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May 11, 2020

County Judge Ricardo A. Samaniego

500 E. San Antonio
Suite 301
El Paso, Texas 79901

Judge Samaniego,

I am writing to provide formal notice that I made contact with Governor Abbott the evening of Friday,
May 8. I communicated to the Governor that El Paso was not ready for any further expansion due to our
increase in positive cases of COVID-19, and the hospitalization rates. I also inquired if a formal letter was
required of me, and he said a phone call would suffice but suggested we consider alternative options
before taking this action.

Governor Abbott and I agreed on the following:

 The Governor would send the Surge Response Team to El Paso to assist with more testing. The
mobile testing teams arrived in El Paso on Saturday, May 9, and began working with the Office
of Emergency Management to open four testing sites, which became operational on Monday,
May 10.
 Dr. John Zerwas, who is serving on the Governor’s Supply Chain Strike Force, will make sure we
have the hospital rooms and ventilators we need, should we experience a significant increase in
positive cases.
 A State Epidemiology Team will assist Dr. Ocaranza with hot spot analysis in order to address
outbreaks.

In collaboration with Dr. Hector Ocaranza and Chief Mario D’Agostino, Governor Abbott and I agreed to
reassess after the completion of the steps outlined above. I have also informed Representative Moody and
Senator-Elect Blanco of my discussions with the Governor, and our mutually agreed upon actions.

If we have not yielded positive results within a reasonable time as determined by the Department of
Public Health, I will proceed with requesting an exemption from further re-opening of our economy.

I look forward to continuing our work together on behalf of the El Paso Community. Should you have any
questions regarding my communication with the Governor, do not hesitate to contact me.

Sincerely,

Dee Margo

CC:
Dr. Hector Ocaranza, City/County Health Authority
Chief Mario D’Agostino
State Representative Joe Moody, District 78
Senator-Elect Cesar Blanco, District 29