Several cities across Texas have recently ditched their city managers as the highly paid bureaucrats fail to meet expectations.
Most notably, the City of Austin fired City Manager Spencer Cronk for failures related to the city’s weak infrastructure, which was unable to withstand an ice storm over the winter, and unsatisfactory negotiations with the police union.
Since then, Jesús Garza, Austin’s interim city manager, has been criticized for various problems, including pulling Austin out of its law enforcement partnership with the Texas Department of Public Safety. Garza made the decision after allegations surfaced that DPS troopers pointed a gun at a child during a traffic stop. These accusations were later debunked.
Meanwhile, Pearland fired City Manager Clay Pearson after budgeting calculations left the city more than $10 million short.
El Paso also terminated City Manager Tommy Gonzalez after nearly nine years in the position. The City of Odessa likewise recently got rid of City Manager Michael Marrero.
In Dallas, City Manager T.C. Broadnax escaped a close call last year as momentum gathered in City Hall to fire him. Frustration over his handling of responsibilities such as the permitting process, IT concerns, and mismanagement of other departments led Mayor Eric Johnson to suggest “it was time for a change at the top of our city government.”
However, “after some serious and frank discussions,” the mayor and Broadnax reached an agreement that allowed the city manager to retain his position.
At the time, Broadnax admitted, “I can be better. I understand that I am fully accountable to my 15 bosses. So today, I want to say to the mayor, to the members of the City Council, and to all the residents of this dynamic city: I accept the challenge.”
Broadnax not only retained his job but managed to get a pay raise as well, now raking in a salary of roughly $423,000 annually — more than the salary of the president of the United States.
Since then, however, Dallas has continued to struggle with permitting issues, staffing shortages, and IT problems.
In May, the City was allegedly hit by a ransomware attack that crippled the technological capabilities of Dallas’ emergency response system, forcing workers to go back to using pen and paper, as reported by The Dallas Express.
More than three months after that alleged attack, Broadnax still has not managed to restore some key City functions, including important aspects of publicly accessible crime data, as covered by The Dallas Express.
Broadnax is not the only city manager to draw a sizable taxpayer-funded salary. Many city managers enjoy six-figure salaries, sometimes upwards of $300,000 annually.
Rep. Brian Harrison (R-Midlothian) filed a bill in the last legislative session that would require all government employees’ salaries to be less than that of Gov. Greg Abbott, who receives $153,750 for his service.
“The main concern for me, as an elected official, is the custody and stewardship of hundreds of thousands of Texans’ hard-earned tax dollars,” Harrison told The Dallas Express.
“I’ve got constituents that are genuinely struggling to figure out how they’re even going pay the property taxes to be able to stay in their home,” he explained. “Especially in periods of high inflation and economic uncertainty.”
The bill did not pass.
This article was updated on August 9 to reflect the correct name of former El Paso City Manager Tommy Gonzalez.
