As a Dallas native who has served the community for more than 50 years, I’ve interacted with countless mayors and council members at City Hall. Through more than five decades of navigating politicians, city managers and others, I’ve learned a great deal about the games played at Dallas City Hall, political horse trades, favors and total lack of accountability. That is why I’m voting in favor of propositions S, T and U.
These three propositions complement each other to address crime and improve accountability at city hall. Contrary to the mainstream narrative, these propositions were driven by the people, 170,000 Dallas residents. For more than a decade, Dallas residents have suffered ineffective mayors and councils that have failed miserably to address the most important problems in Dallas. Billions of taxpayer dollars wasted, invested poorly with friends of city hall. We’ve suffered terrible city managers who should have been fired, but only political nonsense saved them.
Proposition U calls for prioritizing 50% of new revenue towards the police and fire pension system, a trust our city council disintegrated. On November 5th, we have an opportunity to rebuild the minimum ratio of three highly skilled officers to every 1,000 residents over three to five years, even though the law requiring this ratio has been in place for nearly 40 years—ignored by our city council and city manager. Propositions S and T are the sensible follow through.
Crime is a citywide problem. In much of Southern Dallas, the response time for a violent crime that risks loss of life averages a staggering 184 minutes despite a “goal” of 12 minutes. And while the city boasts violent crime is down, which is questionable at best, burglaries are out of control.
If you want to reduce crime and improve response times, you need minimal police staffing. If you want to hire the best police and retain them, you must pay them a competitive wage and offer the reassurance of a sound pension. Proposition U empowers us to attract and retain the best officers. Currently, the budget for new officer hires is allocated for a 12-month period; if the position is filled in month six, then the city manager has six months of lag salary dollars to game out and use somewhere else. The City Council’s fear mongering about Proposition U lie squarely in the transparent mandate that would disallow the systemic misallocation of funds in the current status quo.
Proposition S allows Dallas residents’ standing for ‘declaratory’ and ‘injunctive’ relief when the city violates the law, not money damages. The opposition claims this will bankrupt the city is pure nonsense. The proposition provides the city 60 days to solve the problem and has language to prevent frivolous lawsuits. What scares the City Council most, is that it requires city leaders to follow the same laws we’re expected to do. More importantly, it gives all of us a voice that we can take action without fear of reprisal on whatever issues or projects matter to us.
Proposition T means the city manager is accountable for results in the five most important areas to Dallas residents: crime, streets, homelessness, litter, and panhandling. Proposition T is right because city managers do not work for the mayor and the council – they work for us. The existing city survey could be increased to whatever sample the City Council determines. Proposition T also allows them to redo the survey, even raising the required sample size, provided it covers the quality of life issues we care about such as crime and housing. There is no good reason for the City Council to oppose this.
When you experience the inner workings of politics and city hall like I have, you can easily see the merits of propositions S, T and U. The fact that an opposition of political ‘elites’ has emerged but has no solution, no alternative, just angry voices for a small insular group with incestuous interests, should tell you everything you need to know. But the voice of Dallas residents is stronger. I urge you to rise up, go to the polls and vote with me FOR Propositions S, T and U.
Betty Culbreath is a Dallas native who currently serves as board chair of the Dallas Housing Authority. Over the course of her career, she has held myriad public service positions, such as chairwoman of the Dallas City Plan Commission, Dallas County Health and Human Services director, and chairwoman for the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport Board.