June 1 Forum to Feature Texas Secretary of State Carlos Cascos
May 23, 2016
On June 1, the Washington County Chamber of Commerce will host the Governor’s Small Business Forum in Brenham, co-hosted by the Navasota-Grimes County Chamber, Burleson County Chamber and Research Valley Partnership. The forum is sponsored by the Office of the Governor, Bluebonnet Electric, Brenham National Bank and Citizens State Bank.
It will be a half-day event designed to provide small business owners and entrepreneurs an opportunity to gain knowledge and contacts to grow in today’s changing economy.
Held at the Fireman’s Training Center in Brenham, attendees will hear from several powerful speakers. The keynote speaker will be Texas Secretary of State Carlos Cascos. As his first appointment, Governor Greg Abbott nominated Cascos to serve as Texas Secretary of State. He is the 110th Texas Secretary of State. Not new to public service, Secretary Cascos was elected as Cameron County Judge in 2006 and was re-elected in 2010 and again in 2014. Previously, Secretary Cascos served on the Texas Public Safety Commission and as a Cameron County Commissioner from 1991 through 2002.
As county judge, Secretary Cascos served in a number of statewide roles including chairman of the Texas Border Security Council, Vice-chair of the Panama Canal Stakeholder Workgroup, and Vice-chair of the state’s Freight Advising Committee. An active member of his community, Secretary Cascos served as a board member of numerous local organizations such as United Way, Sunrise Rotary Club, Leadership Brownsville, and the Brownsville Economic Development Council.
A Certified Public Accountant, Secretary Cascos is a partner in the regional accounting firm of Pattillo, Brown & Hill, LLP. Born in Mexico and becoming a U.S. citizen in adolescence, Secretary Cascos attended Brownsville public schools and is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin.
Another featured speaker will be Dale Craymer of Texas Taxpayers and Research Association. Craymer is TTARA's president and chief spokesperson. He is an expert on state business tax, particularly the franchise or “margin” tax, as well as the state budget and the economy. He is a frequent advisor to public officials and is often asked to provide expert testimony on fiscal issues. He is a member of Texas’ Business Tax Advisory Committee and the National Taxpayers Conference, and has previously served on the executive Boards of both the National Association of State Budget Officers and the Council of Governor's Policy Advisors.
Before joining TTARA, Craymer served as the Director of Budget and Planning for the Governor's Office, Chief Fiscal Analyst for the House of Representatives, and as Chief Revenue Estimator for the Texas Comptroller's Office. He is an honors graduate of the University of Texas with a B.A. (Plan II) and M.A. in Economics.
Another speaker will be Dr. Thomas Tunstall, research director at the UTSA Institute for Economic Development. Dr. Tunstall is a renowned TED Talk presenter. He has been the principal investigator for several economic impact and workforce development reports including the Eagle Ford and Cline Shale. He spent a significant portion of his career on workforce and economic development assignments overseas. He will provide an update on Oil & Gas Industry activity.
Rounding up our speaker list is Anh Nguyen of Amplified Marketing. Both of Anh’s parents were entrepreneurs so you might say the draw of entrepreneurship runs in the family. When Anh was first introduced to social media, she immediately saw the potential for marketing a business or brand! It’s an important tool for organizations of any size. She works with clients across various industries on their marketing efforts – both traditional and digital.
Anh is a founding Board member of the Social Media Association of Houston and is responsible for the organization’s outreach efforts to potential sponsors and members. She is on the planning committee for Houston’s Social Media Day Conference, held on June 30th. She also hosts MobileChat, which is a weekly Twitter chat on all things mobile. Recently, Anh was invited by IBM Mobile to attend the IBM Amplify Conference, being held May 17-18, as a Futurist and social influencer.
Anh also firmly believes that as business professionals, we each have a responsibility to be examples of social good and giving back to our communities. She serves on the Board of the Arthritis Foundation of Houston and volunteers heavily for their mission to find a cure.
Senator Lois Kolkhorst will be on the program along with Texas Workforce Commissioner Ruth Hughs. The forum will be moderated by Brice Milliorn of Edward Jones in Brenham.
A major highlight of the event will be the presentation of the 2016 Small Business of the Year Awards for Burleson, Grimes and Washington counties.
Doors will open at 8 a.m. with forum speakers beginning at 8:15 a.m. Lunch is included, and the forum will conclude at 1:30 p.m. Tickets are $49 until May 27 ($59 after). Reserved corporate tables are available for $499, which includes tickets for 8 people plus company names displayed at the event, online and included on the printed program.
For more information or to reserve tickets, contact the Washington County Chamber at (979) 836-3695 or www.BrenhamTexas.com.
It will be a half-day event designed to provide small business owners and entrepreneurs an opportunity to gain knowledge and contacts to grow in today’s changing economy.
Held at the Fireman’s Training Center in Brenham, attendees will hear from several powerful speakers. The keynote speaker will be Texas Secretary of State Carlos Cascos. As his first appointment, Governor Greg Abbott nominated Cascos to serve as Texas Secretary of State. He is the 110th Texas Secretary of State. Not new to public service, Secretary Cascos was elected as Cameron County Judge in 2006 and was re-elected in 2010 and again in 2014. Previously, Secretary Cascos served on the Texas Public Safety Commission and as a Cameron County Commissioner from 1991 through 2002.
As county judge, Secretary Cascos served in a number of statewide roles including chairman of the Texas Border Security Council, Vice-chair of the Panama Canal Stakeholder Workgroup, and Vice-chair of the state’s Freight Advising Committee. An active member of his community, Secretary Cascos served as a board member of numerous local organizations such as United Way, Sunrise Rotary Club, Leadership Brownsville, and the Brownsville Economic Development Council.
A Certified Public Accountant, Secretary Cascos is a partner in the regional accounting firm of Pattillo, Brown & Hill, LLP. Born in Mexico and becoming a U.S. citizen in adolescence, Secretary Cascos attended Brownsville public schools and is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin.
Another featured speaker will be Dale Craymer of Texas Taxpayers and Research Association. Craymer is TTARA's president and chief spokesperson. He is an expert on state business tax, particularly the franchise or “margin” tax, as well as the state budget and the economy. He is a frequent advisor to public officials and is often asked to provide expert testimony on fiscal issues. He is a member of Texas’ Business Tax Advisory Committee and the National Taxpayers Conference, and has previously served on the executive Boards of both the National Association of State Budget Officers and the Council of Governor's Policy Advisors.
Before joining TTARA, Craymer served as the Director of Budget and Planning for the Governor's Office, Chief Fiscal Analyst for the House of Representatives, and as Chief Revenue Estimator for the Texas Comptroller's Office. He is an honors graduate of the University of Texas with a B.A. (Plan II) and M.A. in Economics.
Another speaker will be Dr. Thomas Tunstall, research director at the UTSA Institute for Economic Development. Dr. Tunstall is a renowned TED Talk presenter. He has been the principal investigator for several economic impact and workforce development reports including the Eagle Ford and Cline Shale. He spent a significant portion of his career on workforce and economic development assignments overseas. He will provide an update on Oil & Gas Industry activity.
Rounding up our speaker list is Anh Nguyen of Amplified Marketing. Both of Anh’s parents were entrepreneurs so you might say the draw of entrepreneurship runs in the family. When Anh was first introduced to social media, she immediately saw the potential for marketing a business or brand! It’s an important tool for organizations of any size. She works with clients across various industries on their marketing efforts – both traditional and digital.
Anh is a founding Board member of the Social Media Association of Houston and is responsible for the organization’s outreach efforts to potential sponsors and members. She is on the planning committee for Houston’s Social Media Day Conference, held on June 30th. She also hosts MobileChat, which is a weekly Twitter chat on all things mobile. Recently, Anh was invited by IBM Mobile to attend the IBM Amplify Conference, being held May 17-18, as a Futurist and social influencer.
Anh also firmly believes that as business professionals, we each have a responsibility to be examples of social good and giving back to our communities. She serves on the Board of the Arthritis Foundation of Houston and volunteers heavily for their mission to find a cure.
Senator Lois Kolkhorst will be on the program along with Texas Workforce Commissioner Ruth Hughs. The forum will be moderated by Brice Milliorn of Edward Jones in Brenham.
A major highlight of the event will be the presentation of the 2016 Small Business of the Year Awards for Burleson, Grimes and Washington counties.
Doors will open at 8 a.m. with forum speakers beginning at 8:15 a.m. Lunch is included, and the forum will conclude at 1:30 p.m. Tickets are $49 until May 27 ($59 after). Reserved corporate tables are available for $499, which includes tickets for 8 people plus company names displayed at the event, online and included on the printed program.
For more information or to reserve tickets, contact the Washington County Chamber at (979) 836-3695 or www.BrenhamTexas.com.
