We have a We do. Good morning and welcome to the special called Tarant County Commissioners Court meeting of Seems like there's a lot of feedback there. of Monday, September 22nd, 2025. I now call the meeting to order.
Tim O'Hare, County Judge, present. Rodri Miles, Jr., commissioner, precinct one, here. Alisa Simmons, commissioner precinct 2. Matt Krauss, commissioner precinct 3, here. Manny Ramirez, commissioner precinct 4. Here. Constitutes forum.
How we doing now? Better. Okay. All right. Today's invocation will be led by our public health director, Dr. Brian Bird. Please rise for the invocation and our pledges to our flags. Thank you, judge and commissioners. Please pray with me.
Now, this morning, we pray to you, Father, Son, Holy Spirit. We bow our heads in humility and in reverence and supplication to you. For as you said uh apart from you Lord we can do nothing. Yes it
was you who told us seek the peace and the prosperity where we are planted in those two things which are hard to come by. Lord we ask for those this morning. Peace and prosperity for our county. We pray for every person on this dis. Lord
fill us with your wisdom, knowledge and understanding. Lord, we pray this in the name of the one who said before Abraham was, I am. And who said, I will lay my life down and I will take it up again.
We pray this in the name of the one who is coming again. His precious name is Jesus. Amen. Amen. Amen. Thank you, Dr. Bird. Please join me in the pledge of allegiance to our flag. I pledge algiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the
republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. And now the Texas flag. Honor the Texas flag. I pledge algiance to thee Texas. One state under God. One
and indivisible. Thank you. May be seated. All right. Do we have any announcements from our commissioners? I I'll just say uh real quick, I don't know if uh you had the chance to watch the uh Charlie Kirk memorial service
yesterday. Um but for anybody who did not, I would encourage you to go look for Erica Kirk, the widow of Charlie Kirk, to watch her speech. Uh it was one of the most moving, powerful, uh important addresses I think that uh
we've heard in a long time. And so very articulate again, very powerful, lots of forgiveness. And uh just seeing person after person elevate the person of Jesus Christ yesterday in our uh in our uh country being live streamed to hundreds of millions of people was uh pretty
inspiring and encouraging to me. So again, I would encourage you to go watch that Erica Kirk uh speech. It was uh quite moving. Thank you, Commissioner Krauss. Anything? Nope. Okay. All right. Now, we move to our first item, which is 5A1, consideration
of Tarant County's tax rate and resolution for tax year 2025. I move that the property tax rate for Tarant County be decreased by the adoption of a tax rate of 0.1862 per $100 in value, which is a 69%
decrease in the property tax rate and will raise more property tax revenue than the previous year. Second. We have a motion and a second. Any discussion before speakers? Yes. Colleagues, neighbors, and residents of Taran
County, today I must speak with honesty and conviction about the decision that's before us. I will vote no on the proposed tax rate. That is not a decision made for
headlines, nor it is a move in some political contest. It is my decision that's rooted in responsibility. Responsibility to the people who depend on this county every single day.
At the heart of my decision are the men and women who make Taran County work. Our county staff are the foundation of every service we provide. They are the ones who answer emergency calls, who keep our courts open,
who care for our most vulnerable neighbors, and who maintain the infrastructure that allows this county to grow. Without them, the promises we make to the public would never become reality.
To threaten those staff, to use their jobs or their livelihoods as bargaining chips in political disputes, in my opinion, is to undermine the very foundation of our county. It erodess public trust, weakens morale, and
jeopardizes the ability of government to meet even the most basic needs of our people. Our staff are not pawns to be moved for partisan gain. They are public servants who deserve stability, respect, and the tools to do their work
with dignity. I am especially mindful of the future of the JPS hospital system. JPS is not just a hospital. It is the heartbeat of our public health safety net. It is where working families turn for
care, where the uninsured find hope, where our frontline responders receive care in emergencies, and where lives are saved every day. Undermining his future would be to jeopardize the well-being of every community in this county.
I will continue to work with anyone, regardless of party, who understands how essential JPS is to the health and security of our people. Lowering taxes can be a worthy goal, but when it is done with regard
for growth, with regard for needs, and with without regard for people, it's when it's without regard for needs and without regard for people. it ceases to be responsible. True fiscal responsibility requires
balance. It requires us to use every tax dollar wisely, but also to ensure that we have the resources to meet the needs of today while preparing for the challenges of tomorrow. My faith teaches me that leadership is
rooted in compassion, not destruction, about lifting people up, not tearing institutions down. As affirmed in Matthew 25:45, when we fail to care for the most vulnerable and overlooked, it is if we
have turned our backs on Jesus himself. That scripture doesn't just inspire me, it holds me accountable. It reminds me that public services are not about advancing political interests. It's about serving people with dignity,
purpose, and unwavering commitment. That is the standard I bring to this role, and it is why I will vote no against the lowering of tax rates. I believe the strength of Taran County would not be measured by how much political gangmanship takes place in this chamber,
but how faithfully we serve the people who depend on us. And that begins with protecting the and valuing the staff who make every service possible. I was not here last week because I was sick.
I had strep throat and a severe urinary tract infection that had me doubled over in the bed all week long. My fever did not break until Thursday. I did not miss
court today because I am not willing to risk the lives of the people that serve alongside me because of political gains. I'm not willing to
do that. I'm not willing to jeopardize being able to support the residents who I represent by having all of my budget pretty much decimated because
of political points. I would appeal to the members of this court that we rise above political agendas, partisanship, and do what's best in the interests of people.
Let's not strip away the livelihood of people who have committed their lives and their time and their service to this county because we're upset because quorum was broken. I heard it said that uh actions have consequences and I don't disagree with
that. But when the consequences include people who had no part in the actions, that's unfair and that's unjust. The people that worked with alongside me did not give their permission to have their jobs taken away from them or threaten to
have their jobs taken away from them. The residents of Taran County Precinct One did not commit to saying we don't want to have representation. We don't want to have people who can't provide for us, who advocate for us, or to support us. They had no role in that.
So, they should not be pawns in a political game. I'm not pointing any fingers at anybody. I'm just stating what I believe is the current affairs that we are sitting here dealing with today. Let's not use
people. We were elected to serve people, not use them for political points. We were elected to represent all people, not just the ones that agree with us. And for those in my community, my
commitment and my pledge has always been from day one to serve you unapologetically, to stand up for you, to advocate for you, to make sure that you have the things that you need to be able to enjoy what we call the American dream.
That's my job. My job is to serve people. My job is not to serve political agendas. My job is not to serve uh different ideologies. My job is to serve people and I'm going to serve people to the
best of my ability. I'm going to do what God what I believe God has put on my heart to do to represent people well to make the name of Jesus great in the earth in the way that I carry myself.
I will not be bullied by anybody. I'm going to do what I believe is right. I'm going to stand up for truth even if I have to stand by myself. That's how much I take this. That's how seriously I take the work that we do
here. And it is my prayer, my colleagues, that we would rise above and rise up to live out what we profess as our faith. And that is to take care of people.
That's all I got. And it's my desire and my prayer is that we lay aside all of these differences and reinstitute the original budget so that each one of us can serve the people that we were elected to serve.
Lay aside your consequences and let's do what's right for Tarant County. Let's do what's right for people. Let's do what's right for the faith that we profess. Thank you. Thank you. Anyone else? Oh, Commissioner
Miles, I appreciate you being here today. Um, I know we we we discussed uh, you know, your reasons for being gone last week, and I appreciate the fact that, um, you've stated that it was not an intentional quorum break on your part. Um, because in my perspective,
they can do that in Austin, they can do that in DC, but we don't do that in Tarant County. In Tarant County, whenever you say you're here to represent people, you show up to represent them. And at the end of the day, when we say actions have consequences, the consequence is that those folks don't have representation. I
mean, you talk about the consequence on people. It's the citizens of Taran County that don't get a tax rate voted on. How we operate here is you show up, you dialogue, you discuss, and sometimes your perspective carries the day and wins, and sometimes it doesn't, but you
show up and you take part. And so in my perspective, that's the way that responsible government is run. Um, I've heard a lot of untrue things stated about the impacts of this tax rate cut. Not a single additional person working in a road system or a maintenance
facility is losing their job. Literally, the amendment last week was to just not add 20 additional people to the budget. That was it. There's no additional road miles. They just got reortioned through redistricting. So at the end of the day, all that means is that two commissioners
have to work together. Commissioner Krauss and I share a lot of borders. We work together. We work together on a lot of projects. I mean, we talked it talks about cutting services. We've heard a lot of talk about cutting services. At the end of the day, we've actually
provided more money in this budget for those particular services being rental assistance, food assistance. there are more actual dollars going into the community in this budget than we're going to go in under the previous tax rate. So, I I I do think that we have to
start with a place of truth if we're going to have that conversation. But at the end of the day, no matter how much some folks want to position themselves as victims in this story, that's not the case. This court is showing up to be responsible for the citizens of Tarant
County, to be responsible for lowering the tax rate when we can and doing it as effectively and efficiently as we can. And at the end of the day, the fact is no services are cut. Citizens will still
receive the services that they ought to and that they um elected us to provide. And so that's why I support this budget. It's never been about politics for me in this budget cycle. Not one bit. But whenever we had an attempted or I guess
it wasn't a quorum break, uh but for some it was. And that to me was irresponsible. We can't do that to the citizens of Taran County. We don't operate that way here. We work together. We've worked together. And so I'm glad you're here and I look forward to continuing to work
together with you. So I appreciate your comments. I appreciate your passion and I appreciate your perspective. Thank you. Okay. So, before we before we vote, well, we got we also have speakers, too. Before the speakers, so just so I'm
clear that I'm hearing what you're saying, you are not going to slash the budgets of precinct one and precinct 2. We're going to reinstate the budgets the way they were originally submitted. is
well that's something that's something else. The second item that's the second item the second item but but also I think you said two different things there not not intentionally but I think let's take that up when we get to the budget. Okay. Okay. Anything else before we go to
speakers? All right. First speaker is Bishop Kirkland. Following Mr. Kirkland is Charles Weedmire. Uh 2% the difference of what we're bickering over is 2%. 2% is not worth the employees being cast out in the street.
That's right. I love JPS. If I have a broken arm or a minor injury, I don't want to go to JPS. But if I need a level one, a Alevel trauma center, I want to be at JPS.
I'm a 22year veteran Marine. It took all the discipline within my body to sit there and listen to you, Commissioner Rmmeritz. I was here Wednesday. The judge explicitly said that their staffs
would be cut to one person. Now, we could come in and place charades and try to switch the horse behind the cart. now because of the way it looked or the bias that there is. But the truth
of the matter is the judge said what he said and I sat in that seat and I heard him say what he said and I think that is petty. I think that is childish. I think that is immature. I spoke I had an opportunity to speak
with Commissioner Simmons and I thank her for giving me her time. She's out of the state right now for a funeral. And I think it's bad. I think it's bad that on a Monday morning that we're
sitting down and and and people who work for the county, meet me in the elevator coming up or going down. So, I'm glad you're here. I can't get out the door without people saying that because people walk
around here on eggshells because they're frightened about the dictatorship. And we could come and we could have these meet. I quit writing speeches. I I quit writing speeches because I know y'all don't listen. And I'm not going to spend two hours writing speech that's
going to fall on death ears. All of this talking about how we need to come together to reason and bargain. That does not happen. We come in this room and everybody here know what the vote is going to be.
It is only shifted one time in the last two years and that's when you voted in that special meeting not to close those vote those voting locations. Commissioner Ramirez, that has been the only time that there's been a switch in
the way things are carried out around here. And let's tell the truth, he threatened to take these people jobs. He threatened to send their staffs home. And for the people who live in the in the districts where I or the precincts I
represent, they would have been harmed. They would have been damaged. And they would have been hurt by that retaliatory action. Mr. Mr. Weedmire. Following Mr. Weedmire, we have Joe Palmer. Good morning, Judge O'Hare. Fellow
commissioners, I'm here to support the lower tax rate and the adoption of the budget. I think those are good things. Tarant County administration has earned my support by the fruit that you guys are producing. It's not the words that
count. It's the fruit. I walked up here on the sidewalk. The brass was polished on not only was the waste can empty, but the brass was polished. The buildings clean. There's security outside. Uh meetings are held uh in a in a
respectful manner. Uh violators of that policy are ejected. I appreciate your comments, uh Commissioner Miles and uh Commissioner Manning. So the fruit is really good. One evidence of that fruit was something I
uncovered in the Dallas Morning News of all places this weekend. There was an article about a new program that Tarant County is adopting. It's called Count the Kicks. It's led by Brian Dr. Brian Bird um health administrator and it's a
program to save uh children. pregnant women can enroll in this program in Tarant County at no cost and and help themselves deliver healthy babies and avoid stillborn babies. Uh in other
places it's adopted stills by 30% and that translates to 43 babies saved in Tarant County if we use this program. It's been adopted. uh it's currently being used by the health administration
and this is just another example of good management delivering good fruit in Tarant County. So thank you all. I appreciate you. Thank you. Is Mr. Palmer? There's another spill. All right. So
next is read bills. Following bills we have Linda for The proposed 2025 tax rate is.1875 which is below the new revenue rate that would still be a decrease for Tarant
County taxpayers. The proposed lower tax rate comes at the expense of vital services to residents who are paying for these services with their tax dollars. Included in the sacrifices created to
allow the proposed rate are the following. The human services department that provides emergency rental and utility assistance. public health personnel who provide protection against disease and health
care to county residents, reductions in staff positions for precincts one and two that provide services to half the county, and elimination of election sites that will suppress access to voting.
I urge you to set the reasonable tax rate of 1866 in order to continue to provide for the constituents you were elected to serve. Linda Ford present.
Next we would have Harriet Harold and then Sandra. I have concerns about the tax rate. If all five commissioners had worked together from March through August, you
could and should have agreed on budget priorities and therefore what tax rate was actually needed. This decision should not be political. It should be based on the needs of the
county. Instead, we are tossing fractions of cents around without clear information about what the impact really is on both homeowners and the county budget. For clarity, your court communication
says that the 1862 rate will raise less than last year, but your resolution says it will raise 18 million more. I'm going with the resolution. So the no new revenue rate from TAD is.1866.
That is a cut from last year's875. Even so projected tax revenue rises from last year's 511 million to about 538 to 555 million. Well above last year. That
means you could adopt the no new revenue rate of866 cut the tax rate from last year and still have millions more to meet the needs of a growing county. Yet you
propose 1862, which still raises $18 millions more than last year, but your budget is $21 million less than last year. To be clear, even at your low rate, you have
more tax revenue, but a smaller budget. Therefore, the service cuts in the new budget are not being forced by the tax rate. They are caused by your choice to cut jobs and provide fewer services.
In summary, it only makes sense to stay with the no new revenue rate of.1866, cutting the rate while still giving the county significant new funds. And I urge you to involve staff and citizens in
setting the priorities for how those additional funds are used. The budget office told us that budgets can always be changed. Let's make this one better. Is Miss present? Following Miss Culie, we have Buff
Kaiser. Good morning, commissioners and judge. Um, I'm against the proposed budget. The lower tax rate, the cuts to critical services are too deep and will harm the people of Tarant County that you have
sworn to serve. And of course, it will hurt black, brown, poor, and working poor people living on the edge the most. Can we just return to responsible,
humane, and civil court? This political nonsense going on at the top just freaks me out. It makes me shake to come here. It upsets me. I can't watch the news. And y'all are all just part of
it. This is silly. And judge, I hold you responsible. Matt Krauss, you're next. and Commissioner Manny RmIrez. I don't know where your head is, but it's not helping the people of Tarant County.
Um, back to this. I've never felt the need to come down here when Judge Whitley was our judge. I trusted him and I didn't come down here till I was 69. And that's
all just because of Tim O'Hare and Tim and Matt Krauss. If you would like for me to sit at home, do your job. Represent the people of Taran County. Don't cut our the stuff that our people need. Don't cut our hospitals. Don't cut
our funds for voting. This is just ridiculous. Y'all are children and I'm an old lady and I get tired of coming down here. Every time you're going to save me a dollar on my taxes, every time I come down here, I pay 10 bucks to
park. This is just nonsense and enough. And the words of Rodney King, can't we all just get along? Following Mr. Kaiser, we have Dana Capetti. Commissioner Buff Kaiser, resident of
Fort Worth. Listening carefully to the tax rate discussions the last few meetings, I'm persuaded that the tax proceeds we have permit the proposed tax rate reduction. Tax rate reductions were an important
component in the election campaigns of many of our commissioners and something those who voted for you are looking to be realized. We need fiscal discipline in our county. We need to continue to trim excess
spending and not knowingly underestimate revenue sources and levels experienced over many years. Balanced, sensible tax rates are not just good policy. They're essential to the long-term vitality and
attractiveness of our area. They affect how families plan, how businesses invest, and how our community grows. Thank you for your service. Thank you. Is Miss Capetti here? Yes, sir. Following Miss Capetti, we have Pamela
Young. Good morning, Judge O'Hare. Good morning, commissioners. Thank you for being here and thank you for serving the citizens of Tarant County. I'm here today to speak in support of the tax rate. I appreciate the fiscal conservative nature that um this body
has achieved in reducing our taxes. Um, I find that the well-being of our citizens in an era of rising property values and persistent inflation providing even a small measure of tax relief demonstrates responsible stewardship of public funds and a
commitment to keeping government lean while maintaining essential services. I don't need to take up a lot more time. I support what you're doing and I thank you. Thank you. Is Pamela Young present? All right. Next, we have Linda Henry.
Following Miss Hanratty is Dorene Guyger. Please do not lower the county tax rate in these times of uncertainty. At December December December September 3rd, 2025 meeting, I mentioned three
strains on your budget. federal funding cuts, redistricting costs both for administrative changes and legal expenses, and potential legal liabilities for jail deaths. These are continuing issues. But in addition,
higher inflation and the worsening job market will make the need for more county services, not less, imperative. County taxes have minimal impact on our overall real estate taxes, but your services are important. It is a slap in
the face to taxpayers to cut county staff and thus services while at the same time providing remaining county staff, including yourselves, a pay raise. Your raises are particularly gling given your already relatively high salaries and your effort to stifle
citizen comments by reducing commissioner's court meetings in to one per month. Thank you. Thank you. Uh Dorene Guyger is next. Is Miss Gger here? All right. Next is Nidia Cardinus.
Following Miss Cardinas is Estelle Williams. Hello. And I know that in the rules there's um I'm not supposed to be calling you any names, so I'm actually here to call myself names. Um which is to say that I kind of feel like an idiot today because I still felt like you
would have the best interest of our constituents of our community in mind. And in continuing to cut our budget, I feel like as the previous speaker was saying, you're not thinking long term. like we're just one disaster away from a ton of people just like we've seen in
other parts of Texas and do we have the ability to actually resource our community during those times right now and we're seeing the federal government cut their budget and so are we trying to rely on them like our city is doing like Fort Worth is doing of saying we need $40 million from the from the federal
government in order to be able to pay our bills and so I'm just really feeling like wow I thought that people who run for office maybe could still care about our constituents, but I feel like I keep coming to these meetings and feeling like an idiot. Like, what are we even doing here? Because you're sending your
like personal agendas and you're not actually thinking about the long-term health of our county. And um just know that we are very excited to find people that are going to run against you. Uh Estelle Williams, is she present? All
right. Next is Alexander Montalvo. And then following Mr. Montalvo is Carla Palamarus. Is that the last name or is there another one? Okay. So, we came here to commissioner's court, but all we're getting is a bunch of community theater, it looks like,
because the gas lighting, the stench of the gas lighting is heavy in this room. Manny, you want to talk about people are supposed to come here to serve. I've never heard you actually press the sheriff to show up and to
address the community and the number of deaths that are happening in the jail. I've never seen you push for accountability in that space. And then you want to gaslight everybody and say, "Oh, in Tarant County, we're here to serve." No. What the three of you are
here to do is to push an extremist agenda that is rooted in authoritarianism to try to destroy the lives of diverse community members. That is y'all's agenda. You don't want us reading books,
Matt. They're going to educate our community. Oh, you don't want us to have funds to try to protect communities that are dealing with hardships. or need health services.
You want to go on Twitter and call the opposition to your extremist values demons. When have you ever when have you ever seen me call anyone a demon? Twitter. Go look at your Twitter account. Go look at your Twitter account. Yeah. Never. Go look at your Twitter account. Yeah. Go look at your Twitter account. Okay.
And the people can go look at your Twitter account, too. You say this is not political. It's all political. Everything y'all are doing is political for power to oppress people and I and
others will continue to stand to fight against what y'all are trying to do in Tarant County. And history shows us that we will win. That your approach and your rule through fascism is not
going to work. A lot of people will get harmed unfortunately, but in the end we win. So gaslight all you want the people of Tarant County. Lie to them in your official seats that
you have for the time being. But know that we will continue to organize to serve the people. And it doesn't matter what political party you're a part of to be honest. If you're not going to serve the people, we are going to replace everybody who is
not committed to that cause. And it is deeply disappointing, Rodri, that you are here today. And it is de deeply disappointing to hear this performative speech you gave to start off this meeting. So, you're going to get what y'all want
today, but it's going to be for a limited time. Uh, who are you, ma'am? I'm Linda Ford. Okay. Hi, my name is Linda Ford. I wanted to thank y'all for being here today and I also want to thank Commissioner Miles
for coming. I know that this is a difficult situation, but I am in support of the tax cuts and I understand it is not going to affect any of our services. Um, so I feel like what y'all are doing is trying to help us out. My husband and
I are getting towards that age where we're going to be retiring and one of the things that we have looked at is what we can live off of through our investments and everything and there's been some big discussions and I just want to say anywhere we can save a penny
or two it does help. So I do appreciate it appreciate you coming today and um I'm in support. Thank you. Thank you. Is Carla Palomy present? All right, that's the last speaker on this item. So, we have a motion on a
second and a second on this item. Any further discussion? Okay, please cast your votes. Okay, so the motion passes. How do I publish? I don't have a button.
There it is. The motion passes 3 to one. All right. Now, we are going to take this next item out of order for so we can go have legal advice on the budget. Uh so the next item on the agenda is that we're going to take up is consideration of Tarant County Hospital
District's tax rate and resolution for tax year 2025. And I will make the following motion. I move that the property tax rate for the Tarant County Hospital District be decreased by the adoption of a tax rate
of 0.1650 per $100 in value, which is a 9.59% decrease in the property tax rate and will raise less property tax revenue than the previous year. Second. We have a motion and a second on this
item. Discussion before speakers. I I I'll just make one point. Um, we keep talking about Commissioner Miles. I know cutting services, making sure JPS stays at the top is is one of your priorities. It's one of my priorities, too. And I would not be voting for this
if I thought we were hurting that in any way. If we remember, we go back to the numbers. We asked JPS, "What do you need to fully function, fully plan for the future, fully help out?" They said, "We need this budget plus we need to have about $151 million in net excess income
at the end of the year. What we're voting on today would give JPS everything in their budget up to about and then 124 to 126 million in their net excess income. And then we looked remember we had that those sheets of
paper that said this year we budgeted this and we actually took in more than we thought. We took in this we took in more than we thought. Even last year after the budget cut or the tax rate cut, they still took in a hundred million extra dollars over what they had
planned based on the budget. So I'm very confident that Tarant County JPS system is going to make up that delta from the tax rate that we are having today, which only gives them $124 million net income. I bet you they uh by the end of next
year they will come in not only at $151 million net excess income, which they said is what they absolutely need to do everything they want to do and everything they need to do. We're going to be over that number. And if not, I will be more than happy to say I was wrong in my analysis and my evaluation
how I looked at those numbers. But I also hope that if we come in above that number that the people who are saying we're trying to hurt JPS, we're trying to hurt Tarant County uh taxpayers from getting the health care that they need. I hope they will actually admit that they were wrong in their analysis
because I've not heard one person say who's against this tax rate cut. You know what? We were wrong last year. We thought this was going to hurt services, but JPS actually took in a hundred million more dollars than they said they were going to need. I haven't heard anybody say that from the hospital to
the citizens to other people talking. So I just hope we will all have this in context when we come back in here next year and JPS has taken in over 151 million net excess income dollars that people will say you know what they were right in that analysis. we were able to
deliver all the first class worldclass care that we could at JPS that we need to do which I want to continue to make sure we do without sacrificing any services or any ability to plan for the future. Let's just all be honest and be willing to admit if we were wrong or if we were right and that's why I feel so
confident in voting for this today because we will come in next year we will be above that 151 million excess number and we will not have had to cut any services. So, I've heard a lot of terms politics and gaslighting and uh I
was not aware property tax rate cuts were about politics because I thought Republicans, Democrats, independents, and apolitical people all paid property taxes. Uh in addition, the people who high property taxes hurt the most are
the poor that we so often hear Democrats say they're for. And when you are cutting property taxes, you are helping the poorest in our community the most. While most people in this room, getting
back $35 or $50 is probably not that big a deal for a lot of people in our community, it is a big deal and it means a lot. But I've also heard a lot about gaslighting on not providing services.
So, last week, this court, and by the way, I haven't seen you till now. I'm glad you're feeling better. Uh, with you being sick, this court and the three people here present, who last I checked were all Republicans, voted for the JPS
budget, a budget of $1.782 billion to provide care for the poor and those in need. So the idea that somehow we are
taking money away from the brown and the black and the poors, it's the facts don't bear it out, but it doesn't stop many of you from repeating it over and over and over. The reality is if you listen to Dr. Duncan, she specifically
stated not one vital service would be cut, not one plan to treat people would change. And she said the exact same thing the year before when we lowered the tax rate, which produced
100 million more dollars in profit than they had budgeted. So may sound good, may make for good talking points, but there is a level of dishonesty from people in this room and on social media
and you are the ones that continually cry politics, politics, politics. However, the reality is we are providing for people and we are providing for care for the poor and we are providing for
members of every single community regardless of color, ethnicity, national origin or anything else. So the gaslighting, we know where it's coming from. It's not coming from here.
Anything else? Yeah, I'll just say, you know, initially anytime that the JPS rate comes up, uh, I don't listen to pundits. I don't listen to to talking points. I go directly to Dr. Duncan. I go directly to JPS leadership, the CF, the brand new
CFO, the board members that are tasked with putting these plans together for future expansion and the rest. Uh, and and absolutely, I'm committed, just as Commissioner Krauss said, to making sure that we maintain one of the best hospitals in the nation because that's what it is. I mean, year after year, it's recognized it's one of the best
hospitals in the nation. And so, when I ask Dr. Duncan directly if this budget's responsible, if this budget will satisfy every single need that they need today and for the future, and she tells me yes, that's what my decision is based off of. I mean, JPS is deeply personal
to me. I was born at JPS. I mean, it serves those who need service the most. And so I I I absolutely agree with with your perspective that serving the people is is the number one priority. I just don't see uh the controversy swirling
when quite literally the sources of the people that that put these budgets together that put put the plans in place are informing us to make these decisions that it's responsible. And so I that's why I support this tax rate. That's why
I support it is because the experts that are working in the field have told us that it's all right. So, I have not had the opportunity to speak to Dr. Duncan recently, but when she came to my office, her and
I believe her name is Kim, the CFO. Yep. And they met with me and they provided their budget and their proposed rate, which was below the no new revenue rate. She said that we can operate from this budget.
When we came the last time I was in court and Matt, I believe is correct, came and did that presentation on the numbers. And it wasn't shared with us beforehand. It was presented at
court and Dr. Duncan and Kim were caught off guard. Well, that was my observation. It may not be accurate, but that was my observation and they were like
it was it caught them off guard and they said to me when I met with them the budget that they proposed was the one that they could operate and function from. And so that's the premise that I'm operating from is from what they shared with me. They did not speak and share
with me that they could operate from a lower uh rate that was proposed. I haven't had the opportunity to speak with her or Kim since that time. And the other thing that I will say is
we are guessing at this. We're guessing. We're making assumptions and we are guessing at what will work for them. We don't know. There's nobody has a definitive answer that this will work and this won't work. Yeah. And and I think that's very fair
in reasoned analysis. I I totally see how you get to that point, but I think you hit the nail on the head. We're guessing at this point. I I'm going to let Matt finish. Then I'm I thought you had some Well, I I was just say I think we are guessing, but thanks to the data that Matt brought us
at that meeting, every time we've guessed, we've underged it by a lot. Tens of millions, hundreds of millions of dollars. So, I think it's also fair and reasonable to say we could still lower the tax rate knowing that we do under guess by so much more every year
and still get to the place that we want to be. Now, like I said, we could be here next August of 2026 and we didn't hit that number. We didn't even come close because who knows of the various variables that happened at the in the world, in the country, in the state, in the local government. And I'm I'm
willing to say I was wrong. Um, but I just don't think we're going to get there. So I I agree with the analysis and how you got there. I just think you can also we we can get there even with the lower tax rate to to to your point and I think I made the comment during that court session. I
too did do not like changing day of um any any plans anything like that. I mean we we in the future need to have a working session prior to this court approving that budget so that there are no um whether it was a surprise or not so there are no surprises. uh if that
were the case. But but at the end of the day, you know, when when it was brought up, Dr. Duncan and Kim satisfied um you know, my uh interest and concerns. Uh but I do agree going forward, we've got to collaborate a little bit closer. I mean, we always keep an arms length. We
put incredible board members on that JPS board uh to run that $2 billion hospital system so that we don't have to. Um, but on that checks and balances, making sure we've got to make sure we're collaborating through the planning process so that it doesn't get to where we disagree or where there's any
surprises year-over-year. So, I I agree with that point. That's well taken. Thank you. And so, Go ahead. No, go ahead, Judge. So, Commissioner Ms., just a couple things. Um, we had a meeting, myself, Chandler, Helen, Matt with Kim, and Dr. Duncan the
Friday before that vote. So we went over a lot of these numbers. They put their own together, but I had put them together the previous two years. So everything except this year's numbers I had put together and shared
with previous courts. None of those numbers were a surprise to them. And discussing how do you budget? Where's this? None of it was surprise. but also uh without naming names or trying to throw some under the bus, a board member met with me and said they
would bring the budget over, go over it and we could discuss the tax rate. They never came. They never showed up and next thing I know they were voting on it um on a morning where they said they had to put in a placeholder.
So when last week when you were out um I went and talked to both of them in the hall during a break and said if we pass this budget with the 165 rate tell me where the money is going to be different
and the only two places it would be different is what they told me in their budget is total property tax revenue taken in and total net income projected. So I if if the total net income
projected is down and I I have my staff looking at this. We just don't have the answer yet. If it's down from their projected number or the projected number I guess I would say we've passed it would have it will be the first time that we know of in seven years where that would have happened. And that's
only because we went back seven. So, I'm having them go back at least 20 years to look and see what those numbers are because again, I don't think, and people can disagree, I don't think it's political looking at numbers and dollars and net income, but at the end of the
day, what's the net income to be used for? The net income is to be used for the new tower and the new structures to build a new hospital. And that is going to be here. So looking at numbers, and this is one of the
things you missed last week, unless you went back and looked at it or watched it or whatever, is in the the capital plan, they have $35 million in the capital plan for tearing down the old hospital
once the new tower is up. Um, no one has reached out anywhere to see if somebody might want to buy the building, rent the building. Um, nobody has looked at anything. It was just tear it down and spend $35 million to do so. I think at
the very least that needs to be explored to look is there a way for that to be a revenue generator as opposed to a $35 million hole taken out of bond money or taken out of property tax money. So, I think all of those things are what
anyone who has a fiduciary responsibility to taxpayers, to people in need, you look at those things. It's not I don't think that's political. If you want to think it's political, knock yourself out. Uh but I think that's what we what we should do. And at the end of
the day, we have oversight over this, whether we wish we did or we didn't. And I can't sit there in good conscience and just watch somebody go say, "All right, we're going to sp $35 million when somebody might have been willing to pay $10 million, fix that building up and put in a new kind of medical facility or
put in housing for people that work at the hospital." There's there's tons of options that should be looked at and I think moving forward um that's something that I I suspect they'll do. Okay. Last comment that I'll make on
this is when I did meet with Dr. Duncan and Kim, they talked about the capital fund and the purpose for the capital fund was to plan for growth. I asked I said, "Well, what is the occupancy of the hospital currently?" And she said,
"We're over 90%." That's now I think that we need to be able to fund healthy uh healthy funding for growth. We need to
be able to make sure that they have more than enough money to do everything that they need to do, right? Because when the original bond was passed, prices were different. We were in a different time. prices have escalated tremendously with tariffs and things of that nature. The
the cost has gone up and I don't foresee the cost going down anytime soon to build. Um, and then the other thing that I would I would con I would ask us to consider and think about when the cuts to Medicaid that have happened with the
big beautiful bill, how is that going to impact JPS and their ability to take care of people? People who don't have insurance, people who don't have the benefit of having health care are
already flooding the hospital. Those individuals who were depending upon Medicare, when it's gone, they're going to flood the hospital even more. And it's not just going to be JPS, it'll be private hospitals as well. And so those are things that I want us to consider
when we're considering lowering the tax rate below what they already recommended, which was below the no new revenue rate. I mean, we could talk about that. We could debate about this all day. Those are just things that I think about and I consider. Thank you. All right. Anybody have
anything else before we bring speakers? All right. The first speaker is Dion. It says Psalms. Sims. Yeah. I I didn't think that was what it was, but that's what it says. My apologies. Miss Sims, then Bishop Kirkland. Hi, I am Deion Sims. And Rod, you took
the things that I was going to say. Um, thank you for allowing me the chance to speak. First of all, I um want to speak to the danger of cutting JPS budget beyond even what
their own board managers proposed. The JPS board already presented a budget below the no new revenue rate, showing their fiscal restraint, still protecting patient care. Yet, this court has taken it even lower to 165.
Let's be clear, JPS is not a luxury. It is a safety net hospital for Taran County which has the best urgent care. Our first responders when they are in in situations go to JPS. They don't go to a
they go to because we have the best trauma center at JPS. And so it's not just a safety net for the indigent and the lowincome. Our first responders go there. And so cutting its budget uh in these uncertain times is shortsighted
and harmful. Construction costs for the new hospital towers are rising. We still have the terrorists to deal with and that's up and down. Who knows where that's going to go. And once they're built, we still have to maintain and operate them. At the same time, we don't know yet the full impact of, like you
said, President Trump's so-called big beautiful bill and its proposed cuts to Medicare and Medicaid. If those cuts take place, even the regular people, not the low and indigent people, but regular people are going to be coming to JPS for care.
And that's not just, you know, unconscionable to think that we're going to be cutting people in an uncertain time. So reducing their resources now undermines our countries and our counties ability to meet that challenge. And for what, an average taxpayer
savings of $30 a year? while JPS loses millions that it needs to keep our community healthy. It's really not a fair trade-off. And I think that people, even those who, you know, say that their property taxes, you know, could be reduced by that little would be willing
to support our county. And so, for the record, I just oppose this dangerous reduction and urge the court to restore funding to at least what they proposed u to protect the health and dignity of Taran County citizens. Thank you, Bishop Kirkland. And then Joe
Palmer, I I want to start by saying, judge, when we go off script, you throw us out or you redirect us. Because Alex upset you, you went back to the last topic, but because it's your play pin, you get to
do as you please. The thing that bothers me most, and there's a trust issue number one, but the thing that bothers me most, and all due respect, I'm not challenging your integrity, Mr. Ramirez,
or even Judge O'Hare when you met people in a quarter or even you when you said they came to uh Dr. Duncan came to your office. Those all sidebars. We're not in those sidebars. We don't know what's discussed.
All we know is what the CEO said to us and what Dr. Duncan said to us in this room. Now, let's forget how brilliant cuz if you take numbers and you good enough, you can make numbers say
whatever you want them to say. So, and so whenever and so Matt and Mr. Matt, I don't like first names. I I I looked at your your presentation. It was great, but you're not a CEO of a
hospital. You're not a doctor. So, that was frivolous to me. They came and stood at this podium. They held their heads in their hands gasping during that meeting because of
what we were saying was not adding up to what they needed. So our problem is when you have these sidebars, when these people do talk to you, you come talk to people who don't see you as trustworthy trustees and tell us about some side
deal. We'd love to be on those conversations. All I know is what they said in this room. So regardless of how we can manipulate the numbers, there is no way you could tell me you could do
less, do more with less. There's no way. And I do want to say, and I feel a little weird saying I agree with Judge O'Hara in this aspect, that there is something we do need to do rather than spending $35 million. There are some
more options that need to be explored. And it's just making me feel funny inside. And I agree. He might not recover. All right. Is Joe Palmer present? All right. Next, we have Dr. Harold. Following Dr. Harrell, we have Sandra
Culie. You've probably all been through leadership training in one context or another. And I suspect you were told what every leadership course emphasizes. You're not a leader unless you have followers. And followers follow only
those whom they respect. I am asking for respect from you to the Tarant County Hospital District, an essential partner for this county. It deserves respect and so does its leadership. Not one of you is trained as a
physician, nor have you run a large public hospital. So it is folly to assume that you can determine how much revenue is required to provide the health care services that our residents
need now and in the future. Once again, it's the process that I'm concerned about. Clearly, all five commissioners have not had the same information about what you were proposing for the hospital
district. Um, nor are you fully informed about the needs for their reserves. How much do you know about health threats they must prepare for? You've assumed that reserves are extra money that's unnecessary. You show that
in the county's own budget where your cash reserves are below the the level recommended by financial experts. Here's the point. You don't have the expertise to run a county hospital district. They are professionals at
county health care. Yes, there may be times that there are countywide financial contingencies that force tough decisions. There may be times you have good ideas to offer to them. But cutting their tax rate without fully working
with them in consultation in advance and without information on service impact is irresponsible. I heard Dr. Duncan last week calling in the CEO at the last minute to bless your decision is not respect.
So I urge you to restore the hospital district to their proposed budget and commit to working with them as a true partner before making an informed decisions about their budgets in the future. Thank you.
Thank you. Miss Kulie is next. Following Miss Kulie, we have Pamela Young. I'll make this brief. Um, I hope that you're right. I hope that next year we come in and you've got lots of extra money. But my concern is the needs will
will exceed the budget. And I just see more more needs and more uncertainty every day. So, I hope y'all are right. I don't believe you are, but I will say so next year if you are.
I will too. Is Pamela Young present? All right. How about Randy Jordan? Is Mr. Jordan present? All right. Robert Van September 3rd of this year, those of us present at the Taran County
Commissioner's Court were upset and embarrassed to witness the shameful, igninious harassment of two high-ranking female officers of a public institution called before this court provide a financial report.
As people who were in attendance at that marathon session have noted, Dr. Duncan, president and CEO of the John Peter Smith Health Network and a very bright, though still new to her job, executive vice president and chief financial officer, Kim Hutchkinson Hutchkinson
made a lengthy and detailed presentation accompanied by numerous projected slides and fielded questions by the court only to be ambushed by Judge O'Hare with the information that he intended to cut the tax rate helping to fund GPS by over
9%. a matter that could have and should have been broached and discussed prior to ever reaching the floor. And I'll thank you for bringing that up as well, Commissioner Ramirez. Uh seemingly
became an opportunity for a bit of grandstanding. JPS is of course in the midst of a sizable expansion in building program and with the cuts to public services being implemented by Republican administrations at county, state, and federal levels. JPS will quite likely be
having to accommodate an increasing influx of people for whom they are the last affordable hope for dealing with medical problems. Now, none of us none of us wants to pay more taxes than necessary, but there is of course a direct correlation between
taxes paid and services provided and received. The Scandinavian countries pay very high taxes, but those taxes pay for, among many other things, excellent free or nearly free health care and a free education through university or trade
school. The fact that JPS has reported a healthy profit for several years, a profit which can be invested in improved services and better facilities, should attest to good management and not provide a target on their backs for this
court. leave their tax rate alone. No cuts except that is to the harsh treatment me out to female executives appearing before this court. All right, we have a motion and a second.
We have a motion and a second on this item. Any further discussion from the court? All right, seeing none. Cast your votes. All right, the votes are cast. Tax rate passes three to one.
Now, um, oh, before we move on from that item, um, one other, well, it's it's this item, but I would agree 100% that the ability to work with JPS, look
at their budget, go over it, ask questions, have our people look at it in advance is the appropriate way to go. What you may or may not be aware is that for the last several years, we got no budget. We
got slides. We never saw a budget. If you look at the budget that Dallas County gets from Parkland, it's a foot thick line item by line item. We requested a budget this year from JPS. They agreed to provide it by a certain
date. It did not show up. Then when it showed up, there were lots of things still missing. So, I have asked our staff to prepare uh a resolution that will come to this court sometime in the next 30 to 60 days with some deadlines
for us to get financial documents and information from JPS so we all have a chance to look at it, decipher it, know what's in there and see it in advance where we can ask any and all questions we want instead of here's the slideshow,
tell us what you think. And so you will all have a chance to weigh in on it, vote on it. You'll see it when it shows up when they are done preparing the document. Okay. Uh now we will go into recess
executive session to discuss any legal um implications requirements regarding uh 5A2 consideration amendment to the precinct 1 and precinct 2 fiscal year 2026 budgets. Uh the time is 11:12
uh executive session I think uh take a break. It should begin no later than 11:20 and then we will uh come right back in and take uh action if action needs to be taken. With that, we are in recess. All right, we are back from executive
session. The item we will now address is 5 A2, consideration of amendment to the precinct one and precinct 2 fiscal year 2026 budgets.
So I will make the following motion with Mr. Katavville stepping in if I don't say this perfectly understandable. I move to amend the fiscal year 2026
budget to restore the following items to the levels proposed in the last commissioner's court meeting fiscal year 2026 budgets
for precincts one and two to the the following number of full-time employee positions in A precinct administration offices of precincts one and two. Go back to the
five each. Salary amounts for all precinct one and two administration positions go back to the same dollar amounts
proposed on that se September 16th, 2025 commissioner's court budget. travel budgets for precincts one and two back to the level of the fiscal year 26
budget on the September 16th, 2025 commissioner's court agenda and 12 positions identified by the commissioner of precinct one to
be transferred to the road and bridge department for commissioner precinct 2's road and bridge department. Did I say that accurately with full understanding of what that means?
Judge, I am clear on all of that. Um I if budget is on the same page with us, I don't think there's that clear. Okay. But for the for the three of you up here, is was that clear to you as to what that meant? Whether you agree with it or not, is that clear? Okay.
Judge M. One thing certainly could Could Could it be instead of uh Did you say 12? I did. Instead of 12 16 total. Yes, it's 16. Yes. So, okay. It's So, does it matter that we said 12 last
time? I thought the 16. It's always been 16. Okay. Okay. So, I thought last time it said 12. My motion that I just read, I want it to say the number that was
previously agreed to in part of the budget. So if that is 16, I will say 16. 16. Okay. That does not include new positions in road and bridge fund. All right. Is everybody clear on what the motion means? Yes.
Okay. Now, do we have a second? Okay. We have a motion and a second. Any discussion from the court members? All right, seeing none, first speaker, Dion Sims.
Second is Bishop Kirkland. Good morning again, Dion Sims. Uh, again, thank you for allowing the opportunity to speak. First, I want to make clear that using the people of Tarant County as political pawns is neither humanity or right.
Today, the commissioner Miles is present and the budget will move forward like it did because like Commissioner Simmons refuses to let his district or his county suffer. That should settle the question of
whether withholding votes was not about hurting people. It never was that. The truth is that breaking quorum if I mean he was sick but you know is an act of a principal to stand against a maneuver that forced through cuts without accountability. Retaliating
against districts one and two originally by slashing their staff, their travel budget and road crews does not serve taxpayers. It only weakens our ability to serve the very communities who rely on our county services. We should be
working together to craft a budget that reflects the needs of Altering County. And now that it's restored, that's okay. But not punishing certain districts to score political points. The people elected in all five commissioners, not just three, and their voices desert
equal weight at this table. And I and I urge this court to rise above retribution and commit to governing fairly responsibly with respect to all of every precinct in in in Taran County.
I think targeting the two districts is not our better self. and the fact that we as a county, as a group of people, all look to you guys to lead us fairly
last week really did stink. Um, to see that come as amendments to strong arm. That was a precedent that didn't need to be set. And I think that
our c our county deserves better and that we shouldn't ever reach back to that because you do it to one now you have to do it and it will happen to others again. That was unfair. Thank you. Thank you, Bishop Kirkland. Following
Bishop Kirkland, we have Joe Palmer. I think this chamber is no place for words and phrases like bias, implicit bias, retaliatory, irresponsible, cognizant disassociation, imbued, copious, capriccious, author,
authorotism, um, fascist or fascism, and more than anything pettiness. Dr. Harold and Miss uh Bills are some of the most pointed speech writers that
I've ever heard. I just hate that they waste their time preparing documents to come here to sway this body and no one never listens to them. The people that things like this affect the most don't
even come in this room. Those are the people that we were willing to sacrifice. I agree with the gentleman that stated as he walked up that the lawn is male well manicured
and everything is tidy and neat. And I could appreciate that being a marine and an anal person. And I agree with him. There is fruit that this body produces. All fruit is not good fruit.
the fruit that this body produces more than anything in our community. Every person of color understands what strange nectar is. You're producing fruit, but the fruit is
called strange nectar. I went to the 911 museum this summer with about 30 of the youths from our ministry and it reminded me of a time when this nation was united for a brief season in
my 60 plus decades. I have never seen this nation united as it was during 911. But somehow we've fallen back into our own particism. We fallen back to our own
ways and we're not thinking about each other very much these days. I wish there was something that the judge and commissioner Krauss and Commissioner Ramirez would do for my village to increase our faith that what you're
doing is in the best interest of our county and not the Republican party. As I hurry to my seat, Commissioner Krauss, I want to decline your invitation to watch anything that has to do with Charlie Kirk. God rest
wherever he is. Man, you're missing out. I wish you'd reconsider. Mr. Palmer, Mr. Palmer present. All right. Next, we have Jimmy Blackwell. Follow Mr. Blackwell, we have Reed Bills. All right. Is Reed Bills present?
You're up then. EJ, carry on. This doesn't lower. I want to make one point about your new technology. That clock and that one don't jive and it's very annoying. We'll see if we can get that fixed.
Okay. Judge O'Hare threatened to do to the residents of precincts one and two what President Trump did to the minority population of Fort Worth. The president ordered the city council members to
remove DEI from city programs in order to continue to receive money from the government that Fort Worth residents paid in federal taxes. Judge O'Hare ordered commissioners Miles and Simmons to appear at this court
meeting in order to continue receiving salaries for their staff from the budget the residents of precincts one and two paid for in county taxes. In the city's case, a portion of its
population will suffer from lost services that provided protection from discrimination. In the county's case, however, half of its population would have suffered from vital loss services.
In both cases, a mean-spirited elected official threatened to bring hardship on the constituents they were elected to serve in order to have their personal demands met. Next, we have EJ Carryon. Then, uh, Dr.
Harold, the last time I was here was when 100 plus county residents stood against redistricting and calling the county maps a racial gerrymander. I'm a resident of Fort Worth and Precinct One, and I'm already upset that you packed our city's black and brown population
into one precinct, limiting our influence and representation on the court. But that is not enough for you three. You all are wanting to threaten to now racially gerrymander our representation by fully staffing predominantly white precincts and giving
the larger minority precincts one staff member for political points. Precincts have the same number of residents. This targeting is deeply concerning and I can't imagine this action is good for us in a lawsuit that we're currently wasting tax dollars on. The action to
eliminate staff is another racist action regardless of intention because it harms black and brown residents in a negative way. Political warfare you conducted is childish. Now to my commissioner, I continue to be concerned that you're unaware of the dire situation this
county is in as these three members on this dis pursue an authoritarian Christian nationalist agenda. There were thousands of people downtown on Saturday uh for a right-wing podcaster. A speaker at the rally ripped a flag that
represented unity and respected the LGBTQ community. The sponsors for the rally included Patriot Mobile who led in the ban books crisis across North Texas. Uh you also had Texas True Project, Mr. Krauss's or who successfully put the Ten
Commandments back in public schools. these people uh don't believe um you know the sheriff was there uh he can't make it to court but the sheriff chooses to be there where he quote says don't believe them this is a Christian nation
uh you also have for uh justice and liberty a a pack who supports Nate Scatsline who was also a speaker there who try to pass a house bill 1375 to arrest independent bookstores if they have certain books against his Christian
extremist values. While you have always been respectful, we can't say that about the judge. Since we're talking about his tweets, uh here is a tweet from the adult who's making over $200,000. Democrats have become the party of illegal aliens, pedophiles, and
murderers and communism. These people are not Glenn Whitley. They're not Betsy Price. They keep going two steps to the right, and you keep taking one step to the try to meet them in the middle. I'm tired of powerful speeches and powerless
times. Please be bolder and have courage to fight against bullies. Hundreds of thousands of residents are counting on you. Following Dr. Harrow, we have Sandra Culie. First of all, thank you for this
amendment that reverses the punitive action that you took last week. I assume uh a portion of that comes because surely you realize that you cannot disadvantage half of the county. I know that you were upset because you
wanted to pass the tax rate last week and you were um and that was blocked. But what you did was not just punish two commissioners. It was to punish the people they represent. In other words, half of the county would have lost
services. And remember, after the recent redistricting, precincts one and two are majority black and Latino. Their commissioners are black. By contrast, precinct 3 is overwhelmingly white.
Nearly 3/4ers of its citizen voters are white. Precinct 4 is more mixed, but still majority white when measured by citizen voting age population at about 57%. I know that you don't want your actions
to be considered racist, but it's hard to look at that amendment that you passed last week and not see its disproportionate impact. The consequences would have been that half of our residents would not have had equal access to their commissioner.
Their offices would have lacked staff to respond, to solve problems, to keep roads and bridges safe. Half of the county would have lived with fewer services, while the predominantly white half of the county would have kept everything intact.
In addition, that amendment would have fired good, hard-working employees without reason. Every month, this court celebrates what fine employees we have. But because you were upset, you were willing to discard them because you
didn't get your way. I am sure that all of that would have been found to be illegal. And I assume that your several executive sessions have guided you around that way. I was going to ask if you could really look at us and say you were proud of that
amendment. I'm glad that you have gotten rid of it and I hope you will vote to restore what you should never have tried to take away. Following Miss Culie, we have Charles bills. It's my understanding that you've
reversed your amendment. Okay, let's don't do that again, please. I mean, it's good that you reversed it, but let's don't let's don't get angry
and and uh hurt half the county, please. Thank you, Mr. Bills. Following Mr. Bills, we have Pamela Young. Well, I agree with what she said. One thing is collective punishment.
Punishing innocent people because you want to punish somebody specifically Elita Simmons is it's basically a cliche biting your nose off or something like that to spite your face or something like that.
Anyway, uh you know the people that were going to be fired, they aren't they are Lisa's uh you know employees, but they are actually the government the people's employees. they were helping people and depriving them of what they need
is just wrong. And and with a threatening road uh you know funds that's even worse because that you know you might be driving down some road and that is not maintained and you know it
destroy your car in a pothole or something. So, you know, basically like like they said that it's just never a good idea. You know, the analogy is like a teacher making all the kids put their heads on the desk because one of them's disruptive, you know, to in order to
hopefully they ratt that kid out or that kid, you know, gets punished later. But, you know, basically all the other kids, they don't resent that kid that was disrupted, they resent the teacher. So, that's the same situation.
Next is Pamela Young. Follow is Miss Young here. Next is Libertad Heredia and then Dorene Guyger. So, personally, I'm still stuck on the comments that were made by the commissioners about how uh all of this
doesn't shouldn't have to do with politics when we can all clearly see that this was an act of political punishment to begin with, threatening the staff of commissioners that you disagree with, who you hadn't even apparently conversed with because you didn't even know that Commissioner Miles, you know, with his reasons for
not being here last week. I mean, it's really, I mean, charitably unprofessional. Why is it that you guys are discussing policy and figuring things out in front of us in real time and seem to have collectively no real idea of what you're doing with the county and toying with people's lives?
It really does seem like it really is all politics things to talk about during your your re-election campaign uh judge for example. And again, man, at the end of the day, this was incredibly punitive. It's these kinds of
tactics are right at home in authoritarian countries. And I mean, I know that's where we're headed, but I I thought maybe we could have a, you know, shared values here on the county level, you know, to stand against that kind of behavior. Um, I also want to emphasize that threatening to cut the road and
bridge crew for precinct 2, uh, a redistric precinct with nearly 190 new miles, uh, because of the redistricing they did is reprehensible specifically. And I guess to echo what other people are saying, don't do this again. Um, if
you have the self-restraint, um, it's really tough to watch you guys weaponize the empathy that, uh, Commissioner Miles has for his staff and Commissioner Simmons as well, um, and speaking of empathy, um, just because he's been brought up multiple times for
some reason in this court. um you know and there was that rally downtown which I I suppose you guys attended. I we I wish Charlie Kirk had been the guy that you're trying to portray him to have been because the world would have been much better if he had been. But you know
he much like you guys seem to behave sometimes have had little limited empathy for people who don't align with him politically and it affected lives in very real ways and you know maybe don't follow his footsteps in that regard. That's not a role model anybody should
have. And that's all I have to say. I really hope you guys do better. But regardless, your time on that day is limited because we will be working to replace you. Hey, is Miss Guyger here? All right. No. Next we have Billy Wilson
and then James Perkins. Crystal Mason should not have been prosecuted. Hire Garcia did a good job. The election integrity unit is a joke. Anthony Johnson should be alive. And since he's not, his family should be
paid. See how you looking? This is fall under what I call wrongheadedness. When I come and talk, wrongheaded is when representatives who represent an ideology, personal grievance,
service to the dear leader instead of representing their community. Mr. O'Hare, I wish to remind you that you represent all of Taran County. I did not vote for you because people in I know people in farmer's branch and they were so relieved when you left because
they believed that you were more concerned with solidifying your position as a champion for conservative and some might say uh white nationalist values than serving the community and you were referred to as a passionate child who divided city leadership and the
community. So here we are. You wish to harm the people of district 1 and two. You threatened to harm the district people of district 1 and two because Miss Simmons would not go along with your policies we believe are detrimental to our community. You want
to take your ball and go home. But let me remind you that many of those in these district voted for you. Cutting the budget and personnel will bring harm to the community due to the lack of representation, inefficiency, and a lack of funds for black and brown communities
and uh and would harm her communities. You once said that if you were not being accused of racism, you're not doing a good job. Let me say good job. I come to ask you that you do what is best with one and two which you have by reversing
your opinion and to and we appreciate that to Mr. Krauss and Mr. Rome. We like to say don't vote for something that you wouldn't allow in your district. Would you allow your your district to be
cut? But yet you voted for it. I noticed that you say that decisions b that you made decisions based on people that you have talked to the experts. One thing I noticed that you did not say you talk to is us. We've been coming here what three four years now trying to
get something done about about the jail. You haven't talked to us. Which minority groups did you talk to who work with youth and uh helped them try to reduce crime? cuz I know they're here. Who of them have you talked to? If you
only talk to the people who think like you think, you cannot say you represent us because we do not think like you think. We are underprivileged of this community, our community, and we will stand up for it. And as they say, we will vote you out. And so we invite you talk to Oh, and you shook your head when
she asked that y'all did you agree with your decision? I I think you shook your head and said yes. Thank you, sir. You agree with the decision last Mr. Wilson. Thank you. Your time is up. I saw your head go up and down. Next we have James Perkins. Mr. Perkins is up. Following Mr. Perkins, we have Steven Alford.
Hello, my name is James. I am a resident of Taran County. Here to speak out against the recklessness from this court's majority, Judge Tim O'Hare, Commissioner Krauss, and Commissioner Ramirez. Let's be clear. Restoring staff for precincts 1 and two, reinstating the road and bridge crew, and returning
commissioners other resources is not generosity. It's not compromise. It's a bare minimum correction to a retaliatory stunt that should never have happened in the first place. Punishing elected representatives and gutting their
ability to serve their districts was a blatant abuse of power. And walking it back now doesn't erase that fact. And even with those restorations, the core harm of this budget remains. The tax rate you approved still strips millions
of dollars from the services our communities rely on. This budget still means cutting public health funding, closing the human services department, eliminating polling locations, and weakening our hospitals public or ouros our public hospital system JPS at the
very moment our county needs it most. This is not fiscal responsibility. That is cruelty. That is neglect. That is sabotage. The Republican majority has made his priorities crystal clear. And those priorities do not include public health, infrastructure, or democracy or
democracy. Your priority is political warfare. And our communities are left paying the price for your decisions. I stand with my commissioner, Commissioner Simmons, in refusing to legitimize a rigged unjust process that was not obstruction. It was a principled action. It was leadership. It is drawing a line
in the sand. something you all could stand to learn from. And to Commissioner Miles, the community is watching. Your lack of unity is an act of betrayal. Betrayal of your district and every person who trusted you to protect their interests and act as a leader. The path
forward is clear. We will not forget these votes and we will replace commissioners who do not serve the people with leaders who will. We are watching. We are organizing and we are not going anywhere. Thank you. Thank you. Is Mr. Alford present? Uh,
following Mr. Alford, we have Alexander Montalvo. Is the last speaker after him? Is that what I'm seeing? Correct. It's half covered. Okay. Okay. Got it. After Mr. Mont. Yeah. Thank you. Stephen Alford, uh, precinct
4. I'm in favor of the action that you took to restore Commissioner Simmons and Miles budgets and staff. reducing those budgets and staff in retaliation uh to a failure to reach quorum was an anti-democratic action.
The fact that these items have been restored does not erase the unequal retaliation action that was taken last week. The option of a quorum break for commissioner court meetings concerning the levying of taxes has long been enshrined in Texas law. It
ensures that the issue of taxation is treated as special which uh I think you all agree with. Um you must have four members of the court to address those issues. Um and
this is about democracy and representation. This law usually affects counties such as Harris County where it prevents a majority of big D Democrat court from changing taxes without working with their Republican colleagues.
Our Democratically elected Texas legislators continue to stand by this law. Presumably, the Republicans of this court would support their Harris County colleagues. If the majority of this court disapproves of this quorum law, they should take it up with the Texas
legislature and not through retaliation, which was an act uh an action of well democracy for me but not for thee. Reducing commissioners budgets and staffs from five positions to one drastically reduced their ability to
represent their constituents. The people who live in those precincts always deserved a complete staff to address their needs when roads and bridges and other critical matters demand attention. It was unfair, unrepresentative, undemocratic that some
precincts should benefit from five times the staff of other precincts of their neighbors. The fact that this court even contemplated that action is appalling. Thank you.
Thank you. Following Mr. Montalvo, we have Andrea West. Is that the right name? So, I think it's important for everyone to really understand what we're witnessing here today. This is textbook
steps in the cycle of abuse. So O'Hare understands the role of abuser because that's how he's leveraged his positions of power no matter where he's been. He makes a demand just like an abuser will in a
relationship. Gets upset when his demands aren't met. He doesn't get what he wants. He then moves into inciting violence, which is what that amendment was last week. putting an act of violence against
precinct one and two. Take away staff, harm community, harm half the county. Then today we see the next stage which is reconciliation. Hey, we're just here to work together as an abuser does. Hey, we love each other.
We were here to work together. And the last part of that stage is to present calmness after making the demands, inciting violence, and pursuing reconciliation. And here you all three sit calmly, especially O'Hare, when when
when he can stay disciplined. This cycle of abuse is something that the residents of Tarant County will not sit back and just accept. And Rodrik, in this scenario, you're the battered partner after
incurring violence and receiving violence to try to work it out. And my charge to you is to understand just like we would encourage anyone in our family who is dealing with abuse.
Do not try to curry favor from your abuser because they are who they are and they will continue to do what they will do to get what they want. And so I want to condemn Commissioner condemn. Sorry that's the wrong word.
I'm all riled up now. I want to share my gratitude and appreciation to Commissioner Simmons who is not here. As the only woman on this commissioner's court, it's very clear to me that she understands what an abuser looks like
and she has been working and leading accordingly. and I and others will continue to support leaders who understand the moment we're in so that we will actually not only fight for community but
ultimately win for community. The three of you are not fooling anybody. Your performative talking points and speeches don't do anything. And I'm thankful for EJ sharing your tweet O'Hare and I noticed you haven't go back
and forth with him. So, you know, maybe one day you'll you'll address that, too. All right. Is Miss West present? Good afternoon. Um, honorable members of the Taran County Commissioner's Court. My name is Andrea West and I'm here today on behalf
of Fort Worth City Councilwoman Dr. Mia Hall, who represents District 6. District 6 spans a broad and diverse area that includes constituents from precincts 1, 2, and 4, as well as portions of the ETJ. These re these
residents rely heavily on the services and infrastructure maintained across these precincts, especially the roadways, maintenance crews, and emergency response access that keeps our communities connected and safe. Reducing the funding for precincts one
and two would had would have had real consequences not just for roads and bridges but for the people who maintain them. Reducing staff capacity means slower response times, deferred maintenance, and an overall decline in the quality of
service our residents depend on every single day. We recognize the challenges that come with budgeting across a growing county, but infrastructure and service delivery are not optional. They are fundamental.
Taxpayers in every precinct deserve the same standard of care regardless of where they live. As elected officials and public servants, we have a shared responsibility to meet the needs of our residents. That includes working across jurisdictions and precinct lines to
ensure that no community is disproportionately impacted. On behalf of Councilwoman Hall and the residents of District 6, thank you for your time and your service, and I continue to urge you to prioritize
continued investment in the staff and infrastructure that serve our communities every single day. Thank you. Thank you. All right, we have a motion and a second. Uh, any further discussion? Is it uh Mr. Credville, is it possible
to make an amendment to the motion? Yes. Okay. I'd like to submit an an amendment to the motion stating that we add 15 additional FTE positions to the commissioner precinct
to road and bridge team. We have a motion. Do we have a second? Anyone got a second? All right. Motion fails due to lack of second. Now we have the original motion and a second. Any
discussion on this item before voting? All right, seeing none, please cast your votes. Okay, it passes four to zero. Uh, the last item we have on the agenda is appointments to various boards or commissions. Do we have any board or commission appointments from any of the commissioners?
All right. So, I will make a motion to appoint Blaine Cibby, Zachary Kate, and Ross McMullen with Ross McMullen as chair to the Civil Service Commission. Second. We have a motion and a second on that item. Any discussion? All right, please cast your vote.
All right, passes unanimously. And there is no other executive session to take. So we are now officially adjourned.