Judge establishes PUB membership, stays Oct. 18 actions

Roll call for Brownsville Public Utilities Board members was heard in state district Judge Janet Leal’s court Wednesday. It did not include Joseph Zavaletta or Cris Valadez, whose places were being argued by a fractured board last month.

Leal reaffirmed the PUB constitution, stopped the board from fulfilling contracts approved at an explosive Oct. 18 meeting and established the board membership: Chairman Robert Sanchez, Mayor Pat M. Ahumada Jr., Emmanuel Vasquez, Al Villarreal, Robert Guerra and Arturo Farias.

“I’m content with the outcome and I am committed to serving the board and the community,” Vasquez said following the hearing that concluded after attorneys huddled behind closed doors for roughly four hours.

Vasquez sued for a temporary restraining order (TRO) after when Sanchez, Ahumada and Zavaletta blocked him from taking his seat after a City Commission majority appointed him.

He also alleged that the board’s Oct. 18 meeting was in violation of the Texas Open Meetings Act because it included action by a non-member and did not have a quorum.

Vasquez was named to replace Valadez, in the face of the mayor’s protests. Sanchez, Ahumada and Zavaletta argued that Valadez’s term had not yet expired.

The move prompted members Guerra and Villarreal to walk out in protest. Vasquez also left, leaving the board without a quorum. Still, Sanchez continued the meeting whenValadez arrived.

Wednesday’s court hearing determined board contracts cannot be fulfilled in light of the TRO and Leal’s ruling Wednesday. They include a four-year contract with the board’s new legal counsel, Jon Schmid, and a five-year contract with financial advisors First Southwest Company.

“Even if they are good contracts, the new board could come in and undo them regardless,” Leal said. With this interpretation, the new board majority could conceivably rescind Schmid’s and First Southwest Company’s contracts.

Schmid declined to comment after the court hearing.

PUB’s long time counsel Eduardo Rodriguez of Rodriguez, Colvin, Chaney and Saenz is back on board at Villarreal’s and Guerra’s request, PUB CEO John Bruciak told The Herald.

“It’s a positive day,” Rodriguez said of the ruling. “It allows the PUB to move forward.”

The TRO against Sanchez, Ahumada, Zavaletta and Valadez will stand through Nov. 21.

Former Mayor Eddie Treviño Jr, attorney for Vasquez in this case, called the rulings, “very positive,” and said the evidence is clear.

Zavaletta, who recently maintained that he had been appointed to four years and not through Dec. 31, relinquished all claims, with condition. As per agreements among attorneys, Leal stipulated that Zavaletta had “acted in good faith” and “on the advice of counsel” when he took part in the Oct. 18 meeting.

Larry Warner represents Ahumada and Sanchez while Rollins Koppel and Jeffrey L. Jackson initially represented Zavaletta and Valadez and then only represented Zavaletta. Although somewhat reluctantly, Warner stepped in to ensure Valadez’s rights were maintained.

Ahumada indicated that he and Valadez stand firm on their positions, despite an alleged threat of prosecution for purported violations of the Texas Open Meetings Act.

Ahumada said he is ready to go all the way to the Supreme Court to defend his position, if necessary.

For his part, Sanchez said, “it’s a shame. We could have resolved this outside the court.”

City Commissioner and local lawyer Anthony P. Troiani attended the court session, observing that, “the process is working.”

“PUB can function without our (the City Commission’s) direct intervention,” he said.