Trey Martinez Fischer

Trey Martinez Fischer
File:Rep Trey Martinez Fischer.jpg
Member of the Texas House of Representatives from the 116th district
In office 2000-2017
Preceded by	Leo Alvarado, Jr.
Succeeded by	Diana Arrevalo (pending)
Personal details
Born	(1970-06-05) June 5, 1970 San Antonio, Texas, USA
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Elizabeth Marie Provencio Fischer
Children	Francesca and Camilla Fischer
Residence	San Antonio, Texas
Nickname(s)	TMF

Trey Martinez Fischer (born June 6, 1970) is a Democratic departing member of the Texas House of Representatives, who has represented the San Antonio-based 116th District since 2000. In January 2017, he will be succeeded in the position by Diana Arevalo, the secretary for the Bexar County Democratic Party and a former White House intern.

Martinez Fischer, as he is known, was born and reared in San Antonio. He graduated from Oliver Wendell Holmes High School, at which he was a member of the school's Hall of Fame. He received his Bachelor of Arts from the University of Texas at San Antonio, and in 1994 was selected to study as a National Urban Fellow . He is a graduate of Baruch College of Public Affairs in New York City, and the University of Texas School of Law.

He is currently serving his seventh and last term representing House District 116. He was named one of the "10 Best Legislators" by Texas Monthly Magazine in both 2013 and 2015, who described him as a "soldier prepared to do battle but ready to make peace". The Houston Chronicle and the San Francisco Chronicle named him one of the "20 Latino political rising stars of 2012", placing him among those under 55, "who just might change the face of American politics over the next two decades". Campaigns and Elections Magazine named him a “Texas Influencer” and one of the Top-50 Democrats in the state.

Martinez Fischer is the chairman of the Mexican American Legislative Caucus, the oldest and largest Latino legislative caucus in the United States. During his chairmanship, the caucus has emerged as one of the leading Latino public policy organizations and the “group to watch” in the Texas Legislature according to The Economist magazine. In 2012, Martinez Fischer led the Mexican American Legislative Caucus to victory in two court battles concerning redistricting and voter/photo identification in Texas.

Legislative career

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Trey Martinez Fischer on the House Floor

Born and reared in San Antonio, Martinez Fischer was first elected to the District 118 seat in the Texas House of Representatives in 2000. He was worked with the San Antonio business community throughout his legislative career. In 2009, he authored HB 1922, which doubled the capacity of San Antonio to provide recycled water to businesses to meet the demands of expanding industries while also conserving water for the region. He authored an amendment requiring the state Employee Retirement System to hire emerging fund managers, many from minority and women-owned businesses. In 2011, he was the lead Democratic author on HB 3727, the Boeing Bill, which created hundreds of manufacturing jobs in San Antonio to build, test, and repair the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. As a result of this bill, Air Force One will be refitted and repaired in San Antonio.

He was selected by House Speaker Joe Straus to sit on the Select Committee on Transparency in State Agency Operations, and the Select Committee on Redistricting during the first called special session of the 83rd Legislature.

Martinez Fischer was named the “Bull of the Brazos”, an award given by Texas Monthly magazine, recognizing him among the best in the legislature. Texas Monthly wrote: “without TMF the Democrats would have had no champion at all”. He has also been recognized as the “2013 Friend of Education” and a “Legislative Star” by the Texas Classroom Teachers Association for fighting what it considered to be harmful legislation.

Martinez Fischer played a role in restoring education funding to Texas schools and was a major player in the state budget negotiations that resulted in $3.9 billion in increased education funding. He is an advocate for government transparency and accountability as a member of the Select Committee on Transparency in State Operations and fought to preserve the voting rights of all Texans on the Select Redistricting Committee.

On February 17, 2015, Martinez Fischer was handily defeated in a special election by fellow Democratic House colleague Jose Menendez for the District 26 seat in the Texas Senate, a position vacated by Leticia Van de Putte, who ran unsuccessfully for lieutenant governor in 2014 and for mayor of San Antonio in 2015.

Rather than seek reelection to the state House, Martinez Fischer challenged Menendez for a full Senate term in the Democratic primary on March 1, 2016. A number of lobbyists and political action committees which had supported Martinez Fischer switched allegiance to the incumbent Menendez, whose campaign chairman is Colin Strother, who has worked in numerous campaigns for U.S. Representative Henry Cuellar in Texas' 28th congressional district.

In a debate before the American Association of Retired Persons in San Antonio, Menendez noted that Martinez Fischer would have become dean of the Bexar County state House delegation had he stayed in the House. Martinez Fischer did assume the Bexar County legislative dean's position on February 1, 2016, with the retirement of colleague Ruth McClendon. "Trey did a great job in the House killing many, many bills. ... We have differences of opinion, we debate. We're passionate about it, but we're also respectful about it," said Menendez.

With the power of incumbency for just a year, Menendez prevailed in the Democratic senatorial primary, 31,046 votes (59.2 percent) to Martinez Fischer's 21,383 (40.8 percent). Menendez is unopposed in the November 8 general election in the heavily Democratic district.

Martinez Fischer's House seat will be assumed in January 2017 by Democratic county chairperson Diana Arrevalo, who handily defeated Martinez Fischer's protégé, Martin Golando, in the March 1 primary election, 53 to 29 percent of the ballots cast. Golando is a civil rights attorney who spent a decade at the state capital as chief of staff to Martinez Fischer. He outraised and outspent Arrevalo and gained the most endorsements, including County Judge Nelson Wolff and the Sheriff's Association of Bexar County, but was handily defeated.

Sponsored legislation

• HB 670 - Relating to a qualified privilege of a journalist not to testify.
• HB 758 - Relating to the creation of an offense for certain prohibited uses of a wireless communication device while operating a motor vehicle.
• HB 1922 - Relating to the authorization of certain reuse water system contributions and discharges
• HB 3727 - Relating to the appraisal for ad valorem tax purposes of certain commercial aircraft that are temporarily located in this state for manufacturing or assembly purposes.
• HB 21 - Relating to a central database containing information about offenders who have committed certain offenses against children or offenses involving family or dating violence.

Controversy

On June 27, 2014, while speaking at the Texas Democratic Convention, Martinez Fischer used an ethnic slur in Spanish to describe the Republican Party, saying "GOP" should stand for "gringos y otros pendejos." His office had also been handing out six Lotería cards to delegates, one depicting Republican gubernatorial candidate Greg Abbott as "El Diablito." Martinez Fischer later responded by saying that if he had known Abbott was in attendance, he would have "told him directly to his face."

Personal life

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Representative Trey Martinez Fischer with his wife, Elizabeth Marie Provencio, and their two daughters, Francesca (left) and Camilla (right)

Martinez Fischer has practiced before state and federal courts throughout Texas since his admission to the bar. He and his wife, Elizabeth Provencio, an attorney and San Antonio Water System trustee, are the parents of two daughters, Francesca and Camilla.

External links

• Texas House of Representatives - Trey Martinez Fischer
• Mexican American Legislative Caucus Chairman
• Texas Tribune Profile
• Personal Campaign Website