Edinburg school board agrees to pay unspecified
fee to Hidalgo County to conduct trustees' election
By DAVID A. DIAZ
Special to
THE EDINBURG STAR NEWS
Legislativemedia@aol.com
Soon after an independent auditor recommended ways for the Edinburg school district to improve how it handles the public's money, the local school board, on a 4-3 vote, recently agreed to pay Hidalgo County an unspecified fee to conduct the school board election in November.
The Edinburg school board approved the contract at its Tuesday, February 26 public meeting.
The issue of fiscal accountability also comes in advance of another upcoming election – the $112 million school construction bond issue facing Edinburg school district voters on May 10.
The agreement for the November school board election would be between the Edinburg school district and the Hidalgo County Elections Administrator.
The tentative contract for the November school board election must still be approved by the Hidalgo County Commissioners Court.
Although the duties required of the county are clear-cut in the proposed agreement, the financial obligations of the school district are vague or confusing, essentially leaving the school district at the mercy of the county government if a dispute arises over the school district's monetary obligations.
In ratifying their end of the deal, the majority of the school board approved the measure without even receiving a written estimate from the county or top school district administrators of the probable cost to the school district.
Although the agenda packet for the school board members stated there was indeed a written cost estimate available for public review, no such document was provided, either to the board members or on the school district's website that is available to the public.
(The agenda packets submitted to the school board for all of their meetings are available online at:
www.ecisd.us/users/ecisd/index.htm – then click "Boardbook".)
Voting for the contract were board president Carmen González and board secretary Ciro Treviño, whose seats are up for election in November.
Both veteran political leaders are expected to run for reelection.
Trustees David Torres and Omar Palacios also voted for the contract with the county.
Trustees Jaime Chavana, Greg García, Jr., and Robert Peña, Jr., voted against the contract.
The key financial promises made by the school district, without knowing the costs, involve several monetary commitments to the county.
The language in the agreement, where taken directly from the proposed contract, is in quotation marks.
• "Costs of services will be prorated for ballots based on the district's precincts voting."
• "The school district will reimburse 50 percent of the ballot printing costs."
• "Costs of labor and elections supplies will be split 50/50 with the county or other calculated rate if additional jurisdictions participate in the district area of the county."
• "The district will pay $50 of programming fees."
• "The school district will pay the county an administrative fee of the entire cost of the election as described in the key financial promises."
Eight other area school districts also will be contracting with the county to hold their school board elections in November.
The agreement between the Edinburg school district and with the county follows a recent audit, released during a February 12 school board meeting.
CPA and Cameron County Judge Carlos Cascos, who helped spearhead the audit, which is required by state law, called for better documentation of the school district's accounting practices.
Cascos is a member of Pattillo, Brown & Hill, L.L.P., a certified public accounting firm based in Brownsville, which prepared the audit and suggestions.
Cascos' recommendations are designed to help keep and improve public confidence in the day-to-day financial operations of the school district.
In all, 18 recommendations to improved accounting practices and accountability by the school district were made in the 72-page Annual Financial Report received by the school board during that public session.
The Annual Financial Report covered the 12-month period that ended on August 31, 2007.
High-voter turnout anticipated
The school board election will be be on the same ballot that will feature the race for U.S. president and U.S. Senate, as well as several high-profile statewide elections, including the historic bid by Edinburg resident and 13th Court Appeals Court Justice Linda Reyna Yañez for Texas Supreme Court, Place 8, against Republican incumbent Texas Supreme Court Justice Phil Johnson.
In addition, thousands of school district voters will be showing up to cast their ballots in the race between Rep. Verónica Gonzáles, D-McAllen, and Javier Villalobos, her Republican opponent.
Another hometown product – 449th District Court Judge Dan Ríos will be on the ballot against Democratic nominee Jesse Contreras of Mercedes.
Given the record turnout of voters in Edinburg and Hidalgo County on March 4 that was directly attributed to the Democratic Party presidential primary, the November presidential election could also set a voter turnout record – along with increased costs for conducting that general election.
Underlying political drama
Having the county perform all duties relating the holding school board elections is designed to "provide a convenient, simple, and cost-saving election" to Edinburg school district constituents, Gilberto Garza, Jr., the school district superintendent, explained in his memorandum to board members on their agenda packet.
But government is never that simple, especially with the political drama that almost always surrounds it.
The contract, which is allowed by Section 271.002(a) of the Texas Election Code, is the latest development in the ongoing political battle within a divided Edinburg school board regarding whether the local politicians should have increased the length of their terms to four years from three years, and switched to date of the board elections to November from May.
Those two significant changes to the terms of office and month of the election were approved, also on a 4-3 vote, on Tuesday, December 11.
Trustees Chavana, García and Peña cast the opposing votes to the changes affecting the board members' terms and election dates.
Increasing the terms of office and changing the month of the election were required by a state law passed last spring, according to Jacques Treviño, the school district's attorney, who is not related to Ciro Treviño.
The four trustees who voted for those two major election-related changes – González, Treviño, Torres and Palacios – have taken the position that whether or not they agree with the state law, they have no choice but to follow it.
In addition, the board majority noted, the state law required the school board to make those two changes by December 31, 2007.
Chavana, Garcia and Peña contend the state law is permissive, not mandatory, and they point out there is no financial or legal penalty if the school board simply ignored those major changes. The bottom line, they claim, is any school board in Texas that approves those changes is simply trying to grab more political power without the consent of the people.
Dozens of school board in Texas, including several in the Valley, increased their terms of office and switched their elections to November from May.
The U.S. Department of Justice, which must approve any changes to any elections in Texas, is currently reviewing the request from the divided Edinburg school board for the changes in the length of the terms and the month of the board election.
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