Nixon hires Becker as interim city manager after lengthy meeting

Gonzales County Precinct 4 Justice of the Peace Darryl Becker was appointed the interim city manager following a lengthy executive session by the Nixon City Council on Monday, Dec. 18.

Becker, who also serves as the city’s municipal judge, will be considered a part-time employee with a W2 and will be paid $45,000 per year with no healthcare or retirement benefits. However, Becker will be furnished a city truck for use while he is on the job, according to a motion by Alderman Justin La Fleur, which the council approved by a 5-0 vote.

Becker was to begin his new duties on Wednesday, Dec. 20 and will serve in that capacity until a new full-time manager can be hired.

The council also voted to look for an independent, third-party firm which can conduct a forensic accounting audit of the city’s financial records for cheaper than a six-figure amount that was quoted by one firm.

Becker is stepping into the position after the council fired City Manager Harold Rice with cause, effective immediately, during a special called meeting two weeks earlier. The motion to fire Rice was made “due to the negligent misapplication or misuse by the city manager of public funds under his official capacity as city manager.”

Rice’s current contract had been approved by the council on March 7, 2023, and was for five years, meaning he still had four years and four months left on his contract at the time he was terminated.

Rice’s attorney, Lori Hanson of Hanson Law P.C. of Schertz, has called the allegations against her client “baseless” and has insisted the city has violated Rice’s contract by ending his employment without any warning.

City Attorney Eduardo “Eddie” Escobar has told the Inquirer the city declines to comment on Rice’s termination at this time and reserves the right to comment at a later date.

Hanson claims Rice was fired due to how a vendor was paid funds the city had received from Gonzales County for the purchase of law enforcement radios. According to her, the vendor reportedly never received the check and a new one had to be sent out. Hanson said the council later agreed to spend city funds on other projects without taking into consideration the outstanding payment to the vendor, which meant the city went over budget.

Escobar told council members at the Dec. 18 meeting that city representatives had spoken with the Victoria firm of Goldman, Hunt & Notz, L.L.P., which performs the city’s regular audit. They cannot perform a forensic audit of the city’s finances, due to client workload, but would recommend a contract employee who works with the firm. However, the cost would be expected to be well more than “six figures just because of the intensity of the digging that would be required.”
“They would be looking for transactions of $20,000 or more, looking for any kind of irregularities,” Escobar said. “They would not be doing the fine tooth comb, even on a $100,000 audit. They would be looking at changes in transactions involving $20,000 or more. These types of audits are done by this individual but because of the timeframe and the intensity it would take to complete it, that’s what he was able to offer and quote the city of Nixon.”

Mayor Dorothy Riojas said the city’s auditor does keep close tabs on all journal entries for the city and “so far has not caught anything that would raise concern.”

Council members agreed to look for another firm that would charge less to do the forensic audit, stating they believe it necessary to protect the city’s finances.