LA JOYA, Texas – Though all Texas Republicans in the U.S. House and Senate voted against the federal infrastructure bill, their GOP colleagues in Austin control the distribution of discretionary funding allocated for Texas in the legislation.
This is a big concern for U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar. At a recent news conference in La Joya, the Laredo Democrat urged Hidalgo County leaders to go to Austin to demand their fair share of the funding.
“Judge, make sure Hidalgo (County) goes up there (to Austin) and asks for its fair share,” Cuellar told Hidalgo County Judge Richard Cortez.
The infrastructure bill signed into law by President Biden in November contained $1 trillion in new spending. Of this, Cuellar said, $30 billion has been allocated to Texas.
“Very honestly, every Republican in the the House and the Senate from Texas voted no on the infrastructure bill. Every Democrat voted yes. But it is our Republican friends who control Austin and how the money is distributed,” Cuellar said.
“So, make sure you all are there asking for the monies, because when you look at all the monies that Texas got, highways, bridge monies, broadband, water infrastructure, it is over $30 billion. We have to make sure Hidalgo gets its fair share.”
After the news conference, the Rio Grande Guardian International News Service obtained an exclusive interview with Rep. Cuellar. We asked him to go into more depth about the discretionary funding contained in the infrastructure bill.
Cuellar said: “There are two different things. There is the basic money that the state is going to get and there is the discretionary money. Right now, Hidalgo (County), the judge, the commissioners, should be going up there and saying, hey, Texas Department of Transportation, we need our fair share of funding.”
Cuellar said there are two methods through which the infrastructure funding will reach Texas. He used transportation dollars as an example.
“One Is the formula dollars that the Pharr District is going to get, and the Laredo District, the San Antonio District and so on. That is one. But, they (TxDOT) keep money for discretionary funding. Those are monies Hidalgo (County) should go after. A lot of these projects are 80/20, 80 percent federal dollars, 20 percent state dollars. They should be going up there and asking for those dollars.”
But, it is not just transportation funding that is available, Cuellar explained.
“There is also airport money, there are also water projects, broadband money. But mainly, $26 million for highways. The state usually gets about $3 million a year. Now, you are talking about $26 million, so it is the largest amount they have ever gotten.”
Cuellar had called the news conference to announce a federal grant worth $1,275,000 for the City of La Joya. The money will got towards the construction of a new fire station in the city. The current fire station is 30 years old.
Cuellar explained that he had ten “earmarks” or pots of money to allocate to different projects in his congressional districts. Two of these were in Hidalgo County. One was the federal grant to build a new fire station in Joya. The other was $3.5 million for flood mitigation work in Sullivan City. He made the drainage infrastructure announcement back in September.
Among those in attendance at the La Joya news conference were Judge Cortez, Hidalgo County Commissioner Everado “Ever” Villarreal, La Joya Mayor Isidro Casanova, and La Joya City Commissioners Angie Garza and Esequiel “Chuck” Garza. All five thanked Cuellar for helping bring funding to Hidalgo County. They said they did not want to lose him as their member of Congress.
But, that is what is going to happen unless the federal courts step in and say the new congressional district lines are unlawful.
During redistricting, Republican leaders moved Cuellar’s District 28 out of Hidalgo County in order to draw a GOP-friendly seat in neighboring District 15. Under the new congressional lines, Cuellar, D-Laredo, will stay in the Rio Grande Valley by continuing to represent Starr County. But, to make up for the loss of western Hidalgo County, Cuellar’s CD 28 will take in more of Bexar County. His district becomes more Democratic.
“Thank you, Congressman for always being here with us. Even though we are going to cut you off, I know that your heart will always be with us and that we can always count on you,” Cortez told Cuellar, from the podium.
“The Valley is going to suffer a great loss. I cannot believe this is happening to us. I know you love our area. I know you are not going to forget about us. You have made a lot of friends here and I know that you care for us,” Villarreal told Cuellar, from the podium.
“Since I have been in office, in 1985, you have always helped Hidalgo County. We can always count on you. We really appreciate… we have water here, roads, the fire station, it was all because of your help. I hope we don’t lose you,” Angie Garza told Cuellar, from the podium.
“I hope you stay,” Chuck Garza told Cuellar, from the podium.
Cuellar said he did not want to leave Hidalgo County.
“I was asking for more of Hidalgo County but the Republicans had different things in mind. I am still the only Democrat from Texas on (the) Appropriations (Committee) and Hidalgo can still count on me. I will be happy to work with whoever the new Democrat is that wins District 15. I will be working with that person, he or she,” Cuellar said. “I will still be around for one more year. Don’t count me out.”
Cuellar pointed out that he was once the member of Congress for 264,000 residents in Hidalgo County. He said this was later reduced to 120,000.
“I was trying to get more. We are still waiting for the lawsuits so let’s see what happens. Maybe I will be back in Hidalgo County,” Cuellar said, referring to lawsuits brought by civil rights groups to undo the new congressional lines.
Interviewed before the news conference started, Commissioner Villarreal told the Rio Grande Guardian International News Service:
“It is a sad time for Precinct 3. Congressman Cuellar has always supported the Rio Grande Valley. It is hard for us to lose someone with his leadership skills. Everybody respects him and likes him in Washington. Someone new coming in will not have the experience or trust. He is going to be hard to beat. It is an awesome day for La Joya because we are getting the money for the fire station. But we are sad to be losing the congressman. He comes to our city very often. We are going to miss him very much.”
Editor's Note: The main image accompanying the above news story shows Hidalgo County Judge Richard Cortez, U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, La Joya Mayor Isidro Casanova, and Hidalgo County Commissioner Everado Villarreal. (Photo: RGG/Steve Taylor)
Producing quality journalism is not cheap. The coronavirus has resulted in falling revenues across the newsrooms of the United States. However, The Rio Grande Guardian International News Service is committed to producing quality news reporting on the issues that matter to border residents. The support of our members is vital in ensuring our mission gets fulfilled.
Can we count on your support? If so, click HERE. Thank you!
