I stand on my record and you are being misled about the role of the Starr County Industrial Foundation and how renewable energy projects actually happen.
SCIF Does NOT choose where solar or wind projects are built. It Does NOT steer projects to specific properties. It Does NOT negotiate land leases. By the time a developer ever contacts SCIF, the land has already been identified, environmental studies have been completed, and private agreements with landowners have been signed.
What’s being suggested about the SCIF somehow helping place a project on specific private land IS A LIE. The SCIF has NO authority and NO involvement in where projects locate. That decision is made long before SCIF is ever part of the conversation.
It’s also important to correct another misleading claim: the $230 million figure being referenced represents the total projected investment for the entire project, infrastructure, equipment, and development costs, not just the value of the land alone. Presenting it as if it only reflects the property is inaccurate.
The reality is this: SCIF exists to bring municipalities together, advocate for responsible growth, and make sure any incentive offered protects the county while keeping us competitive. That mission has been in place for years and will continue long after any one individual.
Raising questions is fair. But presenting speculation as fact is not. The narrative being pushed ignores how these projects actually work and instead creates the impression that decisions were directed or influenced when they were not.
You deserve transparency, but you also deserve the truth.
Any landowner in Starr County who has been approached by a renewable energy developer can confirm this. These companies go directly to property owners first. They secure site control, complete their studies, and lock in agreements long before any economic development organization is ever involved.
Those site decisions are made based on transmission access, acreage, and technical requirements, NOT by SCIF, NOT by its board, and NOT by me.
The SCIF’s role begins much later, and it is very specific, to help evaluate whether a proposed tax abatement is fair, competitive, and beneficial for Starr County taxpayers. That’s it.
Developers come forward after they have secured their sites because they are comparing multiple communities. If Starr County refuses to even consider an abatement, the project simply goes somewhere else. This is the same process used across Texas and the country to attract large-scale investment.
Every agreement is reviewed by attorneys. Abatements are public documents. Conflict of interest rules and disclosure requirements are part of the process. Nothing is hidden, and nothing is decided behind closed doors.
Editor's Note: The above commentary was penned by Rose Benavidez, president of Starr County Industrial Foundation. The commentary first appeared on Benavidez's social media pages. It appears in the RGG Business Journal with the permission of the author.
