SAN MARCOS POLICE DEPARTMENT
City interpretation of law says Mano Amiga didn't get enough signatures
Mano Amiga Safe Communities, a specific purpose action committee, canvassed the community and submitted 850 signatures in support of removing the civil service status for the San Marcos Police Department. Civil service status refers to a state law outlining assistance, benefits and working conditions for police officers. If either the council or the public were to approve of the removal of civil service status, SMPD would be subject to Texas employment laws without the protections afforded by the status. Mano Amiga had reached 10% of the number of San Marcos residents that voted in the most recent election, which it believed to be enough to start the process, but the city of San Marcos said the “City Clerk certified that there was an insufficient number of signatures to place the measure on the ballot.”
This has prompted Mano Amiga to launch a new 501c4, Mano Amiga Action, with plans to “gather the necessary signatures through sustained and strategic community engagement, demonstrating the power of our collective action,” According to Eric Martinez, Mano Amiga Action executive director.
“We are currently exploring our legal options for this and future initiatives. Unfortunately, the city's political maneuvering is nothing new. They waited as long as they could to inform us of their interpretation to run out the clock. Even if we were to challenge it in court, any court ruling would likely be handed down after an August 5th deadline,” Martinez said. “No matter the outcome, starting this fall, we will begin collecting the 4,500+ required signatures for 143 civil service removal for SMPD only. We expect to place this measure, along with others, before the voters in May of 2025.”
The city of San Marcos said although the city charter normally requires fewer signatures for measures to be placed on the ballot, the city believes that the petition to repeal civil service for police is governed by Section 143.004(e) of the Texas Local Government Code.
According to Sec. 143.001 of the Texas Local Government Code, the purpose of this chapter is to secure efficient fire and police departments composed of capable personnel who are free from political influence and who have permanent employment tenure as public servants.
Under 143.001(b) of the Texas Local Government Code, if the governing body of the municipality receives a petition requesting an election that is signed by a number of qualified voters of the municipality equal to at least 10% of the number of voters who voted in the most recent municipal election, the governing body shall order an election submitting to the voters the question of whether this chapter should be adopted. The amount of signatures required by this section were produced by Mano Amiga (850 signatures is greater than 10% of the number of voters in the most recent election), but Texas Local Government Code 143.004(e) has different requirements for a city with a population the size of San Marcos.
Under Section 143.004(e) of the Texas Local Government Code, if the governing body of a municipality with a population of less than 950,000 that has operated under this chapter for at least one year receives a petition requesting an election to repeal this chapter that is signed by at least 10% of the qualified voters of the municipality, the governing body shall order an election submitting to the voters the question on whether this chapter should be repealed.
“According to Hays County, there are 45,187 registered San Marcos voters. Therefore, the petition would need a minimum of 4,518 signatures for the proposition to be placed on the November ballot,” the city of San Marcos stated. “The petition may be supplemented with additional signatures. However, the additional signatures would need to be filed with enough time for the City Clerk to verify the signatures before August 5th, the date the election is called. The petitioners are allowed to gather signatures for a measure to be considered during a future election cycle.”
Martinez pointed to the fact that it requires less votes for SMPD to obtain civil service status than to have it removed.
“850 signatures were required to repeal the meet and confer contract under Chapter 142 of the Local Government Code. However, the city claims that under Chapter 143 of the Local Government Code, while 10% of signatures from voters in the last municipal election (~850 people) is needed to send the adoption question to voters, a larger threshold —10% of all qualified voters (over 4,500 people) — is required to place the repeal question before voters,” Martinez said. “According to their interpretation, it's easier to adopt 143 and protect officers who violate laws but more difficult to remove 143 to bring transparency to our police, who are among the most well-paid and powerful municipal employees.”
There is a lengthy history behind the desire of Mano Amiga to remove civil service status from SMPD. In 2020, Jennifer Miller died when former San Marcos Police Department Sgt. Ryan Hartman, who was off duty, struck Watts’ vehicle after running a stop sign going 16 mph over the speed limit with an open container of Dos Equis beer in his Ford F-250, according to Lockhart Police Department records. LPD recommended a charge of criminally negligent homicide after a months-long investigation into the incident. A grand jury handed him a no-bill, which means they declined to indict him on the charges.
Protests attempting to have the San Marcos Police Department discipline Hartman eventually led to the creation of Mano Amiga Safety — a specific purpose action committee — with the intent to repeal the meet and confer agreement for law enforcement between the city and the San Marcos Police Officers Association. The organization began collecting signatures to do just that in 2022. The San Marcos City Council approved the petition to repeal the meet and confer instead of sending it to a public vote. Mano Amiga Safety was requesting five changes, dubbed the 'Hartman Reforms,' to be included in the new contract. This led to months of renegotiation of the meet and confer agreement. Some of the requested reforms were partially addressed but none were fully incorporated. The council approved the new contract in 2023.
