Can Gene Espinoza be beaten? The answer is hell yeah! The next question is how! Lonny I hope you take notes. I should charge big bucks for this advice. But I rather see Gene lose. So here is the blue print on beating Mean Gene Espinoza.
The first thing that needs to be done. Is an open records request of all minutes relating to edinburg city hall, enriguez enter. and rio grande steel.
The next thing is to write a letter to the city attorney. Which is Rick Gonzalez. And in this letter you are going to ask him. If what Gene Espinoza is doing is a conflict of interest. You will also attach two attorney general's opinion.
One would be this one!
The legally binding commitment itself contains a conflict of interest section in which the participating business must warrant:
that it is not a member, officer, or employee of the Recipient, or its designees, or agents, a consultant, member of Recipient's governing body, or the governing body of the locality in which the program is situated, and that it has not and will not exercise and functions or responsibilities with respect to the project during his or her tenure, shall have no interest, direct or indirect, in any contract or subcontract, or in the proceeds thereof, for work to be performed in connection with the Project or in any activity, or benefit therefrom, which is part of this Project.
In the event Participating Business is in conflict with any of the provisions contained in the paragraph above, he or she has or will, before accepting any funds resulting from the Grant, obtain a waiver from the Secretary as to any such conflict. (Emphasis added).
This section would be violated in at least four of the contracts between the city and the participating businesses. In addition, this office has stated that dual agency creates a conflict similar to that of officials with pecuniary interests. Attorney General Opinion H-1309 (1978) states:
And the other would be this one!
§ 572.058. Private Interest in Measure or Decision; Disclosure; Removal From Office for Violation
(a) An elected or appointed officer, other than an officer subject to impeachment under Article XV, Section 2, of the Texas Constitution, who is a member of a board or commission having policy direction over a state agency and who has a personal or private interest in a measure, proposal, or decision pending before the board or commission shall publicly disclose the fact to the board or commission in a meeting called and held in compliance with Chapter 551. The officer may not vote or otherwise participate in the decision. The disclosure shall be entered in the minutes of the meeting.
(b) An individual who violates this section is subject to removal from office on the petition of the attorney general on the attorney general’s own initiative or on the relation of a resident or of any other member of the board or commission. The suit must be brought in a district court of Travis County or of the county where the violation is alleged to have been committed
If the minutes come out empty. That Gene did not excuse himself from voting. That on the attorney generals opinion is grounds for removal.
The next thing I would do. Is take that same letter you gave the city attorney. And email it to all media outlets. Let them see what is going on.
If the minutes come back empty. Then a lawsuit should be filed in state court. And they will have to deal with the attorney generals opinion.
That's the way you beat Hot Check Gene Espinoza.
