It was June 2007 when Cameron County Sheriff Department deputies surprised everyone at the county courthouse when they arrived and arrested auditor Mark Yates on a charge that he had violated the competitive bidding process for a $1 million insurance contract by renewing it on his own.
Yates was required to get approval from the Commissioners Court before renewing the contract.
Later that September a gard jury indicted him on multiple charges ranging from failure to comply with the competitive bidding process to distributing confidential information.
That case bears eeriely similarities to what Brownsville Independent School District Chief Financial Officer Lucio Mendoza has done by renewing the district's $3.3 million property, windstorm, hail, boiler machinery insurance policies even though he had been instructed by the board to rebid and to bring them back a different recommendation.The similarities are striking in that both Yates and Mendoza justified renewing the contracts saying that the policies were about to lapse and that it was their "fiduciary responsibility" to protect the entities that employed them.According to press reports at the tiem, in Yates' case, the contract in question is a $1 million policy with United of Omaha Life Insurance.
Under government rules, only contracts $25,000 and under may be renewed without soliciting bids. Contracts greater than $25,000 must go through the competitive bidding process, then-District Attorney Armando Villalobos said.
‘The allegations are that (Yates) was told by Commissioners Court several times” to seek bids, but “he just renewed it on his own,” Villalobos said. Villalobos said the County’s Civil Legal Division requested the District Attorney’s Office review the contract renewal.
He stressed that Yates did not receive any kickbacks for renewing the contract.
The offense is a Class B misdemeanor punishable by up to 180 days in jail and a fine of up to $2,000. Yates would also be unable to work for any government agency for the next 10 years if found guilty of the offense, Villalobos said.
County Judge Carlos H. Cascos said he had heard something involving the county’s insurance premium contract was being reviewed, but didn’t know to what extent and the circumstances of Yates’ arrest.
“Nothing that happens in Cameron County shocks me anymore. I don’t know really what happened, how it happened and why it happened. We just have to let the justice system take its course.”
Cascos had taken over the county judge's position after having defeated Gilberto Hinojosa, on whose watch it happened.
The contract renewal came to light in after county commissioners questioned why the annual insurance premium contract was signed without being approved by Commissioners Court.
“We had to act accordingly to keep our policy in place,” Yates said in December. “If we failed to pay, then we are subject to cancellation.”
Under the pretext that an urgency existed because the insurance ran out on January 31, CFO Lucio on January 22, wrote BISD Superintendent Carl Montoya and said that "after considering the time constraints to go out for new proposals for property insurance, trying to schedule committee meetings and the expiration of the property insurance policy...it is my fiduciary duty to protect the district assets to the bet of my ability. I would respectfully recommend that we renew the property insurance through the Texas Cooperative Purchasing Network (TCPN, or Texas Buy Board)."
Mendoza then pointed out that the board had approved joining the Buy Board in August 2014 and said he would bring back the insurance for another go at bidding out to vendors next September or October. He then stated that by that time, the board would have decided whether to continue with a vendor of go to self insurance.
"Based on the direction at the point, we will proceed to get insurance coverage," Mendoza wrote Montoya.
On January 26, Montoya answered Mendoza's memo and authorized him to proceed.
The Purchase order for $3.3 million made out to McGriff and Seibels and Williams of Houston by Peña of purchasing and the company was told to provide the coverage for the coming year.
Some board members, who expected the administration to come back with alternatives to the proposals to the RFP, were aghast that the administration had taken it on their own to purchase the insurance without coming back to the board for direction or approval.
"Why didn't the administration ask the board to call for a special meeting and get their approval?," asked a former BISD board member. "The Texas Buy Board can't determine what is best for all school districts in the state. They're all different and have particular needs. One size doesn't fit all."
Some BISD staffers said the administration could have asked the board to approve extending the current insurance for a month instead of binding the district to a $3.3 million contract for an entire year. They all said that they had never heard of a CFO, a superintendent, or a purchasing agent approving a contract without board approval.
"An administrator cannot decide on his or her own to award a $3.3 million contract on their own," said one. "This is the purview of the board. Some heads will roll. This may even be illegal if it's determined that someone is profiting personally form the contract."
Will the Yates history repeat itself at the BISD with Mendoza?
‘The allegations are that (Yates) was told by Commissioners Court several times” to seek bids, but “he just renewed it on his own,” Villalobos said. Villalobos said the County’s Civil Legal Division requested the District Attorney’s Office review the contract renewal.
He stressed that Yates did not receive any kickbacks for renewing the contract.
The offense is a Class B misdemeanor punishable by up to 180 days in jail and a fine of up to $2,000. Yates would also be unable to work for any government agency for the next 10 years if found guilty of the offense, Villalobos said.
County Judge Carlos H. Cascos said he had heard something involving the county’s insurance premium contract was being reviewed, but didn’t know to what extent and the circumstances of Yates’ arrest.
“Nothing that happens in Cameron County shocks me anymore. I don’t know really what happened, how it happened and why it happened. We just have to let the justice system take its course.”
Cascos had taken over the county judge's position after having defeated Gilberto Hinojosa, on whose watch it happened.
The contract renewal came to light in after county commissioners questioned why the annual insurance premium contract was signed without being approved by Commissioners Court.
“We had to act accordingly to keep our policy in place,” Yates said in December. “If we failed to pay, then we are subject to cancellation.”
Under the pretext that an urgency existed because the insurance ran out on January 31, CFO Lucio on January 22, wrote BISD Superintendent Carl Montoya and said that "after considering the time constraints to go out for new proposals for property insurance, trying to schedule committee meetings and the expiration of the property insurance policy...it is my fiduciary duty to protect the district assets to the bet of my ability. I would respectfully recommend that we renew the property insurance through the Texas Cooperative Purchasing Network (TCPN, or Texas Buy Board)."Mendoza then pointed out that the board had approved joining the Buy Board in August 2014 and said he would bring back the insurance for another go at bidding out to vendors next September or October. He then stated that by that time, the board would have decided whether to continue with a vendor of go to self insurance.
"Based on the direction at the point, we will proceed to get insurance coverage," Mendoza wrote Montoya.
On January 26, Montoya answered Mendoza's memo and authorized him to proceed.
The Purchase order for $3.3 million made out to McGriff and Seibels and Williams of Houston by Peña of purchasing and the company was told to provide the coverage for the coming year.Some board members, who expected the administration to come back with alternatives to the proposals to the RFP, were aghast that the administration had taken it on their own to purchase the insurance without coming back to the board for direction or approval."Why didn't the administration ask the board to call for a special meeting and get their approval?," asked a former BISD board member. "The Texas Buy Board can't determine what is best for all school districts in the state. They're all different and have particular needs. One size doesn't fit all."
Some BISD staffers said the administration could have asked the board to approve extending the current insurance for a month instead of binding the district to a $3.3 million contract for an entire year. They all said that they had never heard of a CFO, a superintendent, or a purchasing agent approving a contract without board approval.
"An administrator cannot decide on his or her own to award a $3.3 million contract on their own," said one. "This is the purview of the board. Some heads will roll. This may even be illegal if it's determined that someone is profiting personally form the contract."
Will the Yates history repeat itself at the BISD with Mendoza?
10 comments:
He should be charged and arrested !! What a crok of shit !!!!
Yates did not try to fleece the taxpayers. He stopped then county judge, Gilberto Hinojosa, from lining his pockets with insurance contract kickbacks. That is why Mark Yates was thrown to the dogs. This county hasn't had an honest district attorney in the last 40 years at least. We won't hold our breath waiting for piece of shit Saenz to do anything about this crime either.
I don't think Saenz will do anything. It's a shame.
It's the money for the Sup . and Mendoza.
Isn't there a history of the school district using the same vendor for many years? Why did they wait so long to go out for bids during the holidays?
Juan, at the end of the day, this is business as usual. TEA will not look into this. TEA don't want scandals in the RGV. Maybe someone will be moved, hmm the CFO, to another cushy position. Rumor is that Monty is already on his way out and BP is already packing up to move to the 3rd floor with her secretary. Looking sour for SA and the almighty Thhooolmannn(s).
First, there has to be a criminal complaint presented to the district attorney. The BISD is not a county agency, it is an outside agency. There has to be a complaint from the board or a member of the board in order for Saenz to proceed.
Montoya has been sent to the Hopi Resernation in N. Mexico. According to the Naco Intelligence Service he will be named as the head Shaman. He can do miracles flipping contracts.
The D.A. Is too busy ridding his Moustache of contaminated bugs.
Scorpions ?
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