El Paso Mayor Oscar Leeser vetoes City Manager Tommy Gonzalez's contract changes

El Paso Mayor Oscar Leeser on Tuesday vetoed an extension and amendments to City Manager Tommy Gonzalez's contract.

Leeser listed three reasons for his veto, according to a news release sent from his office:

• Leeser said Gonzalez's contract was renewed in 2019 and won't expire until 2024. "It is 2022 and therefore premature to amend or renew his contract at this time," Leeser wrote.
• The mayor also said "extending and enhancing" any current contract when El Pasoans are facing increased living costs and property valuations is neither prudent nor warranted. He called on the city to tighten spending, adding that the appropriate time to renegotiate and amend the contract will come, "but that time is not now."
• Leeser said he requested but was told the city could not predict an estimate for the economic impact to the city of the proposed amendments through 2029.

"The performance of the city manager has no bearing on my action. My veto is based on the reasons stated above," Leeser said in his statement.

Leeser said at a news conference Wednesday that an attorney from San Antonio, hired by El Paso City Attorney Karla Nieman, was asked to weigh in on the legality of the veto because a line in the city’s charter states that the mayor “doesn’t have any veto power over any City Council action which removes the City Manager or the City Attorney."

Leeser said he received a call from the attorney Tuesday, who clarified that as mayor he does have the veto power he exercised Wednesday. 

“I really hope (this veto) stands because when I did it, I did it because it’s the right thing for the community,” Leeser said. 

Leeser said he did not speak with Gonzalez about the veto, adding that he hopes it won’t strain their relationship. 

Six City Council members will be needed to override the mayor’s veto. 

El Paso City Council voted to extend City Manager Tommy Gonzalez's contract

On Monday, the El Paso City Council voted to extend Gonzalez's contract with the city until June 24, 2029, and instilled a salary cap of $450,000 a year. 

The salary cap may be raised if the average base salaries for the three highest comparison cities outlined in the agreement raise their city manager pay over $450,000. 

The City Council was split on the issue, passing it on a 5-3 vote after being in a closed door, executive session for more than four hours. 

City Reps. Claudia Rodriguez, Alexsandra Annello and Joe Molinar voted against the amendment, while Peter Svarzbein, Cassandra Hernandez, Isabel Salcido, Henry Rivera and Cissy Lizarraga voted for it. 

The executive session meeting Monday came days after Frisco, Texas, announced Gonzalez was a finalist for the same position in that city. After his contract extension was announced, he withdrew his name from consideration for the Frisco position.

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District 2 representative Annello said she had issues with how the council conducted itself during the session. 

Annello also said there are provisions in Gonzalez's contract that don't protect El Pasoans. 

The vote also drew ire from the Community First Coalition of El Paso, a coalition of community organizations, leaders and activists from the area. 

"The speed and lack of any discussion or information to the public can only mean city leaders knew this would be a controversial issue which would not sit well with many," Carmen Rodriguez, a member of the coalition, said in a statement Tuesday. "We should require an explanation and rationale for yesterday’s actions, but most importantly, a full discussion with public input on the merits of the city manager’s performance and commitment to our community is strongly warranted." 

Gonzalez's contract includes a hefty severance package made up of one year's salary, plus benefits in one lump sum.

Gonzalez was appointed as El Paso's city manager in June 2014, and the city renewed his contract in 2018. His contract was set to expire in 2024. Gonzalez began his career in El Paso with a salary of almost $239,000. His salary is now $404,377. 

Comment was sought from Gonzalez, but none was received by late Wednesday afternoon.

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Anthony Jackson may be reached at ADJackson@elpasotimes.com and @TonyAnJackson on Twitter.