Governor Abbott Names Chair And Appoints Three To Board Of Department Of Motor Vehicles
Governor Greg Abbott has appointed Brett Graham to the Board of Department of Motor Vehicles for a term set to expire February 1, 2017 and appointed Kate Hardy and Gary Painter for terms set to expire February 1, 2021. Additionally, Governor Abbott has named Raymond Palacios, Jr. chair of the board. The board oversees and coordinates the development of the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles and ensures that all components of the motor vehicle industry function as a system.
Brett Graham of Denison is owner and CEO of Graham International. He is a board member of the Texas Association of Business and a member of the Texas Automobile Dealers Association and the Texas Tire Dealers Association. He is a trustee of Pottsboro Independent School District School Board, board secretary of Grayson Central Appraisal District, board chair of Texoma Health Foundation and Denison Development Foundation and a board member of Ameristate Bank. Graham received a Bachelor of Business Administration in marketing and real estate from Baylor University.
Kate Hardy of Trophy Club is director of General Motors (GM) Financial and has held various positions in the sales and marketing group with GM for over 30 years. Hardy received a Bachelor of Science in industrial management from Georgia Tech.
Gary Painter of Midland is Sheriff of Midland County and has over 45 years of law enforcement service. He is a lifetime member of the Sheriffs’ Association of Texas and a member of the National Sheriffs’ Association, Western States Sheriffs’ Association, Southwest Border Sheriffs’ Coalition and the Texas Police Association. He is a gubernatorial appointee on the Commission on Jail Standards, president of the Midland County Bail Bond Board, board member of the Attorney General’s Human Trafficking Task Force, and a member of the Interoperable Communications Board and Law Enforcement Academy Board for the Permian Basin Planning Commission. Painter received a Bachelor of Science in police administration.
Raymond Palacios, Jr. of El Paso is president of Bravo Cadillac in El Paso and Bravo Chevrolet Cadillac in Las Cruces, New Mexico. He is a member of the Community en Acion (CEA) Board, Council on Regional Economic Expansion and Educational Development Board and the Borderplex Alliance and the Board of Capital Bank Executive Board. He is a member and past district director of the Texas Automotive Dealers Association, past vice chair of General Motors' Minority Dealer Advisory Council and past member of the National Chevrolet Dealer Advisory Council and Hummer Dealer Advisory Council. Additionally, he is founder and past president of the University of Houston Hispanic Alumni Association, past president of the Association for the Advancement of Mexican Americans and a past board member of Leadership Houston, University of Houston Alumni Association, Yucca Council of the Boy Scouts of America and the El Paso Better Business Bureau. Palacios received a Bachelor of Business Administration in accounting from the University of Houston.