Dallas Area Rapid Transit allegedly pushed an “outright lie” about a state representative from Dallas, according to a letter obtained by The Dallas Express.
Dallas Democratic state Rep. Yvonne Davis wrote Michael Morris in a June 17 letter obtained by The Dallas Express. Morris is a bureaucrat known as the “marriage counselor” between cities and DART.
“As one who has fought for DART from its inception, I am not only offended but extremely concerned that some DART executives have attempted to suggest that I undermined DART,” Davis wrote at the time.
“I remain appalled that this misrepresentation of the facts was started by DART’s staff and leadership to suggest I undermined DART,” she added. “As an advocate for DART, to suggest otherwise is irresponsible, reckless, and an outright lie.”
The Dallas Express reached out to Davis’ office, but did not hear back in time for publication.
Soon after, Dallas County Commissioner John Wiley Price wrote DART Chair Gary Slagel in a June 27 letter, also obtained by The Dallas Express. He expressed concern about a “malicious whisper campaign” against a “stalwart member of our Dallas County Texas House Delegation.”
“The narrative being peddled by DART is not based in reality,” he wrote at the time. “Unless DART leadership is prepared to back up any allegations with facts, this smear campaign must come to an end.”
The Dallas Express reached out to Price’s office, but he declined to comment.
Slagel replied July 2, in another letter obtained by The Dallas Express.
“We have been working diligently with our partners to understand and address their concerns, and we remain committed to finding a balanced and equitable resolution that best serves the needs of our communities,” he wrote at the time.
Slagel told The Dallas Express DART “deeply values our relationships with all elected officials” in member cities and across the state.
“Those relationships were key to us defeating ‘Defund DART’ legislation during the 89th Legislative Session,” Slagel said. “I won’t discuss private conversations, but I remain committed to working with all our legislative partners in good faith.”
A ‘Concentrated Effort to Misrepresent the Facts’
Some local member cities have been increasingly frustrated with the agency’s governance and funding, leading officials to back reform legislation – and ask Gov. Greg Abbott to include the bills in the special session.
DART’s board consists of a large majority from Dallas, while some suburban cities, such as Farmers Branch and Plano, are forced to share a single representative, as The Dallas Express previously reported. In 2023, Plano also saw a $65 million deficit in its contributions and services returned.
Senate Bill 2118 would have required an equal number of representatives on the DART board for each member city. House Bill 3187 would let cities spend 25% of their sales tax revenue on “general mobility” programs instead of DART. The legislation ultimately failed to pass.
Davis wrote Morris – the long-time transportation director at the North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG) – saying she supported DART “from its inception.” However, she was concerned that the agency was spreading rumors that she had “undermined DART” during the legislative session.
“After several conversations with individuals regarding the recent DART legislation, it is apparent there is a concentrated effort to misrepresent the facts, actions and outcomes,” she wrote. “I am dismayed as well as disappointed that this discussion evolves [sic] around personality versus facts.”
Davis said she had “multiple meetings with DART,” where she encouraged officials to negotiate a plan with member cities before the session.
While Davis said there was “a notion that I did not help DART,” she actually hosted a meeting with officials from DART and the City of Plano.
“There was a general understanding among everyone that there was no desire to harm DART, but to look for a mutual approach to address Plano’s issue,” she said. “We all agreed to go back and come up with recommendations from both sides.”
Plano’s mayor was “very open,” while DART was “somewhat reluctant,” according to Davis. Plano provided an offer, which she presented to DART.
“They refused to provide any feedback at the time,” Davis said. “The DART board member did receive the offer, and indicated that he would share it with the DART leadership and get back to me.”
DART eventually responded and said “the proposal was unacceptable, without offering any recommendation or suggestions,” according to Davis.
Legislators advanced the reforms the next day, although SB 2118 and HB 3187 ultimately stalled in committee.
“How that translates into me not standing with DART is simply incorrect and a gross misrepresentation of the facts,” Davis said.
A ‘Malicious Whisper Campaign’
When Price wrote Slagel weeks later, he expressed concerns that “DART leadership is mischaracterizing activities” during the session by a “stalwart member of our Dallas County Texas House Delegation.”
“When it became apparent the politics have shifted against DART, how many of our fourteen house delegation members stepped up to the plate to directly intervene?” he wrote at the time. “And what is the reward? A malicious whisper campaign against one of DART’s most prominent advocates.”
The narrative was “not based in reality,” according to Price, who called on Slagel to back up allegations with facts, or end the “smear campaign.”
“DART’s actions, or rather inaction, before, during, and after legislative session have done grievous harm to the organization at the expense of our shared residents who depend on public transportation,” Price wrote.
He emphasized his history supporting the agency, “since before DART even existed.” Price called it a “vital service for our shared constituents” to access transportation.
“However, we cannot sit idly by and watch DART leadership continue to fail at addressing an issue that has percolated for the better part of a decade,” he wrote.
Price said he thought Plano’s support for legislative reforms would be “bad for our community,” and would “financially cripple DART” and its services for “vulnerable residents.”
“But, it was, and still is, the only proposal of real substance on the table,” he wrote. “DART’s refusal to act in good faith to work out a solution for member cities’ issues is even worse for our community than the City of Plano’s proposal.”
He asked Slagel how DART plans to resolve the conflict before the next legislative session, when more reforms could potentially pass.
“We must admit to ourselves that the politics of this issue are turning against DART and it is entirely due to DART leadership’s unwillingness to legitimately negotiate,” Price said. “What are we going to do when member cities start opting-out of DART entirely?”
Cities’ next window to let voters opt out of DART is in 2026. Price called on DART’s leadership to engage in an “earnest discussion” on how to preserve services.
“DART escaped Austin by the skin if [sic] their teeth,” Price wrote. “Fix this now so a legislative body without our community’s interests in mind doesn’t feel compelled to.”
A ‘Compromise’ Or a ‘Poison Pill’?
Slagel responded to Price on July 2, emphasizing DART’s dedication to “working through” different challenges with its member cities.
“DART is committed to working collaboratively and transparently with all member cities,” he wrote. “In a good faith effort to address concerns and promote collaboration, the DART Board approved a resolution in March that, among other things, created a General Mobility Program (GMP) as a compromise solution.”
The GMP would redirect 5% of the sales tax from DART back to several member cities – leaving a $42-43 million budget shortfall, which could trigger some of the largest service cuts in history.
“To fund the program, we intended to seek replacement funding from the Regional Transportation Council, which has unfortunately not materialized,” Slagel said in his reply.
The RTC is part of Morris’ group, NCTCOG. As The Dallas Express exclusively reported, in a June 3 letter to Slagel, Morris declined to request additional DART funding from the RTC, as member cities were still pursuing reforms.
“Since those cities elected to maintain a legislative path, as stated previously, staff will not be requesting financial assistance of the RTC,” Morris wrote Slagel at the time.
Still, in his reply to Price, Slagel said DART is “doing everything we can” to minimize service cuts. “Our priority is to preserve as much service as we can while honoring the resolution.”
Just weeks later, on July 17, Slagel wrote to member city mayors, asking them to drop DART reform legislation in exchange for GMP funding, as The Dallas Express exclusively reported.
“We ask you to clarify your position on receiving the GMP by committing not to pursue any further legislation against DART,” he wrote at the time.
Carrollton Mayor Steve Babick previously told The Dallas Express Slagel had proposed the GMP “to solve locally, only to now hold it as a poison pill for local cities.”