Vera: Starr County is being transformed by unity, and we’re poised for tomorrow

RIO GRANDE CITY, Texas – Starr County Judge Eloy Vera delivered his 2025 State of the County Address on April 1, at the Julable Events Center in Rio Grande City.

The theme was “Transformed by Unity; Poised for Tomorrow.” That message was accompanied on two big screens by the image of a robot.

At the conclusion of his address, Vera said Starr County’s financial footing is strong.

“I’m happy to report that Starr County has never been in a better financial position than we are today. According to our county treasurer, Mr. Romeo Gonzalez, we currently have over $31.3 million in the bank. $31.3 million. I had to read it twice because for Starr County, that is a huge number,” Vera said.

A lot of that money is earmarked for projects in the works, Vera acknowledged, But, he said, about a third of it is fund balance.

Earlier, Vera had spoken about projects such as restoring the county courthouse and stabilizing the Roma suspension bridge.

“All the projects that I’ve talked about earlier will be funded with no increase to our tax rate. In fact, over the last five years, from 2020 through today, 2025, contrary to what some people would like you to believe, our tax rate has decreased by almost seven cents. This is almost a ten percent decrease.”

There was applause at this point from the packed ballroom.

“While other entities are increasing their tax rates, Starr County has been decreasing ours,” Vera said. “As sure as hell, I don’t like to pay taxes, and I am sure you all don’t either.”

Vera continued: “Our county’s value has increased in those five years from $2.1 billion to $3.1 billion. That’s a billion dollar increase in five short years. Unbelievable.”

A lot of that billion-dollar increase has to do with Starr County’s green energy partners, Vera acknowledged.

“Just last week, we broke ground on a solar project that is one of the largest projects in the state of Texas. Hundreds of millions of dollars were invested in Starr County. So to our partners, we thank you for choosing Starr County and trusting Starr County to invest.”

Vera thanked Starr County Industrial Foundation, DHR Health, and South Texas College for their work in transforming the county.

“We’re being transformed by unity, and we are certainly poised and ready for tomorrow,” he said.

here is some text

The post Vera: Starr County is being transformed by unity, and we’re poised for tomorrow appeared first on Rio Grande Guardian.