Fort Worth will swear in Eddie García as the city’s 28th police chief next Tuesday, ushering in a new era for the department.
García starts Sept. 22 with a base pay of $306,000 a year, according to the city’s offer letter.
The city will provide him with a city-issued vehicle for official duties and $10,000 to help him relocate to Fort Worth. If García leaves the job within a year, he must repay the relocation allowance. He must repay half if he leaves the post any time between one and two years.
García, 54, is taking a pay cut of about $20,000 from his job as an Austin assistant city manager, which he took earlier this year. There, he was offered a set pay of about $327,600, according to WFAA.
Before Austin, García’s annual salary was $306,440 as Dallas police chief, plus a $10,000 retention bonus every six months. Dallas officials promised García he would remain the highest-paid police chief in Texas in an effort to keep him from leaving.
García will be one of the highest-paid city employees in Fort Worth.
City Manager Jay Chapa, who started in January, has an annual salary of $435,000. City Attorney Leann Guzman makes $309,580.96 a year, according to raises approved in December.
García replaces former Police Chief Neil Noakes, who retired in May after just over four years of leading the department of nearly 2,000 officers.
García was one of four finalists for the job. City Manager Chapa chose him over interim Chief Robert Alldredge, who has been with the department since 1999.
Fort Worth’s police department has long struggled with recruiting, according to the city’s drafted 2026 budget book, in a growing city where many listed trust, transparency and accountability as top priorities throughout the search for a new chief.
Black leaders cited years of tense relations between police officers and Black communities. Hispanic leaders said they’ve seen a mounting fear of law enforcement as federal officials continue emphasizing deporting undocumented immigrants.
García, who was born in Puerto Rico and grew up in California, said he wants to build close relationships with the different communities of Fort Worth. He is open to revisiting what police accountability looks like in the city, he said after he was selected as chief.
“You will be treated with dignity and respect by your police department,” García told the public during an August news conference. “We will work to earn and maintain your trust every single day.”
García is expected to be sworn in at the City Council’s next meeting, which starts at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 16.
Drew Shaw is a government accountability reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at drew.shaw@fortworthreport.org or @shawlings601.
This article first appeared on Fort Worth Report and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.