Your City Government

How Your Government Is Organized

Hawk Cove is governed by a Mayor and five Council Places, Places 1 through 5. The Mayor presides at meetings and votes only to break a tie. When the Mayor is unable to act, the Mayor Pro Tem steps in. On May 31, 2023 the Council appointed a Mayor Pro Tem, then “revisited” the item and appointed a different one, all in the same meeting.

The Mayor's administrative duties were set out in Ordinance 100-12, adopted November 9, 2000. Ordinance 04-102 (about 2004) then handed those duties to a City Administrator. A handwritten sticky note on the copy we hold reads “See ordinance 2015-004.” We have not yet found Ordinance 2015-004, but we are told it is very good.

Meet Your Council

Who Runs Hawk Cove

Only what the ordinances and records say outright, quoted and cited. The City Administrator’s full list of powers is in the next section, How Much Power the City Administrator Has.

1. The Council can only discuss and vote on what is on the agenda. That is state law, with a narrow exception for answering a question with facts or existing policy. (Tex. Gov’t Code §551.041; §551.042)
2. The City Administrator decides the agenda. The ordinance gives the City Administrator “the sole right, responsibility, duty and final authority of determining any and all items to be placed on Agendas for City Council Regular, Special and Executive meetings.” (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.2, §3)
3. Council members are told who they may talk to, and what they may say. They talk to City staff “solely through City’s Administrator” (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.3, §5). City information they learn may be shared only “at a Regular, Special or Executive Council meeting” (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.5, §8). Otherwise a Council member “shall not, at any time, use, disseminate, share, or in any way publish or distribute, any portions or subjects of notes or any of City’s records and information to or with any person or entity, by any means or method, including personally, on any social platform, by any medium or contact, including by telephone, e-mail, or any and all other means, methods or communications” (§16), and that continues after they leave office (§17). They may not use a signature block, business card, letterhead or “social media account” that suggests they have “any authority as a Council member” (§6), and “No Council member has any authority to conduct City’s business other than at a properly noticed meeting of the entire governing body” (§7). They may not contact a City contractor “in person, or by or through any other person,” by any means including “e-mail; petition; post; telephone; text; social media,” “unless such contact is expressly permitted through a written request and joint written authorization by both the City Mayor and the City Administrator” (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.4, §5). Each violation carries a fine of up to $500 (§21).
4. Staff changes: the ordinance says changes to “City Administrative Personnel shall be within the sole purview and discretion of City’s Administrator.” The same section also requires a unanimous Council vote for changes to positions it calls City Administration. (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.3, §3)
5. Who counts as City Administration: “City Administrator; City Secretary; City Chief Financial Officer; Financial Data Specialist; Municipal Judge, City Police Chief; City Attorney; and City Prosecutor.” Only the City Secretary, the Court Clerk and the Utilities Clerk may sign on City bank accounts. (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.3, §4)
6. The Mayor stays out of daily operations. “The Mayor shall not initiate, oversee, manage, or regulate the day-to-day operations of the City.” (Ord. No. 04-102)
7. Changing the agenda rule takes every vote. It requires “the unanimous vote of all five (5) voting members of the Council at a properly-noticed official Council meeting.” To vote on it, it has to be on the agenda. (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.2, §2)
8. Winning the election is the first step. Before new members are sworn in, the sitting Council, or investigators it appoints, “shall have not less than thirty (30) days from the date of any such election in which to begin investigation into the election’s voter eligibility and election verification (LGC 22.033); and elected candidates’ qualifications,” and “such investigation may continue for so long as the Investigator/s continue to collect information, materials and witnesses relating to Election Wrongdoing” (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.9, §6). In plain English: Section 6 sets when the investigation may begin. It continues for as long as the investigators keep collecting. The oath of office “shall be by the Mayor” (§9).

How Much Power the City Administrator Has

Most of it is in one ordinance, Ordinance No. 2023-05-31.1, which is titled in part “ESTABLISHING AND CLARIFYING THE OFFICE OF CITY ADMINISTRATOR.” Everything below is quoted from the ordinances in our library. For the other side of the ledger, see What Council Members Are Not Allowed to Do.

Getting the job, and keeping it

1. The Mayor picks; the Council confirms. “The Mayor shall appoint the Administrator subject to confirmation by the governing body” (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.1, §3).
2. No end date. “The Administrator’s term of office shall continue indefinitely” (§3).
3. The contract governs. “City shall contract with the Administrator, and such contract shall govern all aspects of the employment relationship between City and Administrator.” The Administrator “shall be subject to discharge at the will of the City Council pursuant to such contract,” and “City Council shall honor, comply with and fulfill all terms and conditions of such contract” (§3). We have not been given the contract.
4. The Council’s authority, with a condition. “Administrator’s actions relating to City’s affairs are subject to the authority of the City Council if not contracted otherwise” (§3).
5. If the Administrator is away. The duties “shall, first, default to the City Secretary”; only if both are absent may the Council name a substitute, and only “if the City Administrator’s contract permits” (§5).
6. Changing any of this takes every vote. “the unanimous vote of all five (5) voting members of the Council at a properly-noticed official Council meeting” (§2).

Who answers to whom

1. Head of City government. The Administrator “shall serve as the administrative head of the City’s municipal government and as the liaison between the City, the public, and in all contracts with, by or on behalf of City” (§3).
2. All employees. “In conjunction with the City Secretary, supervise and oversee day-to-day operations of all City employees, departments and staff” (§6(A)), and “Exercise supervision and control over all department heads and departments, whether presently or previously created or to be created in the future; and all communications, including between departments and City’s Council” (§8(B)).
3. Hiring and firing. “In conjunction with City Secretary, act as City Personnel Director; hiring and terminating (without City Council approval), evaluating and directing any and all City personnel” (§6(D)).
4. Grading every department. The Administrator, “in Administrator’s sole discretion, shall analyze, or contract for the analysis of, the functions, duties, activities and performance of all City departments, divisions, services and employees” (§8).
5. Who counts as the Administrator’s people. “City Administrator; City Secretary; City Chief Financial Officer; Financial Data Specialist; Municipal Judge, City Police Chief; City Attorney; and City Prosecutor,” plus “such others as the City Administrator, in the City Administrator’s sole discretion, shall create, appoint, hire or remove in the future” (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.3, §4).
6. The Police Chief, separately. The Council “shall contract for the employment of, and thereafter appoint, the Police Chief” (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.8, §3), and the Chief is “the sole administrative authority of and over the Department without the requirement, or reporting, of any of the Police Chief’s actions to the Mayor or Council” (§4).
7. How it used to read. In 2004 the Council wanted an Administrator who “shall serve at the will of the City Council and shall report directly to the City Council,” with “final authority concerning the hiring and employment of any employee, subject to the advice and consent of the City Council” (Ord. No. 04-102, partial copy). In 2023 it became “(without City Council approval).”

Money

1. $50,000 in purchasing authority. The Administrator “Serves as one of the approval agents for City purchasing, and shall be authorized and responsible for up to Fifty Thousand Dollars and No/100 ($50,000.00) in purchasing authority pursuant to the laws of this State” (§6(H)).
2. Unilateral purchases. “Administrator shall be authorized as allowed by law to take unilateral action on construction and/or equipment purchases” (§8).
3. The budget. “Monitor the budget and all financial affairs of the City; working closely with the Council, any Budget Committee, and department heads, if any, to: develop a comprehensive budget and work program; coordinate annual budget preparation; approve expenditures; and implement budgetary adjustments as appropriate and necessary” (§6(E)). See Finances for the budget pages we hold.
4. The books, but not the checkbook. For the sewer system, the Administrator’s areas include “accounts receivable, accounts payable, accounting, bookkeeping, banking and all periodic or other audits, except that Administrator shall not be a signer on any related banking account” (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.7, §6).
5. The sewer system, exclusively. The Administrator has “exclusive authority to administer all business, operations and maintenance of, for, or relating to, and in connection with, the System” (§5) and “exclusive discretion to take any and all necessary and reasonable actions” for it (§9).
6. The USDA. The Administrator “shall not be excluded from, any and all non-Council meetings, conferences and communications relating to all City business and contracts, including but not limited to, for example, any meetings, conferences and communications relating to City’s debt contract with the U.S.D.A.” (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.1, §6). Resolution 2020-003 names “The Mayor, Mayor Pro Tem and the City Administrator” to negotiate with the USDA, and “All City Representatives are to be present” (Res. No. 2020-003, §1; our copy’s day and month are blank).

Meetings, agendas and what the public hears

1. The agenda. “Subject only to recommendations by the City Council, the City Administrator shall have the sole right, responsibility, duty and authority to determine any and all items to be placed on any City Council agendas for Regular, Special and Executive meetings” (§7; see also Ord. No. 2023-05-31.2, §3).
2. In the room, without a vote. The Administrator may “take part and fully participate in all Council meetings and discussions, except that Administrator shall not vote,” “shall have no legislative power; and shall direct, inform and advise the governing body” (§7), and is “an ex officio member of all City and Council boards and committees” (§7).
3. Keeping the Council on topic. “Assist in expediting Council business by ensuring that the Council’s discussion is limited to, and focused on, items posted on the agenda or on items that should be posted on future agendas” (§8(D)), and “Enforce the rules of procedure, order and decorum adopted by the Council” (§8(E)).
4. All public communications. “Exercise all of City’s public communications, including by or through any and all media forms and platforms” (§8(H)).
5. The records. “Serve as Records Management Officer and curator, assisting the City Secretary and other administrative personnel, and oversee the City’s record retention program” (§8(G)). The Administrator and City Secretary schedule a Council member’s one-hour records appointment (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.5, §13) and report each member’s access to the full Council at the next meeting (§15).
6. Office hours. “Establish the days and hours of operation of, as well as any and all access to, any and all City office buildings, departments, structures, plants and facilities, including The City of Hawk Cove, Texas, Judy Fowler Memorial Complex” (§6(K)). Council members may see City records “only during the established hours of City’s offices” (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.5, §9).

What the Council cannot do without the Administrator

1. Put an item on its own agenda (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.2, §3).
2. Contact a City contractor: that takes “a written request and joint written authorization by both the City Mayor and the City Administrator” (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.4, §5).
3. Speak to City staff: “solely through City’s Administrator” (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.3, §5).
4. Name a stand-in when the Administrator is away, unless “the City Administrator’s contract permits” (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.1, §5).
5. See City records: the appointment is scheduled “by City’s Administrator and City’s Secretary” (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.5, §13).

When the Police Chief Is Also the City Administrator

A 2023 Texas Health and Human Services Commission hearing decision lists the “Police Chief and City Administrator of Hawk Cove.” We hold no later record of who holds either title.

1. The Administrator supervises City Administration, and the Police Chief is listed in it. City Administration includes the “City Police Chief” (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.3, §4), and the Council may not “dictate or attempt to dictate” who is hired or removed there (§5).
2. The Police Chief does not report to the Mayor or the Council. The Chief is “the sole administrative authority of and over the Department without the requirement, or reporting, of any of the Police Chief’s actions to the Mayor or Council” (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.8, §4), and “shall not be required to have the approval of the Mayor or Council to hire, fire, or accept resignations from Department personnel” (§5).
3. The Police Chief does not have to explain anything in public. “The Police Chief shall not be required or caused to give any information in any public forum or to any person, and shall avoid such security breaches or safety issues that will or may affect the security, safety and welfare of any Department personnel or the Department.” (Ord. No. 2023-05-31.8, §5).

So: when one person holds both titles, as the 2023 decision shows, the ordinances have the Police Chief reporting to neither the Mayor nor the Council, and supervised by the City Administrator, who is the Police Chief.