D.C. Trip Focus on Proposed Veterans Hospital Levee Funding and Border Fence

A regional delegation of elected officials drainage experts and local veterans have returned to the Rio  Grande Valley from a three-day trip to Washington D.C. with good news on three key  issues: the fence the levee and the VA hospital.     

Hidalgo County Judge J.D. Salinas III Hidalgo County Commissioners Hector “Tito” Palacios and  Sylvia Handy Hidalgo County Drainage District No. 1 director Godfrey Garza and the consultants  from Dos Logistics Inc. along with Cameron County Judge Carlos Cascos met with several high-level federal officials holding key committee positions in Washington D.C. July 10 through July 12. 

“We took a regional approach and we got more attention for it” Salinas said. “The staff at the  Veterans Administration kept commenting on how impressed they were that we agreed on the  issues of the proposed border wall bringing a VA hospital to the Rio Grande Valley and working to  fix our levees. We went to every meeting together spoke as one and we got a lot accomplished.”   

The Border Wall
According to Salinas the two Texas senators John Cornyn and Kay Bailey Hutchison listened  to “specific local recommendations” regarding the proposed border wall that the U.S. Department of  Homeland Security could construct in the Rio Grande Valley by the end of 2008.

The Secure Fence  Act authorized the construction of 700 miles of double-layer fencing along the southwestern border  of the United States while the Homeland Security Appropriations Bill of 2007 allocated $1.2 billion  for fencing vehicle barriers technology lighting and tactical infrastructure.   

“Sen. Cornyn and Sen. Hutchison both agreed that there may be more viable options other than a  fence” Salinas said.    

Cameron County pushed for a weir to be built in Brownsville in lieu of a wall that could threaten the  economy and the environment. The Hidalgo County delegation asked that river banks be cleaned of  invasive Carrizo cane and also suggested that the existing U.S. Border Patrol station and former  headquarters near the McAllen Miller International Airport be moved to Pharr where the U.S. Border Patrol says it has a hot spot for drug smuggling and illegal immigrant traffic.   

“Sen. Hutchison has already shown her support for giving local communities input on the proposed  border wall. But I think it was informative to our federal leaders to hear just exactly what  alternatives the locals were proposing” Salinas said.    

Levee Rehabilitation
In a landmark meeting with the Federal Emergency Management Agency the U.S. Army Corps of  Engineers and the U.S. International Boundary and Water Commission FEMA said it would  cooperate with Hidalgo County on the release of what has become a much-talked about flood map.    

“FEMA is still in the process of evaluating the hydraulic model information it needs. The agency may  not be able to meet the Sept. 30 deadline for the map’s release. This will give us more time to show  them that Hidalgo County is committed to fixing the problem. Signing the memorandum of  understanding with the USIBWC on Monday begins the rehabilitation process.”    

“The end result of this meeting is that requiring mandatory flood insurance could be much further  off than anticipated or it might never happen at all” Salinas said. “After this meeting it is  unlikely the county would take legal action against FEMA as well. This meeting in particular was  extremely productive.”    

The counties also asked Cornyn and Hutchison to garner support for funding the Lower Rio  Grande Flood Control Project. Passage of the FY 08 State-Foreign Operations bill in the U.S. House of  Representatives included funding for the project at the amount of $15.5 million while the Senate  Appropriations Committee approved $10 million for the project.

The senators were asked to  support increased funding for the levee repairs. If the IBWC is successful in obtaining the $15.5  million for the project and the environmental impact study is completed in August as it is currently  planned for it is likely that the project will be completed at a speed more conducive to the needs of  Hidalgo County.    

Federal officials are also working to include language in the Water Resources Development Act  under Section 211F to give non-federal government entities the ability to obtain reimbursement for  local funds expended on the project.    

Veterans Hospital    
The regional delegation met with many important contacts to build consensus for the construction  of a Veterans Administration hospital in the Rio Grande Valley.    

The South Texas Veterans Access to Care Act of 2007 (H.R. 538 authored by Rep. Solomon Ortz D-Corpus Christi) directs the secretary of Veterans Affairs to determine whether the needs of veterans for acute  inpatient hospital care in Texas’ southmost 24 counties would be best met through a public-private venture to provide long-term care to veterans in an existing facility; the construction of a new fullservice 50-bed hospital with a 125-bed nursing home; or a sharing agreement with a military  treatment facility.    

Bob Filner chairman of the U.S. House of Representatives Veterans’ Affairs Committee confirmed  that he would be making a personal visit to South Texas from Aug. 5 to 8 to speak with veterans  about the options in H.R. 538. Filner will be meeting with veterans in San Antonio Del Rio Laredo  Rio Grande City Weslaco and Brownsville.    

“This is an important step in the process. Mr. Filner will be able to see for himself how far San  Antonio is from the Valley. He will also be able to see our strengths in numbers. Of the 5.3 million  veterans registered with the VA 1.7 million are in Texas. There are nearly 114000 veterans in the  South Texas VA system including nearly 45000 from the four-county area of the Rio Grande Valley.  But of course those numbers don’t take into account those not registered the Winter Texas that  visit the Valley or those veterans living in Mexico. I’m glad Mr. Filner will be able to make this very  important visit” Salinas said.    

A small group of veterans and state Rep. Juan Escobar D-Kingsville who is a veteran accompanied the judges to  their meetings.

Salinas said the veterans put true stories of long drives and wait times out  there and made a real impact on the situation.   

Hutchison said she would be pleased to introduce Senate-side legislation pending the release  of the Booz Allen Hamilton study she commissioned. She professed that she would keep the  consultants accountable and adhere them to the end of July for a release date.    

“On Wednesday night leaders from all along the border met for dinner and it was a highlight of the  trip. It’s so rare to have so many influential players in the same room listening intently to what you  have to say. I appreciate the time they took out of their busy schedules and I just know that good  things are going to happen for Hidalgo County”  Salinas said. “This trip was well worth it. We  made some great advances.”