10Cameron County Commissioners Court on Tuesday afternoon appointed Pete Sepulveda Jr. to serve as interim county administrator.
The court unanimously approved Sepulveda’s appointment after an executive session.
The appointment follows former county administrator David Garcia’s abrupt June 25 resignation.
Garcia’s resignation letter does not provide any insight into why commissioners discussed his position, including the possibility of termination, in executive session.
“For the past fourteen and a half years, and the past four in this position, I have had the privilege and honor to work on many important projects, with many great people, and on behalf of the residents and taxpayers of this county and region,” Garcia wrote. “I want to thank Commissioners’ Court for giving me the opportunity to lead this organization and I want to thank those who I worked with over the course of the last four years to better the lives of our community.”
The Brownsville Herald filed a Texas Public Information Act request for any complaints or disciplinary history and any discussion between commissioners and the county judge regarding any complaints about Garcia, but Cameron County said it had no documents responsive to that request.
Cameron County Judge Eddie Treviño Jr. again declined to comment on why Garcia resigned.
But it does appear the county administrator position may see changes.
Treviño said that over the next week commissioners will be reviewing the duties and job description of the county administrator, including examining any issues, qualifications and potential duties.
“We’ll be evaluating the position,” Treviño said, explaining that the commission will look at what is working and what is not working.
Then, the county will conduct a nationwide search for a new county administrator, Treviño said.
Sepulveda, a longtime county employee, moves from his position as executive director at the Cameron County Regional Mobility Authority. He also previously served as county judge and county administrator.
In 2017, Sepulveda entered a pretrial diversion program for one year after a grand jury indicted him in 2016 on charges of abuse of official capacity, theft by a public servant and misapplication of fiduciary property.
That case, however, was dismissed.
Authorities had accused Sepulveda of using county materials and employees to pave a private road in San Benito.
As a condition of the pretrial diversion, Sepulveda agreed to reimburse the county for the materials, equipment and labor used to pave the road.
