This is your weekly news roundup, which takes a quick look at some developments in government, politics, education, environment and other topics across El Paso.
City of El Paso to Collect Hotel Occupancy Taxes on Short-Term Rentals
The city of El Paso will soon begin charging a hotel occupancy tax to people who stay at short-term rental properties within the city limits to generate revenue for tourism-related investments.
The El Paso City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved a resolution establishing the tax, which will be collected starting in the coming months.
The hotel tax is a 17% tax people who stay in El Paso hotels pay on top of their room rental. The tax revenue is distributed among the city, county and state.
The tax generated about $18 million in revenue for the city from hotels alone during the last fiscal year, and the city anticipates an additional $3.5 million a year will be collected from the short-term rentals.
Short-term rentals – commonly listed on sites like Airbnb and VRBO – are generally defined as a residential property, apartment, condominium or accessory dwelling rented to overnight guests for fewer than 30 consecutive days.
The funds generated from HOT taxes are restricted by state law for tourism-related purposes, including the convention and hotel industry.
The new revenue collected by the city will be used toward the Judson F. William Convention Center improvements, funding for arts and cultural programs and to help pay the debt for the city-owned Downtown ballpark, which already receives hotel tax dollars.
The tax will begin to be collected no later than 180 days, and no sooner than 90 days, following public outreach, city officials said.
St. Pius X Catholic School Permanently Shut Down
Citing declining student enrollment and a growing deficit, St. Pius X Catholic School in East Central El Paso closed down Wednesday.
“For generations, our school has been a treasured ministry of the parish, forming young people in faith, academic excellence, and service,” the Rev. Miguel Ángel Sánchez of St. Pius X Catholic Church said in a news release. “Countless families have entrusted their children to St. Pius X, and the impact of our school will continue to be felt throughout our parish and community for years to come.”
Though the church didn’t provide enrollment data, it said that current and projected enrollment figures indicate an annual operating deficit exceeding $300,000. The release stated that as many Catholic schools throughout the nation, the St. Pius school at 1007 Geronimo Drive had experienced a steady decline in enrollment since the COVID-19 pandemic.
The school, which opened in 1955, was named after Pope St. Pius X, who established the Diocese of El Paso.
Parish leadership will work closely with school families “to assist them as they explore educational opportunities for the upcoming academic year,” the release states.
The school’s closure is not tied to the El Paso Catholic Diocese’s recent bankruptcy filings, which has no immediate impact on its parishes, schools or foundation.
UTEP Researchers Find GLP-1s Affect Substance Abuse Disorders
Medications created to neutralize food cravings in people could have similar effects on those dealing with substance abuse issues based on a study done by faculty researchers at the University of Texas at El Paso.
Tadesse Abegaz and Gabriel Frietze, assistant professors in UTEP’s School of Pharmacy, found that the use of certain weight-loss drugs could decrease the risk of people developing dependencies on cocaine, alcohol, nicotine and opioids.
Their team analyzed more than 142,000 cases of patients with type 2 diabetes or obesity. Of those cases, approximately 20,000 received prescriptions for GLP-1 medications, which mimic a natural gut hormone to regulate blood sugar, slow digestion and reduce appetite.
These medications, such as Ozempic, were developed to treat obesity and diabetes, but new evidence has shown that they also could alter dopamine signals that contribute to appetites beyond food.
Abegaz and Frietze studied how the use of GLP-1 affected the development of substance abuse disorders in those people compared to those who did not use the medications. The results of their work was published recently in Frontiers in Psychiatry.
Among the team’s findings were that the use of a GLP-1 lowered the odds of substance abuse disorders by as much as 75% for cocaine, 74% for alcohol, 69% for opioids and 68% for nicotine.
The researchers stressed that their findings did not establish cause and effect between GLP-1s and the prevention of substance abuse. However, they believe that their study adds to the growing evidence that GLP-1s could influence more than appetite suppression and blood sugar regulation.
The team plans to continue its investigations into GLP-1s influence on substance abuse.
Abegaz, the paper’s lead author, said the next goal is to conduct prospective research that follows individuals initiating GLP-1 therapy over time to evaluate how the treatment affects substance abuse behaviors.
Parasitic Screwworm Discovered in Animals in Texas, Including Dog
The U.S. Department of Agriculture confirmed six cases of screwworm in livestock in South Texas, plus one dog that traveled with its owner to West Texas from Lea County, New Mexico, just northeast of El Paso. The first of these new cases was reported in a calf last week in Zavala County.
The New World screwworm is a parasitic maggot that burrows in the flesh of living livestock and pets when the fly lays its eggs in open wounds – openings as small as a scratch or tick bite. Cows, including young calves with soft skin, are particularly vulnerable because they have no natural defenses and their large bodies offer more space for eggs to develop. If left untreated for too long, the animal can suffer long-term health damage or death.
The flesh-eating parasite presents a major threat to the cattle industry. The United States suspended livestock imports from Mexico last year after screwworms were detected in Mexico, halting livestock crossings in El Paso and in Santa Teresa, New Mexico, as well as driving up beef prices.
While the screwworm is normally endemic to tropical climates in South and Central America, rising temperatures from climate change have pushed the screwworm north. Cattle in Mexico could lose their value the longer the shutdown continues, Alvaro Bustillos, president of Vaquero Trading in El Paso, told The Texas Tribune last year after imports halted.
Gov. Greg Abbott issued a disaster declaration last Friday in response to the screwworm threat. The USDA is establishing a new sterile fly production facility in Edinburg and deploying sterile flies in the infected areas. The sterile flies mate with wild female flies, which will then lay unviable eggs that never hatch.
Gary Lunsford Named El Paso Zoo Director
The city has hired Gary Lunsford as the permanent director of the El Paso Zoo and Botanical Gardens following a national search, the city announced this week. His salary will be just over $174,000.
Lunsford has served as an accreditation inspector for both the Association of Zoos and Aquariums and Canada’s Accredited Zoos and Aquariums.
Lunsford moved to El Paso from Massachusetts, where he served as director of the Buttonwood Park Zoo. He previously led the Assiniboine Park Zoo in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, where he oversaw a team that commissioned the Journey to Churchill exhibit – a $90 million transformation of 10 acres of the zoo to an immersive experience of northern culture and biodiversity, according to the news release.
Lunsford also served at the Oklahoma City Zoo, Tulsa Zoo, Assiniboine Park Zoo, Milwaukee County Zoo and Buttonwood Park Zoo.
Lunsford had served as interim director of the El Paso Zoo since September when former Director Joe Montisano was put on administrative leave.
Montisano resigned in November following a series of controversies, including a lawsuit filed by a former employee. The City Council accepted a mediator’s offer in January and a settlement agreement was reached March 21. The lawsuit was dismissed with prejudice May 6. Details of the settlement were not immediately available.
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