City staff opened a public hearing on Aug. 19 to consider an ordinance nominating We Win Technology Corporation for designation under the Texas Enterprise Zone Program, a state sales-and-use-tax refund program meant to encourage private investment and job creation in economically distressed areas.

“The purpose of this hearing is to nominate We Win Technology Corporation,” said Jose Quinones, a city staff member with the City of Socorro, explaining the program and the application process. Quinones said the company’s site is at 9220 and 9250 Socorro Logistics Lane in Socorro, Texas 79927.

Quinones described how Texas communities may nominate companies and submit applications on their behalf, and summarized eligibility requirements: companies must meet state-set minimum capital investment thresholds, create or retain jobs that meet certain hiring targets for economically disadvantaged residents or veterans, and submit a complete application and nonrefundable fee by the round deadline. He said the application period is quarterly and that applications for the upcoming round are due in September 2025.

For this project, Quinones said staff is treating We Win Technology as falling in the capital-investment level between $5,000,000 and $149,900,000; that level, he said, has a maximum allocation of 500 jobs and a maximum refund per job of $2,500 as set by the Texas Enterprise Zone Program. Quinones noted the city is not offering any additional local incentives through the ordinance.

Following the presentation, the hearing was opened for public comment. Quinones said at 5:34 p.m. the city had no speakers, and at roughly 5:50 p.m. he closed the public hearing: “We hereby close this public hearing for the ordinance of the Texas Enterprise Zone.”

The City Council is scheduled to take up an ordinance that would formally nominate We Win Technology Corporation as an enterprise project under the Texas Enterprise Zone Program at its meeting on Thursday, Aug. 21, 2025, at 6 p.m. No vote on the nomination occurred during the Aug. 19 public hearing.

The Texas Enterprise Zone Program is administered at the state level and provides refunds of state sales and use taxes paid on qualified expenditures during the designation period up to a company-specific maximum determined by planned capital investment and job creation or retention. The city staff presentation noted the program’s maximum refund totals and per-job allocations are set by the state; specific dollar limits beyond the per-job figure for this level were not provided at the hearing.

Options left for the council at its Aug. 21 meeting include moving forward with the nomination ordinance, asking staff for additional information, or taking no action. The public hearing held on Aug. 19 satisfied the local-notice requirement for the nomination; the matter remains pending before the City Council.