Salinas to Travel to D.C. for 81st Winter Meeting of U.S. Conference of Mayors
Written by Post Public Information Representative, Jan 15, 2013, 0 Comments
Courtesy Xochitl Mora,
Will serve as Conference lead on Immigration Reform and Border Policy
(Laredo, TX – ) City of Laredo Mayor Raul G. Salinas will travel to Washington, D.C. this week to participate in the 81st Annual Winter Meeting of the United States Conference of Mayors (USCM) which will take place January 17-19, 2013. More than 280 mayors from around the nation are expected to attend and meet with Vice President Joe Biden and 10 members of the Obama Cabinet. The mayors will also hear from congressional leaders, as well as leaders from the business and arts community. A full copy of the program can be found here.
Mayor Salinas noted: “I expect that the agenda will be driven by issues and not politics. We need to always keep job creation as issue number one, but I believe that the impact of the fiscal cliff agreement and the threats to municipal tax-exempt financing will also be addressed. The tax exempt financing issue is very important to Laredo. We have worked hard to maintain our bond rating as among one of the highest in the nation, and we cannot lose municipal bonding as a mechanism in Laredo’s redevelopment tool box.
Furthermore, we also know that gun control and immigration reform are likely to be the first two issues that President Obama and Congress address this year. With Representative Henry Cuellar serving as a leader on the House Homeland Security Committee, we know that Laredo’s point of view on these two very important issues will be heard. My goal is to enlist a few allies to assist him in his efforts.”
On immigration reform, Mayor Salinas will serve as the U.S. Conference of Mayors’ point man. “I am very pleased at the line up of leaders who will be presenting to the Immigration Task Force, which I chair. We will hear from Alejandro Mayorkas, Director of the Homeland Security’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals and Deputy Customs & Border Protection Commissioner David Aguilar, an old Laredo friend. Speaking on border commerce efforts, we will hear from Walter Bastian, Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Western Hemisphere at the Department of Commerce and Deputy Assistant Secretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs at the State Department Matthew Rooney.”
Finally, in addition to the meetings on the agenda, the Mayor is scheduled to meet with White House officials in private on their immigration reform proposal.
