Carlos Truan
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Carlos Flores Truan Sr. (June 9, 1935 – April 10, 2012), was an American businessman from Corpus Christi, Texas, who served for thirty-four years as a
Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...
in both houses of the
Texas Legislature The Texas State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Texas. It is a bicameral body composed of a 31-member Senate and a 150-member House of Representatives. The state legislature meets at the Capitol in Austin. It is a p ...
. He was a
state representative A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United St ...
from 1969 to 1977 and a
senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...
from 1977 until his retirement in 2003.


Background

A native of Kleberg County, Truan worked various low-paying jobs as a youth to help support his single mother, Santos Flores Truan, and his siblings. In 1959, he graduated with a degree in
business administration Business administration is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. Overview The administration of a business includes the performance o ...
from
Texas A&M University–Kingsville Texas A&M University–Kingsville is a Public university, public research university in Kingsville, Texas, United States. It is the southernmost campus of the Texas A&M University System. The university developed the nation's first doctoral degr ...
, then known as Texas A&I University in Kingsville, Texas. He was active in the Hispanic
civil rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' political freedom, freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and ...
groups, the
League of United Latin American Citizens The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) is the largest and oldest Hispanic and Latin-American civil rights organization in the United States. It was established on February 17, 1929, in Corpus Christi, Texas, largely by Hispanic and ...
and the
American GI Forum The American GI Forum (AGIF) is a congressionally chartered Hispanic veterans and civil rights organization founded in 1948. Its motto is "Education is Our Freedom and Freedom should be Everybody's Business". AGIF operates chapters throughout ...
. He was also a member the
Kiwanis International Kiwanis International ( ) is an international service club founded in 1915 in Detroit, Michigan. It is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, and is found in more than 80 nations and geographic areas. In 1987, the organization ...
. In 1963, Truan married the former Elvira Munguia (born 1936), and the couple had four children, Carlos Truan Jr., Veronica Palmer, Rene Truan, and Maria Luisa Truan. He was a member of Most Precious Blood Catholic Church in Corpus Christi and the
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
men's organization, the
Knights of Columbus The Knights of Columbus (K of C) is a global Catholic Church, Catholic Fraternal and service organizations, fraternal service order founded by Michael J. McGivney, Blessed Michael J. McGivney. Membership is limited to practicing Catholic men. ...
.


Legislative highlights

In 1968, Truan was first elected to the state House from District 48, which encompassed both
Nueces The Nueces River ( ; , ) is a river in the U.S. state of Texas, about long. It drains a region in central and southern Texas southeastward into the Gulf of Mexico. It is the southernmost major river in Texas northeast of the Rio Grande. ''Nu ...
and Kleberg counties. Truan served four two-year terms until he moved up to the Senate in 1977. In 1985, he was elected by his colleagues as the Senate President Pro Tem, the first Hispanic in Texas given this designation. In 1986, he served as "Governor for a Day". In 1995, he became the first Hispanic to be named Dean of the Texas Senate, the member with the greatest seniority. He would remain dean until he left the chamber in January 2003. In 1969, Truan successfully sponsored the Texas Bilingual Education Act, which allowed for the first time some instruction in the Spanish language to non-English-speaking pupils. As a result of this legislation, he was called "the father of bilingual education". Representative Truan sponsored the Texas Public Housing Authority Act of 1969, and the Interstate Placement of Children Act in 1975. He uncovered institutional child-care abuses in Texas and was the author of the Texas Child Care Licensing Act of 1975. As chairman of the Human Resources Committee, Truan pushed for the Texas Adult Education Act of 1973, which established the
General Education Diploma The General Educational Development (GED) tests are a group of four academic subject tests in the United States and its territories certifying academic knowledge equivalent to a high school diploma. This certification is an alternative to the U ...
. Truan pushed successfully for legislation to regulate the flow of fresh water into
South Texas South Texas is a geographic and cultural region of the U.S. state of Texas that lies roughly south of—and includes—San Antonio. The southern and western boundary is the Rio Grande, and to the east it is the Gulf of Mexico. The population of th ...
bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a ''gulf'', ''sea'', ''sound'', or ''bight''. A ''cove'' is a small, ci ...
s and
estuaries An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...
. He worked to protect
redfish Redfish is a common name for several species of fish. It is most commonly applied to certain deep-sea rockfish in the genus ''Sebastes'', red drum from the genus ''Sciaenops'' or the reef dwelling snappers in the genus ''Lutjanus''. It is also app ...
and brown shrimp. He targeted the problem of
radioactive waste Radioactive waste is a type of hazardous waste that contains radioactive material. It is a result of many activities, including nuclear medicine, nuclear research, nuclear power generation, nuclear decommissioning, rare-earth mining, and nuclear ...
contaminating
drinking water Drinking water or potable water is water that is safe for ingestion, either when drunk directly in liquid form or consumed indirectly through food preparation. It is often (but not always) supplied through taps, in which case it is also calle ...
in South Texas. He sponsored the
Texas Open Beaches Act The Texas Open Beaches Act is a U.S. state of Texas law, passed in 1959 and amended in 1991, which guarantees free public access to beaches on the Gulf of Mexico: ''The public... shall have the free and unrestricted right of ingress and egress to ...
and was instrumental in the establishment of the Coastal Bend Bays Foundation. He worked to include
Corpus Christi Bay Corpus Christi Bay is a scenic semi-tropical bay on the Texas coast found in San Patricio and Nueces counties, next to the major city of Corpus Christi. It is separated from the Gulf of Mexico by Mustang Island, and is fed by the Nueces River ...
in the National Estuary Program. In 1971, Representative Truan was among the "Dirty Thirty" legislators who sought ethics reforms in light of the Sharpstown banking scandal, which decimated the ranks of state legislators in the 1972 elections and caused the defeat of
Speaker Speaker most commonly refers to: * Speaker, a person who produces speech * Loudspeaker, a device that produces sound ** Computer speakers Speaker, Speakers, or The Speaker may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * "Speaker" (song), by David ...
Gus Franklin Mutscher of Washington County. In 1979, Senator Truan was among the twelve Democrats in the upper chamber known as the "Killer Bees" who went into hiding, mostly at an apartment in
Austin Austin refers to: Common meanings * Austin, Texas, United States, a city * Austin (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin (surname), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin Motor Company, a British car manufac ...
, to prevent a
quorum A quorum is the minimum number of members of a group necessary to constitute the group at a meeting. In a deliberative assembly (a body that uses parliamentary procedure, such as a legislature), a quorum is necessary to conduct the business of ...
from legally acting on a bill that would have severed the presidential primary from the regular Texas state primary election. Had the legislation passed, Texas Democratic voters could, for instance, have crossed over into the Republican presidential primary and voted for former
Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...
John B. Connally Jr. John Bowden Connally Jr. (February 27, 1917June 15, 1993) was an American politician who served as the 39th governor of Texas from 1963 to 1969 and as the 61st United States secretary of the treasury from 1971 to 1972. He began his career as a De ...
, of Texas or former
Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...
Ronald W. Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party and became an important figure in ...
of California, the eventual nominee. In 1981, Truan conducted a one-man
filibuster A filibuster is a political procedure in which one or more members of a legislative body prolong debate on proposed legislation so as to delay or entirely prevent a decision. It is sometimes referred to as "talking a bill to death" or "talking ...
and spoke nonstop for twenty hours to kill a bill related to the
shrimping The shrimp fishery is a major global industry, with more than 3.4 million tons caught per year, chiefly in Asia. Rates of bycatch are unusually high for shrimp fishing, with the capture of sea turtles being especially contentious. A shrimper is a ...
industry, important to the economy of his district. He wore a device by which he could relieve himself while engaging in the filibuster. In 1993, Truan was chairman of the legislative
conference committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly or other form of organization. A committee may not itself be considered to be a form of assembly or a decision-making body. Usually, an assembly o ...
that allocated more than $200 million for new construction and renovation at several universities in
South Texas South Texas is a geographic and cultural region of the U.S. state of Texas that lies roughly south of—and includes—San Antonio. The southern and western boundary is the Rio Grande, and to the east it is the Gulf of Mexico. The population of th ...
. He also sponsored the legislation that established a birth defects registry. In 1999, Truan wrote the law which established the Texas A&M Coastal Bend Health Education Center in Corpus Christi, which conducts research and educates medical professionals. In 2001, he helped to secure the
Irma Lerma Rangel College of Pharmacy The Texas A&M University Irma Lerma Rangel College of Pharmacy, located on the campuses of Texas A&M University and Texas A&M University–Kingsville, is the pharmacy school of Texas A&M University and is a component of Texas A&M Health. The sc ...
at his alma mater, Texas A&M University-Kingsville, named for the late former legislator Irma Rangel. Despite his long-term accomplishments, the magazine ''
Texas Monthly ''Texas Monthly'' (stylized as ''TexasMonthly'') is a monthly American magazine headquartered in Downtown Austin, Texas. Founded in 1973 by Michael R. Levy, ''Texas Monthly'' chronicles life in contemporary Texas, writing on politics, the Natura ...
'' in June 2001 added Truan to its annual list of "Top 10 Worst Legislators". Senior editor Paul Burka attributed the low rating to Truan's best work having been not in 2001 and his failure to work well with colleagues. Truan had long been known for browbeating members who tried to block his agenda. In 1998, however, Truan had been named among the 100 most influential Hispanics in the United States by the publication, ''Hispanic Business Magazine''.


Death and legacy

After he left the Senate, Truan engaged in his insurance business in Corpus Christi. In 1959, he had begun his career with
New York Life Insurance Company New York Life Insurance Company (NYLIC) is the third-largest life insurance company and the largest mutual insurance, mutual life insurance company in the United States, and is ranked #69 on the 2025 Fortune 500 list of the largest U.S. corporat ...
and was a member of the Million Dollar Round Table. He died in Corpus Christi in the spring of 2012 at the age of seventy-six. He is interred at
Texas State Cemetery The Texas State Cemetery (TSC) is a cemetery located on about just east of downtown Austin, downtown Austin, Texas, Austin, the Capital (political), capital of the U.S. state of Texas. Originally the burial place of Edward Burleson, Texas Revo ...
in Austin. In December 2003, the Carlos Truan Natural Resources Building at
Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
, a facility for which he had obtained funding a decade earlier, was named in his honor. Carlos Truan Junior High School in the
Edcouch-Elsa independent school District Edcouch-Elsa Independent School District is a public school district based in Edcouch, Texas, Edcouch, Texas (United States, USA). In addition to Edcouch, the district also serves the city of Elsa, Texas, Elsa and a portion of La Blanca, Texas, ...
in Hidalgo County, Texas, is also named for him. The Democrat Hugo Berlanga, who succeeded Truan in the Texas House and served there from 1977 until his resignation in 1998, recalled his mentor, accordingly: "He was as tough as they came, but he had a soft heart. He never forgot where his roots were. ... Once he became your advocate, he was your champion. Once he decided something was the right thing to do, there was no backing off. I learned a lot from him."


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Truan, Carlos 1935 births 2012 deaths Democratic Party members of the Texas House of Representatives Democratic Party Texas state senators Hispanic and Latino American state legislators in Texas People from Kleberg County, Texas Politicians from Corpus Christi, Texas Businesspeople from Texas Activists for Hispanic and Latino American civil rights American civil rights activists Texas A&M University–Kingsville alumni Burials at Texas State Cemetery Activists from Texas Catholics from Texas 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century members of the Texas Legislature