BROWNSVILLE, Texas - Rio Grande Valley Partnership CEO Paco Sanchez says the group is placing more emphasis on its RGV-to-DC trip this year.
The event runs June 10-12.
“We're really beefing it up this year,” Sanchez said. “There was a more small-scale RGV-to-DC last year, but we're going full-bore on this one, making sure that our community has a voice at the federal level, and that when we go up there, we speak as a partnership, one region, one voice.”
Asked if the Partnership has its agenda set for the trip, Sanchez said the group’s monthly RGV Connect series is helping inform that agenda. Thus far the series has featured in-depth discussions on transportation and water. An upcoming event Harlingen will focus on education.
“We have a really impactful agenda set with our the federal delegation. Congressman Cuellar, Congressman de la Cruz, Congressman Gonzalez, and then both Senators Cornyn and Senator Cruz have been really helpful and welcoming to the group that we'll be taking up to DC,” Sanchez said.
“We take a coalition of folks from the Rio Grande Valley, from different sectors, healthcare, economic development, higher education and general business owners. We take them up so that we can talk about issues with the policy makers and decision makers at the federal level.”
Asked which topics in particular, Sanchez said:
“We definitely will have some conversations on USMCA and the ongoing negotiations that are taking place. We will have an economic development panel that that we hope will really benefit our small communities and some of our nonprofits. So, for us EDA is important. So is USDA - we’ll be talking about water and agricultural issues, which are really important for our community.
“It is really about getting our community members face to face with our federal leaders, so that the delegation hears firsthand what our concerns are and then how they can advocate for us and fight for us at the federal level.”
Sanchez was asked if those going on the trip can bring up their own topics that have not identified as top issues by RGVP. “Absolutely,” Sanchez replied.
A good example of a Valley leader going on the trip but going his own way once in DC would be veteran broadcaster Ron Whitlock, a few years ago. He set up meetings with Senator John Cornyn, Congressman Henry Cuellar, and the U.S. Army Corps Of Engineers and came away with a commitment that millions of dollars would be spent dressing Port Mansfield’s ship channel.
“At the end of the day, we want to make sure that the voices of the Valley are heard,” Sanchez said, “And it may not be something that's officially on our regional priority list. But that doesn't mean that it's not important, and it doesn't mean that our federal allegations should not hear about that.”
Here is a video recording of the Rio Grande Guardian’s interview with Sanchez:
