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Three Dallas city charter changes buried at the tail end of the upcoming November election could greatly impact the city’s police department and alter the way local government operates.

If enacted, these changes could force the city to hire hundreds more police officers and determine where to spend some of the excess revenue, tie the city manager’s compensation to a community survey and allow residents to sue the city for violating the charter while forcing the city to violate the law. Waive government immunity.

Advocates say the proposals would put accountability authority back in the hands of Dallas residents and also increase police staffing.

“Recommendations S, T and U are a series of ballot propositions that came together because the citizens of Dallas refused to accept many of the bad headlines we were seeing,” said Pete Marocco, executive director of Dallas HERO, which oversees the group. He told KERA for the changes.

Dallas HERO says website “It is a bipartisan 501c4 organization working to implement citizen-supported changes to the Dallas City Charter.” But for months, questions have been raised about the group’s donors, how it gained petition signatures and who might actually be behind the organization.

Critics of the measure warn that the proposals come from a rogue group out of Dallas and could be dangerous to the city’s finances and residents.

Union representing thousands of Dallas police officers openly opposed the changeshe calls them “concocted without open dialogue by a small group of people who don’t live in Dallas.”

The S, T and U proposals gained so much attention that a “who’s who” of current and former Dallas politicians, business leaders and city leaders launched a campaign to oppose the proposals.

This includes at least four former Dallas mayors and current Mayor Eric Johnson, the entire Dallas City Council and many other former council members, Dallas County Commissioner John Wiley Price and state Sen. Royce West, D-Dallas. It is also opposed by members of the Dallas Citizens Council, a group of city business leaders who have used their influence on city politics for decades.

“On the surface you think there are some good things here,” former Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings told KERA. “But you have to read these changes and go into detail and you realize they are very, very dangerous.”

The coordinated opposition has kicked into high gear just weeks before the election, but some officials warn some proposals are likely to be adopted on November 5.

Another proposal — Proposition R — is also on the ballot. However, it is supported by a group that has no affiliation with Dallas HERO.

Large amounts of marijuana are expected to be decriminalized in Dallasand was also placed on the ballot through a petition organized by Ground Game Texas. This change received little opposition from city leaders.

“No open dialogue”

Morocco says Proposition U is at the heart of three changes. It focuses on the police department.

“Proposition U requires the city of Dallas to spend 50% of the new revenue to fund police and firefighter retirements,” Marocco said.

The city’s public safety retirement system has been grossly underfunded for years after risky real estate investments by fund managers nearly bankrupted the system. The Texas Legislature had to step in to help stabilize the fund — and now Dallas is on the hook to make up for billions of dollars in unfunded debt.

The proposal would also require the city to increase the number of sworn police officers to “at least 4,000.” This means hiring approximately 900 more officers.

“I think most of the citizens in the city of Dallas want more (police) officers, I want more officers, I wanted more officers when I was mayor,” Rawlings said.

But he also said there’s a difference between wanting something and “actually doing” it.

“Because you want to do it right, you want to make sure the right people are hired, you want to make sure they’re trained appropriately,” Rawlings said. “The way (Prop U) is written, it would be very, very dangerous to hire all these officers at the same time.”

Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia has previously said it would be difficult to hire the number of new officers that would be needed if the proposal is approved by voters.

And on the first day of early voting, the Dallas Police Association officially opposed the list of proposals.

“The Dallas Police Association, which represents thousands of Dallas police officers, strongly opposes all three changes, made by a small group of people who do not live in Dallas, have no open dialogue, and have no experience on the issue. “There is no communication with police union leaders that will be affected by these changes,” DPA President Jaime Castro said in a press release.

Survey says…

Proposition T would tie city manager pay to “citizen satisfaction” with city services.

The change would require the city to complete an “annual community survey” focusing on crime, homelessness, litter, “aggressive promotion (and) panhandling,” and infrastructure and streets.

According to the proposed ballot language, “at least 1,400 surveys must be returned, with at least 100 surveys from each City Council District.” Survey results “may provide consequences for the city manager, including performance compensation or termination.”

“I don’t think we’re going to get a decent city manager if this amendment passes,” Rawlings said of Proposition T. “It will be very unclear who the city manager’s boss is… Now you have a survey. He is the boss.”

Rawlings said he wouldn’t accept the job. According to Rawlings, without creating an environment that still holds the city’s top leaders accountable—while not politicizing the role because their jobs may be decided by as few as 1,400 Dallas residents—the city may not be able to get the right kind of applicants.

“The city manager is so critical that we have to hire the best we can,” Rawlings said.

“Enough is enough”

Proposition S means the city could lose a major defense against the lawsuit.

“We have evidence that you need to have some kind of enforcement mechanism that will enable the average citizen to say, ‘Hey, enough is enough,’” Morocco said.

Proposition S, if passed, would give a resident the ability to report the city for violating its ordinances, charter rules or any law in Texas. After 60 days, the resident can file a lawsuit and the city must waive government immunity.

That measure could leave the city vulnerable to hundreds, if not thousands, of lawsuits and limit resources for litigation, Rawlings said. Other city leaders said the changes were well-intentioned but more work was needed.

“I support direction and intent, but you have to do it the right way. “These were not very well thought out in terms of their implications,” former Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert told KERA after a recent Dallas Regional Chamber event.

“In some cases, unintended consequences, that’s the problem,” he added.

Who is behind Dallas HERO?

The origins of Dallas HERO have been in the spotlight since the group began the campaign. It is accused of being directed and financed by people outside Dallas.

However, Morocco disputes these claims. The group’s donors are people who work, live or have business interests in the city, he said, but some don’t live directly within the city limits.

“I can say without a doubt that there is not a single donor that I have seen from outside the Dallas area,” Marocco said. “When I say Dallas area, it could be someone in Garland, it could be someone in Plano, it could be someone in University Park.”

Morocco listed the University Park address on the list of registered speakers for the city council meeting in early August.

Stefani Carter was one of Dallas HERO’s first directors and serves as Dallas HERO’s “honorary president.” Carter sits on the board of directors of Braemar Hotels and Resorts.

Cathy Cortina Arvizu filed the original lawsuit against most of the city council, except for Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson and 12th District Councilwoman Cara Mendelsohn, over the city’s attempts to essentially invalidate the group’s amendments.

Arvizu serves as a paralegal at asset management firm Ashford Inc.According to LinkedIn.Ashford is managed by Monty Bennett, who also publishes the Dallas Express.

Bennett, who claimed a homestead exemption at a Highland Park address, is the founder and chairman of Braemar Hotels and Resorts, the company’s board of directors that also includes Carter, according to Dallas County Appraisal District documents.

Bennett also donated to at least one Texas Supreme Court Justice earlier this year. He also provided significant funds to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s campaign; the most recent was a $100,000 donation in June 2023.

Paxton called for the Texas Supreme Court to intervene in the Dallas HERO case. friendly letter. Dallas media outlets and independent journalists have been documenting connections and speculating about Bennett’s involvement in the Dallas HERO movement.

In late September,WFAA reportedSitting down with the outlet for a rare TV appearance, Bennett admitted that he had “contributed his support to the initiative, office space and even cash, but he wouldn’t say how much — just not that much” for donating to other GOP initiatives.

According to WFAA, Bennett said he was “involved as much as they would allow” the Dallas HERO group.

“I’m sure people are leading this.”

Ultimately, what appeared on the ballot wasn’t all of the proposals the group tried to get signatures on. The fourth amendment asked voters to essentially ban chokeholds on police officers.

KERA asked whether this amendment was used to collect signatures for the other three amendments put to the vote.

“I’m sure in some cases people are leading the way in this, and it really depends on who that person is or what they’re most passionate about.” Morocco said.

Morocco added that some volunteers did not want to collect signatures for the drowning proposal.

Despite growing opposition to the changes, the petition process is part of the structure of Dallas government.

“I think it’s legal and that’s the way it’s done,” Rawlings said. “I don’t think that’s the smartest way to approach how we govern ourselves.”

If people are unhappy with city government, Rawlings said, “they should get rid of the city council officers and the mayor.” Other city officials said it was perhaps too easy to put something on the ballot.

With the election fast approaching, city leaders said at least one of the proposals could be accepted.

“The thing people like the most is being able to sue the city,” Rawlings said of Proposition S. “Everybody likes to sue everybody… so for me it’s actually the scariest.”

But Rawlings said that when he explained his suggestions to people, they said, “Oh, I get it.” He said he urged voters to read the list of amendments and understand what they mean.

Election day is November 5.