Tarrant County GOP Chair Bo French has uncovered various contracts with former city and school district officials in Mansfield that cost local taxpayers thousands of dollars.
Former Mansfield City Councilmember Casey Lewis, who served in Place 4 from 2018 until 2024, was hired in 2024 as the city’s “chief sustainability officer,” with a salary of nearly $9,000 bi-weekly.
According to French’s findings, Lewis’ appointment to chief sustainability officer may violate the city charter and the law. According to the Mansfield City Charter, no council member may be employed by the city for one year after their term in office. However, Lewis was hired the same year he left office and is already receiving payment from the city.
Although the city claims that he is a contract worker—a loophole in the charter—records uncovered by French show Lewis has an office in a city government building, an official city email, and an official office phone with a city extension.
Additionally, it was found that Lewis’ hiring was made without public notice and there appeared to be no bidding process on the contract work Lewis was hired to do.
“If this is the case, the hiring could potentially violate not only the City Charter but also hiring law or Equal Employment Opportunity rules. Certain ethical questions also arise from this hiring. If this decision serves a private interest rather than a public interest, would it violate the fiduciary duty of the City Council and City Manager, potentially opening them up to legal liability? Would the immediate hiring of a former City Councilman for such a large salary potentially violate conflict of interest norms?” questioned French.
Mansfield Mayor Pro Tem Todd Tonore told Texas Scorecard the city manager oversees all hiring decisions, with only the city manager, city attorney, and city secretary reporting directly to the city council, explaining the lack of public notice.
Meanwhile, French exposed another instance of questionable ethics.
Donald Williams, a previous associate superintendent for communications and marketing at Mansfield Independent School District, retired from his post this year and was contracted to serve as a “chief communication officer” for the city. The contract shows a salary of $7,307 bi-weekly plus a monthly $750 vehicle allowance—$184,384 per year.
However, City Councilmember Larry Broseh said that Williams declined the position after two weeks.
“One that has seemed to lose steam is the issue of Donald Williams being an employee of the city. I have found out that he was offered a position in Communications but turned it down after 2 weeks,” said Broseh. “Had he stayed in that position, there were no improprieties with the offer based on state and local statutes.”
Broseh also expressed disappoint with French’s expose, stating, “He took a lengthy statement that originated from a disgruntled retired employee and citizen of Mansfield without vetting it at all. Had he done so, the article would have read very differently.”
“Mansfield city council is comprised of 6 conservative council members and I find it hard to believe that a Conservative leader would bash us the way this article has,” said Broseh. “This is an attempt to fragment our party in its finest form!”
French told Texas Scorecard, that this recent exposè is just the first of many revelations that will show voters what is going on in Mansfield.
“The impropriety we are digging into in Mansfield echoes many other cities in Texas. We are just getting started exposing what taxpayers are upset about,” said French. “Whether Mansfield or Fort Worth, I believe these issues highlight why voters need to be more engaged than ever. You can’t fix the government if you don’t vote.”
Tonore’s response to French’s accusations is printed below in full:
“Casey’s company was hired by our city manager as an independent contractor (1099), not an employee. The role he is playing is a very vital one to our city and will ultimately generate millions in property tax and sales tax revenue. If you have ever tried to build a project in a city of any size, especially one over 100 million dollars, the process you must go thru [sic] is extremely challenging. Our MEDC (Mansfield Economic Development Department) has done a great job recruiting companies to Mansfield, example HEB and many others. Once we get someone to agree to come, the work begins. Having someone that totally understands our policies, procedures, ordinances, engineering requirements, possible funding mechanisms available from the state and federal government, etc. helps speed up the time we get them to open up their doors and start producing tax revenue. Casey’s experience from working on multiple projects with staff as a six-year council member is priceless. If our city was built out or not growing, you could do without a lot of folks and pay folks a lot less. That’s simply not the case. Not only are we growing but so is our neighbors, Grand Prairie, Arlington, and Midlothian. I personally want our city manager to surround himself with the best staff and consultants available to him as I personally do in all my businesses… Note: Our city manager does not make decisions without consulting with legal staff both internally and at the county & state levels. Council has zero say over who is hired and fired. Only the city manager, city secretary, and city attorney report directly to the council. All the 500 plus employees and all consultants report to the city manager thru [sic] department heads.”