Marfa
With budget season approaching, Presidio County commissioners spent much of Wednesday’s regular meeting on the less flashy, but consequential, machinery of county government: applying for state funds, preparing for water infrastructure needs and reviewing cybersecurity options.
Commissioners approved the Presidio County Sheriff’s Office’s application for $80,000 through the Texas Comptroller’s Sheriff Immigration Law Enforcement Grant Program. The court also approved a related resolution supporting the application for FY2026-2027 funding and adopting the required grant assurances.
A representative for the sheriff’s office told commissioners that Presidio County’s allocation under the program is $80,000, based on the county’s population. Wednesday’s vote authorized the county to submit the application, but if the funding is awarded, the county will still have to follow its usual approval, budget and purchasing processes. Commissioners also noted that the grant does not require a local match before approving both the applications and the supporting resolution.
The court also approved a resolution authorizing submission of an application to the Texas Water Development Board for House Bill 500 Water Supply and Infrastructure Grant funding — a potential source of state support for drinking water-related projects.
Ramon Rodríguez Aranda, with Lone Star Strategy Group, told commissioners the resolution was a paperwork step needed to complete the application through the state portal. County Judge Joe Portillo said the funding is available only to counties, not cities, and it was meant for water infrastructure related to drinking water.
Aranda said the county plans to work with Mundo and Associates, an engineering firm expected to visit the county Monday for site visits. Engineers are expected to look at colonias and other water needs across the county as officials prepare the application.
Portillo said the county should first evaluate county-level needs but could also reach out to the cities of Marfa and Presidio to ask whether they have urgent water infrastructure needs the county might be able to support. He mentioned possible projects such as valves, meter upgrades, or other improvements. Aranda said shovel-ready projects could be an advantage in the grant scoring process.
The meeting also turned toward another kind of infrastructure: the county’s technology systems.
Commissioners heard a presentation from GCS IT services regarding cybersecurity, cloud-based data backup, and managed IT options for county departments. The presentation came as officials prepare for budget workshops and consider technology needs across offices.
Representatives from GCS IT Services described the company as an El Paso-based technology provider that offers remote IT support, cybersecurity monitoring and data backup. They told commissioners that much of their work can be done remotely, allowing county employees to submit support tickets when problems arise with computers, printers, internet connections or other technology.
The company estimated that a fully managed IT and cybersecurity package for roughly 30 county devices would cost about $3,000 per month, or about $36,000 per year, depending on the final number of devices.
County officials said the county has relied on other cyber security support but departments continue to run into day-to-day technology issues. Auditor Alicia Sanchez said IT needs are something she wants to factor into the budget process, especially as insurance providers and other entities increasingly ask counties about cybersecurity protections.
No action was taken on the presentation. County officials said they would review the proposal and could bring the item back later for consideration.
In other business, commissioners authorized County Attorney Blair Park to enter into an engagement letter with Valbridge Property Advisors for appraisals of two county-owned properties in the North Park area near Vizcaino Park. The appraisals are required before the county can move forward with the request for proposals for the sale of the properties.
Park explained that the county cannot sell public property directly to a specific individual or company and must instead follow an open request-for-proposals process. Under state requirements, she said, the minimum bid must be based on an independent appraisal.
One property is approximately five acres, while the other is roughly 10.6 acres and includes structures and a lease (Ballroom Marfa’s Bull Barn) that will require more detailed appraisal. Park said she hoped to have the appraisal for the smaller property in time to bring an RFP back to commissioners at the court’s July 22 meeting. The second appraisal is expected to take longer, likely into August.
Commissioners also approved an interlocal agreement between Brewter, Presidio, and Jeff Davis counties regarding pro-rated payments to the Tri-County Juvenile Probation office, with Brewster County serving as the fiscal agent.
Portillo said the regional juvenile probation agreement has existed for years, but officials could not locate a formal interlocal agreement. The agreement approved Wednesday formalizes the arrangement between three counties.
The court also declared two sheriff’s office vehicles surplus so they can be included in the sheriff’s vehicle auction on July 25. The vehicles are a 2013 Ford F-150 with 213,881 miles, and a 2005 Ford F-150 with 134,461 miles.
A sheriff’s office representative said both vehicles are older units being retired from frontline fleet service because of age and continued operational use. The 2013 truck was originally an unclaimed impounded vehicle that was titled to the sheriff’s office in 2014, while the 2005 truck was purchased with county funds. Current estimates place the vehicles at approximately $4,000 and $5,000, respectively.
