Coffee Executive Likely Replacement For Embattled Bettencourt

Maximus Coffee Group CFO Leo Vasquez will be the likely replacement for embattled Harris County Tax Assessor/Collector Paul Bettencourt, who resigned shortly after being re-elected in November.

Vasquez, who serves on the Texas Board of Criminal Justice and has held other state-level appointments, is the favorite of Harris County Judge Ed Emmett for the post, the Houston Chronicle reported in this morning’s editions.

From the Chronicle:

Neither Radack nor County Judge Ed Emmett officially would confirm his selection because court members are barred from polling one another outside of meetings. But Emmett said Vasquez definitely is on his short list.

“I would call him a very, very great choice,” Emmett said.

More on Vasquez, including some controversies:

Vasquez is chief financial officer for Maximus Coffee Group and Cadeco Industries, a Houston-based coffee processor and distributor. Prior to his 2005 appointment to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice Board, he served as a commissioner for the Texas Department of Licensing & Regulation for six years.

Vasquez, 42, said he is honored to be considered for the job, but mindful that the court still could pick someone else.

Bettencourt shocked county and political leaders earlier this month when he announced he planned to resign and accept an unspecified private-sector job offer. The outspoken Republican had just been elected to a third four-year term.

[...]

Shortly after the Chronicle posted a story about Vasquez on its Web site, a reader sent an e-mail showing Vasquez filed for bankruptcy in 2001 and was listed as the registered agent for several companies that lost their corporate charters for failing to pay their state franchise taxes.

Vasquez said the dealings were “ancient history” and added that he was only tangentially involved in most of them.

Most were formed in 1994, when he was part of a group of entrepreneurs trying to incubate new businesses, he said. Some of the group’s ventures flourished while others failed, he said, adding that he was surprised he was listed as the registered agent since he had so little to do with the start-up firms.

He said the Chapter 7 bankruptcy stemmed from the failure of a civil construction company in which he was a minority partner from 1995 to 1997. Although he left the company before it failed, he was unable to remove his name from personal guarantees he signed for construction equipment loans, he said. He filed for personal bankruptcy to clear that debt.

Radack said he was not familiar with Vasquez’s finances but stood by his choice.

“I guess you can say, Leo, welcome to the world of politics,” Radack said. “That’s what you’re seeing right now.”

Given that Vasquez is an appointee of Texas Governor Rick Perry to a state board, we were curious about his campaign contributions to Republican candidates and officeholders. We found several, including a contribution to former State Rep. Martha Wong (R-Houston) in 2004 and the Harris County Republican Party in 2003. At the federal level, Vasquez gave to U.S. Senator John Cornyn in 2002 and his most recent election in 2008, as well as to former Texas Governor George W. Bush’s presidential re-election campaign in 2004.

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