Please note: All agenda items are considered PASSED unless indicated otherwise.

OPEN SESSION:

RESOLUTION 

1. Consider and take necessary action to approve a resolution proclaiming February 11, 2026, as “Hubbard Middle School AVID National Demonstration Day” in Smith County. 

2. Consider and take necessary action to approve a resolution proclaiming February 23, 2026, as “The First Literary Club of Tyler Day” in Smith County.

COURT ORDERS
COMMISSIONERS COURT

3. Consider and take necessary action to approve low cost spay and neuter services provided by the Animal Protection League at 322 E. Ferguson, Tyler, TX 75702 (Smith County Animal Shelter Parking Lot).

Comments: 

The Animal Shelter will host the Animal Protection League’s mobile vet service vehicle in the back parking lot of the shelter for low-cost sterilizations of pets. They will have permission to come every Tuesday. All the details are in the packet, linked at the top of this report, on pages 14-18.

FIRE MARSHAL’S OFFICE

4. Consider and take necessary action to approve the Emergency Support Function (ESF) 7, Logistics, of the Smith County Emergency Operations Plan, allow the Emergency Management Coordinator to submit to the Texas Division of Emergency Management, and authorize the county judge to sign all related documentation.

Comments:

Your Emergency Management Coordinator, Brandon Moore, works with county departments, first responders, and partner agencies to keep our Emergency Operations Plan ready for disasters. This approval lets him submit the updated Emergency Support Function 7, Logistics, section to the Texas Division of Emergency Management.

Emergency Support Function 7, Logistics, handles getting essential supplies—like food, water, fuel, and equipment—to the right places quickly during storms, floods, or other emergencies. This ensures help reaches people and responders faster and more effectively. You can read the full updated section on pages 21-65 of the agenda packet linked at the top of my weekly report.

Updating these plans takes hundreds of man-hours of teamwork, often while dealing with real events. Brandon Moore does outstanding work and keeps Smith County well prepared when it matters most.

5. Consider and take necessary action to approve the Emergency Support Function (ESF) 9, Search and Rescue, of the Smith County Emergency Operations Plan, allow the Emergency Management Coordinator to submit to the Texas Division of Emergency Management, and authorize the county judge to sign all related documentation.

Comments:

The Court also approved the updated Emergency Support Function 9, Search and Rescue section of our Emergency Operations Plan. This ESF focuses on locating, reaching, and safely extracting people who are trapped, injured, or in immediate danger—such as in collapsed buildings after storms or tornadoes, during swift-water floods, or in other life-threatening situations. It coordinates specialized search teams, technical rescue equipment, and operations to save lives as quickly as possible when seconds matter.

You can read the full updated Emergency Support Function 9 Search and Rescue section on pages 68-82 of the agenda packet linked at the top of my weekly report.

ELECTIONS

6. Consider and take necessary action to approve Facility Use Agreement between Smith County and the City of Whitehouse for elections occurring in 2026 and authorize the county judge to sign all related documentation.

Comments:

We approved this Facility Use Agreement for the Whitehouse City Center to be a polling location for upcoming 2026 elections.

7. Consider and take necessary action to approve the Interlocal Agreements for conducting elections between Smith County and the following political subdivisions for the May 2, 2026, Election and authorize the county judge to sign all related documentation.

1. City of Bullard,
   
2. City of Hideaway,
   
3. City of Lindale,
   
4. City of Winona, and
   
5. Tyler ISD

Comments:

The Court approved interlocal agreements with various cities to jointly conduct elections for the May 2, 2026 Elections. 

These agreements allow Smith County’s Elections office to partner with the cities—providing equipment, staff support, and logistical help—so they can run their municipal races or other local measures efficiently and cost-effectively. By sharing resources, we reduce duplication and help keep expenses manageable for the cities involved.

Once final costs are settled after the election, we’ll share exactly how much each participating city’s races cost taxpayers. For context, in a recent Troup city council election, turnout was very low—fewer than 58 voters out of 1,102 registered—which drove the per-vote cost to about $77.50.

ROAD AND BRIDGE

8. Consider and take necessary action on variance request from the Smith County Subdivision Regulations for the Oak View Park Subdivision from Benchmark Design Group.

Comments:

The variance was for their island at the entrance. The HOA will maintain the island before the gated entry.

HUMAN RESOURCES

9. Consider and take necessary action to approve a budget transfer from the Animal Control Officer salary lag to the Animal Shelter part time fund.

Comments:

This was approved. These items, #9 & #10, were on the agenda for last week but Judge passed on both. The explanations can be found on my report for last week.

10. Consider and take necessary action to reclassify the existing Animal Control Officer Position to Animal Control Dispatcher in the FY26 Salary Plan.

Comments:

This was approved. These items, #9 & #10, were on the agenda for last week but Judge passed on both. The explanations can be found on my report for last week.

PURCHASING

11. Consider and take necessary action to authorize the Purchasing Director to advertise, solicit, and receive sealed bids for RFP # 17-26 Independent Auditing Services-Road Bond Expenditures and Compliance.

Comments:

We finally took an important step forward on the independent audit of the Road & Bridge Department’s projects.

These discussions began at the January 27th Commissioners Court meeting. I proposed several reasonable amendments to strengthen the Request for Proposals (RFP) for the audit. See Agenda Item 6.

After reviewing their legality, the Court voted on them this week. Three of the four amendments passed.

Here are the amendments exactly as they were presented and voted on:

AMENDMENT #1 – PASSED 4-1; Commissioner Moore voted No.

Scope of Services
(4.) Scope of Audit Procedures
(C) Project Level Review (new bullet point)

• Verify that required project documentation is present, organized, and maintained in accordance with applicable standards, including but not limited to inspection records, material test reports and certifications, contractor daily reports, and other construction administration files necessary to demonstrate compliance with project specifications, contract requirements, and applicable TxDOT or federal recordkeeping expectations.

AMENDMENT #2 – PASSED Unanimously.

Scope of Services
Proposal Submission Instructions
(4.) Work Proposal and Approach
            b. Methodology and Tools (amended)

Many project records, including contracts, inspections, and supporting documents, remain in paper form at the Road and Bridge Department and are not fully digitized.

Will your audit team be able to conduct on-site review of these records to ensure a complete and accurate audit?

AMENDMENT #3 – FAILED 3-2 – Ayes : Drewry & Herod; Nays : Franklin, Moore, Caraway

Proposal Submission Instructions
(3.) Firm Overview – (Thomas Wilson Amendment) new bullet point

“Provide a brief overview and history of your firm, including the following information:

• Contract name, title, address, email, phone…”
• …
• Disclose any political contributions made by the firm, firm owners, officers, directors, or any individual that will be assigned to this project to any candidate for Smith County elected office within the past 5 years.

*This is for informational purposes only and is not included at any part of this bid scoring or evaluation criteria.

AMENDMENT #4 – PASSED Unanimously.

Scope of Services
Proposal Submission Instructions
(8.) Firm Service Philosophy (additional bullet point)

• Does your Firm have any Forensic & Compliance Audit experience?

The RFP will now be updated with the three approved amendments and released for bids. Companies will have 30 days to submit proposals. An evaluation committee will then recommend a firm to the Court.

I am determined to get this audit done right for the taxpayers. With roughly $7 million in road and bridge projects in question—projects our citizens will be paying for over the next 20+ years—we owe it to every taxpayer to have an independent, thorough review. This audit will give us clear answers on how the money was spent and whether our records are accurate. Even if the audit costs a significant amount, it is a necessary investment to ensure your tax dollars were spent correctly and efficiently.

I will keep you updated as this process moves forward.

RECURRING BUSINESS
COMMISSIONERS COURT

12. Receive monthly reports from Smith County departments.

ROAD AND BRIDGE

13. Receive pipe and/or utility line installation request (notice only) for County Road 2299, Jackson Water Supply, install water line for service, Precinct 2.

14. Consider and take necessary action to authorize the county judge to sign the Final Plat for the Oak View Park Unit No. 1 Subdivision, Precinct 4.

AUDITOR’S OFFICE

15. Consider and take necessary action to approve and/or ratify payment of accounts, bills, payroll, transfer of funds, amendments, and health claims.

Comments:

In this week’s Appropriations Report, I noticed something that did not look right. The fund line for the Office of the Budget Officer showed that no funds had been spent.

Last month, the Commissioners Court approved the new $24,000 budget software (ClearGov) for the Auditor’s Office. That software was supposed to be paid for using salary savings in the Budget Officer’s office — savings created when the previous Budget Officer left earlier than expected.

However, when the bill was paid, it was incorrectly charged to the IT Department’s budgetinstead. That was listed in the Bill Pay Report for the General Fund. I brought this to the Court’s attention during the meeting. The Auditor confirmed it was an error and said the payment is being moved to the correct account (the Budget Officer’s budget), as originally planned.

Small mistake, but these are exactly the kinds of things I watch for — making sure taxpayer dollars are spent where the Court actually approved them.

ADJOURN