RICHMOND, Texas (Covering Katy News) — The consequences of the weeks-long Fort Bend County Commissioners Court boycott by Commissioners Grady Prestage and Dexter McCoy continue to grow, threatening employee raises, county projects and now potentially the county's ability to compete for a reported $10.1 billion Tesla manufacturing plant.
County officials have warned that the continued absence of McCoy and Prestage could prevent critical budget and tax-rate votes, costing employees planned cost-of-living raises and delaying projects and services. Now the boycott could collide with one of the largest economic development opportunities in county history.
According to several published reports, Tesla is considering a roughly 3,050-acre site along FM 762 and FM 1994, south of the Brazos River, for what's been named Project Crystal Sun, a proposed solar manufacturing facility that could create nearly 10,000 permanent jobs. The site is in Prestage's Precinct 2.
Tesla has already asked Lamar Consolidated Independent School District for a property-tax abatement and is expected to seek incentives from Fort Bend County. The company's filings say incentives are part of its site-selection calculation and that the Fort Bend location would be less competitive without them.
Wong recusal changes the vote
County Judge Daniel Wong says he will recuse himself from any Commissioners Court vote involving Tesla because his engineering firm has worked with the company for years.
"My engineering firm has worked with Tesla for at least 5 years on buildings the company has constructed," Wong said. "That relationship predates my appointment as county judge. To avoid any concerns arising from that business relationship, I will not participate in any county vote involving Tesla."
That situation would normally not stop the vote but because of the Prestage, McCoy boycot it changes the dynamic drastically. With Wong not voting, three commissioners would be needed to approve the anticipated county tax abatement. Precinct 1 Commissioner Vincent Morales and Precinct 3 Commissioner Andy Meyers, both Republicans, have continued attending meetings. McCoy and Prestage, both Democrats, have not.
If both Democrats remain absent, only Republicans Morales and Meyers would be available to vote — one short of the three needed.
Focus turns to Prestage
Either McCoy or Prestage could provide the third vote. But McCoy, who is running against Wong for county judge, continues releasing videos and posting social media statements defending his boycott and has given no indication he plans to return.
If that continues, the focus would turn to Prestage, whose Precinct 2 is the reported location of the proposed facility and nearly 10,000 potential jobs. If McCoy remains absent, Prestage's return could determine whether Fort Bend County can act on a Tesla incentive package.
Tesla has not selected Fort Bend County. The company told the Texas Comptroller's Office that it is "evaluating the feasibility" of building the facility at locations in multiple states, according to Fox Business, and warned that Texas could "miss the opportunity to attract billions of dollars in investment" and thousands of jobs if the project goes elsewhere.
Also Read: Our open letter to readers and our response to claims made by the County Attorney
Boycott continues despite court hearings
McCoy and Prestage have said they would return if Wong steps aside during critical budget and tax-rate votes while litigation over the county judge's office remains pending.
They continue to rely on County Attorney Bridgette Smith-Lawson's position that Wong no longer has authority to serve. But during an Aug. 5 hearing, her own chief litigator, Kevin Hedges, told District Judge Edward Krenek that Wong "is entitled to exercise the powers of the county judge" while the legal dispute remains unresolved.
Five days later, visiting Judge Jeth Jones denied two motions seeking to alter his order that placed Wong in office. Separate litigation remains pending, but no subsequent court order has removed Wong.
Neither proceeding produced the outcome McCoy and Prestage have demanded — Wong stepping aside.
The boycott's consequences are no longer confined to the fight over the county judge's office. It has already threatened employee raises and disrupted the budget process. If it continues, the next consequence could be leaving Fort Bend County unable to act while Tesla decides where to invest $10.1 billion and create nearly 10,000 permanent jobs.
Covering Katy News owner and author of this article, Dennis Spellman, works in the Fort Bend County Precinct 3 Office. This article was independently reported and written by Covering Katy News using public records, court proceedings, published reports and attributable statements. No outside entity reviewed or approved the article before publication.
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