Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Executive Session Contracts topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Court goes into closed session to discuss U.S. Marshals detainee housing negotiations and Tejano Music Fever funding request
Summary
The commissioners court met in closed session Oct. 27 to receive legal advice and deliberate ongoing contract negotiations with the U.S. Marshals Service regarding detainee housing and with Tejano Music Fever over a hotel-occupancy-tax funding request.
The El Paso County commissioners court recessed into closed executive session on Oct. 27 to discuss two contract negotiations: housing of federal detainees with the U.S. Marshals Service and a request from Tejano Music Fever for hotel occupancy tax funding.
County attorneys advised the court the discussions fell under Texas Government Code sections 551.071 (consultation with attorneys) and 551.0725 (deliberation of business and financial issues related to contracts under negotiation). Assistant County Attorneys said discussing the items in open session could be detrimental to the county—s bargaining position. The court directed staff to record closed-session proceedings and later reconvened to report no final public action on the Tejano Music Fever item.
Why it matters: Negotiations with the U.S. Marshals Service concern housing federal detainees in county custody and can affect detention revenue and facility operations. The Tejano Music Fever discussion involved a request for hotel-occupancy-tax funding; the court directed staff to continue negotiations and took no public action at the meeting.
Outcome: No public contract was executed at the Oct. 27 meeting. The court instructed staff to continue negotiations and to return any finalized contract for future consideration by the court.
