TAFT, Texas — In a 4-1 decision, the Taft City Council voted to terminate its contract with City Manager Ryan Smith on Tuesday. Smith will remain in the role for 30 days under the conditions of his contract.
Mayor Elida Castillo told KRIS 6 News the vote followed the council’s first opportunity to complete an evaluation of Smith’s job performance, which had been delayed in January because Smith was not available.
“This time he was at the meeting, and so as a council, we went back, we discussed job performance, and then the decision was made to do a unilateral separation per the conditions of his contract,” Castillo said.
Castillo said the decision came after what she described as a difficult few months for the city, pointing to ongoing tensions between Smith and council members.
“It wasn’t an easy decision,” Castillo said. “After careful consideration of all the circumstances that we have been through in the last 2.5 months, it was pretty obvious that this wasn’t a situation that was good for the community or for us as a council.”
As previously reported, Smith sued the city council after accusing officials of violating the Texas Open Meetings Act at an improperly noticed November 14 meeting and interfering with his authority to manage city operations.
Castillo said the lawsuit was among the actions that raised concerns about whether Smith was willing to work with the council moving forward.
“We need somebody who’s gonna be prioritizing the concerns of the community,” she said.
In January, the Thirteenth Court of Appeals denied a motion by Smith that sought to dismiss an appeal filed against him by the mayor and councilmembers. The court’s order, issued Jan. 13, allowed the appeal to proceed.
Castillo said the city will now begin the process of reposting the city manager position, while also assessing what steps need to be taken during Smith’s remaining 30 days.
“We’re in the figuring out stage,” Castillo said. “It’s not one that we’re prepared for, but we need to do this as professionally and as cleanly as possible.”
Smith has been the volunteer fire chief for the City of Taft since October 2021. During his time with the fire department, Smith faced a legal battle with the City of Taft in 2022 when the volunteer fire department opposed the city's attempt to create a new fire chief position. Smith later joined the city council as an assistant to then-temporary City Manager Kandi Hubert.
Hubert resigned in June amid an ongoing investigation by 6 Investigates regarding excessive overtime paid to city employees, including Taft City Secretary Andrea Gomez.
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