Prospective)

Port of Corpus Christi (TX) Pay: $50,000 – $100,000 (Prospective)

RAI Services Company (NC) Pay: $25,000 – $50,000 (Prospective)

S&B Infrastructure, Ltd. (TX) Pay: $50,000 – $100,000 (Prospective)

Susser Holdings Corporation (TX) Pay: $0 – $10,000 (Prospective)

Texans for Economic Development (TX) Pay: $10,000 – $25,000 (Prospective)

Texas Beverage Association (TX) Pay: $10,000 – $25,000 (Prospective)

The 281 Coalition (TX) Pay: $50,000 – $100,000 (Prospective)

So, we have the former administrative assistant to Hinojosa whose client list includes the medical and economic development entities in HIdalgo County and is paid to look out for Hidalgo County interests getting paid $60,000 by the City of Brownsville to fight the ETJ bills at the same time he is looking out for the interests of the medical industry in Hidalgo.
Psst. Make like you don;t see. Here comes the fellas from Brownsville telling Rene: "Here's a bushel full of money for you Mr. Ramirez, compliments of the City of Brownsville."