In what may have been a desperate and unlawful move to subvert the will of Dallas voters, Council Member Omar Narvaez proposed an amendment to the Dallas City Charter that would give council members the absolute authority to make budget determinations in contravention of any other stipulations in the charter.
The maneuver, executed on Wednesday during an hours-long Dallas City Council meeting, was likely intended to undermine several charter amendment proposals from a citizen-led petition campaign organized by the nonprofit Dallas HERO.
If approved by voters, Dallas HERO’s charter amendments would require the City to increase spending on public safety, tie the City manager’s bonus pay to an annual community survey measuring resident sentiment on things like crime and homelessness, and allow citizens to sue City leaders for failing to abide by the Dallas City Charter, Dallas City Code, and state laws.
“I move to amend the ordinance by adding a proposition adding provisions stating that City Council shall make the final determinations regarding appropriations of City funds and that any instructions in the charter regarding the appropriation of City funds for City employee wages serve only as recommendations for City Council’s consideration and that these provisions control over other provisions in the City charter,” Narvaez (District 6) said.
The Dallas City Council voted to advance the proposal in a 10-5 vote.
Narvaez claimed the City needed “some clarifying language in our charter when it comes to this,” noting that he came up with measure “at the very last minute” with the help of some “folks.”
Council Member Adam Bazaldua (District 7) proposed a similar amendment, which would grant City officials immunity through the charter, trumping one of Dallas HERO’s amendments.
Pete Marocco, the executive director of Dallas HERO, characterized the council members’ amendments as a desperate bid to undermine his group’s efforts and those of the people who signed its petitions.
“This is another perfect example of why we must have a charter floor that gives us a constitutional baseline so abusive council members like this cannot continue without accountability,” Marocco told The Dallas Express. “The suggestion that [Bazaldua] and Narvaez want total budget authority for the City Council, even where the charter mandates otherwise, and total immunity from any kind of civil claims, even where the charter expressly allows for suits. It is ostentatious and belligerent.”
“I have to wonder if these two clowns are just auditioning for their next radical job or if they’re just looking for sound bites because the two of them just sound like a couple of total buffoons,” Marocco added.
Marocco went on to suggest that the council members’ two amendments could face legal challenges, considering the whole production appeared to have been concocted on the fly with no public input or review by City bodies.
As previously reported by DX, Narvaez made headlines for yelling earlier in the meeting, suggesting that opposition to a charter amendment proposal that would allow non-citizens to serve on City commissions and boards was racist.