HARLINGEN — The city’s ambulance company is planning to enter into negotiations after getting hit with the non-renewal of its contract after more than 40 years.
Earlier this week, the city commission’s new majority gave the South Texas Emergency Care Foundation notice of the non-renewal of its contract giving it exclusive rights to provide ambulance service in town.
Meanwhile, commissioners plan to negotiate with STEC, whose contract expires next September, to allow outside ambulance companies offering non-emergency transport service.
“It kind of forces us into negotiations with STEC,” Commissioner Frank Puente said after Wednesday’s meeting. “Let’s put everything on the table. Let’s see what we can do to make everybody happy.”
During the meeting, commissioners appointed Puente, who began pushing to open the city to competition nearly two years ago, to STEC’s board of directors, replacing City Manager Gabriel Gonzalez.
“As a board member, I’m going to push for negotiations as soon as possible and the No. 1 priority is going to be the exclusivity section,” Puente said after the meeting.
During the meeting, Bill Aston, STEC’s executive director, told commissioners he is open to contract negotiations.
“We’re prepared to listen and consider anything that might be helpful so we look forward to communicating with you,” he said.
For weeks, STEC officials have warned competition would eat into revenue generated through the company’s non-emergency transports, which help the nonprofit fund its emergency ambulance service.
“Where other cities are suffering the loss of EMTs, we have a full staff. They’re professional — they take care of the city,” Jo Wagner, president of STEC’s board of directors, told commissioners. “We will ultimately have to do what you decide we have to do but we will continue to do what we’ve always done — take care of the citizens of this community to the very best of our ability.”
STEC’s contract comes along with a city ordinance protecting the company’s service area, granting police authority to warn or cite outside ambulance companies entering the city limits.
“If I transport my son who has a broken leg to the hospital, I’m in violation of the contract and I can be arrested for it. That is absolutely ridiculous,” Commissioner Richard Uribe said. “It’s been 40 years. There’s nothing wrong with looking at (the contract) and doing what’s best for the city.”
For months, members of the commission’s new majority have argued some residents have complained of slow response times to non-emergency calls while ambulances waited for short-staffed hospitals to open patient beds during the coronavirus pandemic.
“I’ve received some comments and some information from some of my constituents and I’m sure most of us have as well, not about the emergency care service,” Commissioner Rene Perez said. “This is about the non-emergency care service, where we feel we need some help a little bit.”
“By taking this step, I think we’re all hoping to basically continue with STEC but at the same time give an opportunity for the citizens of Harlingen to have a choice. I understand the aspect of the bottom line and how it might affect your financials. That’s why I’m hoping that you guys will be able to come with us and negotiate … and come up with some type of middle ground. It doesn’t have to be, ‘Oh, you’re destroying STEC,’ because that’s not what we’re doing.”
Meanwhile, Commissioner Michael Mezmar, who stands behind STEC, warned the Veterans Administration, which pumps as much as $150 million a year into the local economy, could pull out of the city, along with its 300 good-paying jobs, if commissioners cut into STEC’s emergency ambulance service.
Reading from Cicero, Mezmar accused the majority of “treason.”
“The service is perfect, it’s rapid-response and that is critical for the VA having offices and buildings in Harlingen,” he told commissioners. “If you all tinker with their contract — and I mean any — they’re gone.”
In a surprise move, commissioners voted 4-1 to appoint Puente to STEC’s board, replacing Gonzalez, with Mezmar casting the dissenting vote.
“This strikes me as extortion. It’s like, ‘Gabe, you’ve got to do what we say or we’ll fire you, too,’” Mezmar told commissioners, referring to the majority’s firings of officials including former City Manager Dan Serna two months ago. “A city manager should be on the board in order to provide intelligence and guidance from the city and to the city.”
In response to Mezmar’s question, interim City Attorney Mark Sossi said Puente’s position on the commission wouldn’t disqualify him from serving on STEC’s board.
“He would not be disqualified as a matter of law from serving,” he said. “If there was an issue before the board that posed a conflict, he would follow the same rules for recusal as any commissioner would under the same situation.”
Meanwhile, Mayor Chris Boswell said the city’s STEC representative could face cases posing conflicts of interests.
“There are items that come before the board or the commission that involve potentially adverse interests between the city and STEC that there could be an inherent conflict of interest, even with Gabe or anybody from the city under the current environment,” he said. “I think that just needs to be recognized — and at times where there may be a conflict, that party would have to recuse themselves from either participating in city commission meetings or participating in STEC board meetings.”
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