Michael Morris will resume his role as North Texas transportation director after a state district judge issued a temporary injunction Tuesday that his firing last week was unconstitutional.
Morris returned to his job at the North Central Texas Council of Governments office in Arlington Tuesday afternoon, said Rick Bailey, chair of the Regional Transportation Council.
“I’m elated that Michael Morris is going to be joining us as soon as today,” Bailey, a Johnson County commissioner, told the Fort Worth Report Tuesday afternoon.
State District Judge John Chupp of Tarrant County’s 141st District Court issued a temporary injunction in favor of Morris’ employment after a lawsuit was filed April 6 in Denton County to stop a job search to replace the director.
Morris, 70, could not be immediately reached for comment Tuesday. He was fired April 28 by council of governments CEO Todd Little, weeks before the FIFA World Cup games in Arlington start in June. A temporary restraining order protecting Morris’ job was lifted, resulting in his firing.
Last week, the Regional Transportation Council decided during an emergency meeting to allocate $5 million for legal expenses as it joined a lawsuit filed by Denton County officials over hiring decisions. The suit was moved to Tarrant County this week.
RTC members said the suit’s intention is to clarify the Metropolitan Planning Organization structure in North Texas. The transportation council is an independent policy body composed of 45 elected and appointed officials who would have the ability to hire and fire transportation department staffers, instead of the council of governments as Little maintained.
Through a spokesperson, Little declined an interview request. Previously, he told the Fort Worth Report that he required all council of government department heads to file succession plans for the future.
In a statement Tuesday, the council of government acknowledged that Morris was "reinstated" to his job in compliance with the temporary injunction.
“The court’s order is a preliminary measure that returns Mr. Morris to his position while litigation filed by Denton County and the Regional Transportation Council against the NCTCOG and NCTCOG Executive Board members proceeds,” the council of governments said. “It does not address the merits of the case.”
NCTCOG said the organization and its executive board “will continue to operate in accordance with applicable laws and established governance processes as the matter moves forward.”
A trial date for the case is set for Nov. 9.
In an email to RTC members Tuesday, Bailey said the judicial decision regarding Morris’ employment is “a positive step for the region.”
“We appreciate the Court’s order and the clarity it provides moving forward,” Bailey said in his email. “We are hopeful this matter can be resolved in a timely manner in a way that best serves the long-term transportation needs of North Texas.”
Fort Worth City Council member Elizabeth Beck said Judge Chupp saw that Little didn’t have the authority to fire Morris.
Little “overstretched and that was reflected today with the court undoing his decision,” Beck said. “It righted a wrong and it addressed unscrupulous behavior by the executive director of COG.”
Denton County Judge Andy Eads said the suit was filed to address “the overreach” of the council of governments board of directors and Little.
“I was very pleased for our region that our transportation director has been returned to their position,” Eads said Tuesday. “I think this is great for long-term planning, for our different modes of transportation but also in the short term, so we can fully execute the plans for FIFA.”
More importantly, Eads said, “We’re pleased that this order affirms our position, which is that for transportation decisions to be voted on, they have to be voted on by officials that are within the Metropolitan Planning area and not outside of that.”
Bailey said the transportation council will move forward with a Metropolitan Planning Organization agreement with the Texas Department of Transportation to reconfirm that RTC is the policy-making body responsible for transportation decisions in North Texas. The agreement would be similar to those used in other Texas metro areas, such as Houston, San Antonio and Austin, officials said.
“I look forward to putting our best foot forward,” he said.
Bailey said the group will work to put its differences with the council of governments executive board aside and “work for the betterment of the region.”
With the World Cup games coming to North Texas within weeks, the region will implement a comprehensive transportation plan to move people to the games in Arlington.
“Now we have our leadership in place to make sure we have a successful World Cup,” Bailey said.
Eads said he hoped that the council of government executive board would address Little’s actions in the dispute — and consider the legal expense and damage to long-standing relationships among government officials in the region.
“I hope they take that into consideration as they move forward,” Eads said.
Beck added, “I see how important regionalism is. The council of governments and the RTC has been that convening place for years. I think Todd Little failed to understand who he is responsible to — and it's the elected officials across the region that represent the millions of people who live here in DFW.”
Editor’s note: This story was updated May 5 with additional comments from Regional Transportation Council members and the North Central Texas Council of Governments.
Eric E. Garcia is senior business reporter at the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at eric.garcia@fortworthreport.org.
This article first appeared on Fort Worth Report and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
