Denton Record-Chronicle (Denton, Tex.), Vol. 113, No. 346, Ed. 1 Friday, July 14, 2017 Page: 1 of 18
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INSIDE TODAY
ALSO INSIDE
Could Darvish be starting final run with Rangers? / Sports, IB
Trump defends son’s 2016
meeting with Russian
National, 3A
L ~
Venus shines in making ninth Wimbledon final / Sports, IB
Denton Record-Chronicle
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Vol. 113, No. 346 /18 pages, 3 sections
Friday, July 14, 2017
Denton, Texas
2 DME employees fired, file lawsuit against city
lawsuit as of Thurs-
day, according to City
Manager Todd Hile-
man. He said the law-
suit has no merit, add-
ing “the employees
were terminated for
reasons unrelated to
the lawsuit.”
Both men had breached their super-
visor’s trust, which led to their firing, ac-
cording to their termination letters,
which the Denton Record-Chronicle
obtained through an open records re-
I truthful in the con-
tract investigation, ac-
cording to his termi-
f nation letter.
“You provided in-
| accurate and mislead-
| ing answers during
your interview,” wrote
Bryan Langley, the
deputy city manager and interim man-
ager of DME.
Grim “was not candid and forth-
right” during his interview, a quality
necessary for a high-level manager,
Langley wrote.
Grim’s and Maynard’s lawsuit
against the city offered an additional
glimpse into what happened during
those interviews.
Court documents included the sur-
prise revelation that Fort Worth attor-
ney Julia Gannaway, who specializes in
directing investigations of workplace
misconduct, is assisting city leaders in
examining DME’s contracting practices
in connection with the Denton Energy
Center construction project underway
near the city airport.
The Denton Energy Center is
planned as a $265 million natural gas
By Peggy Heinkel-Wolfe
Staff Writer
pheinkel-wolfe@dentonrc.com
Two city employees have been fired
in the wake of an investigation into pos-
sible contracting irregularities at Den-
ton Municipal Electric.
Mike Grim, the executive manager
for power legislation and regulatory af-
fairs, and Jim Maynard, energy project
development manager, were fired Tues-
day, about three weeks after they were
placed on administrative leave.
In addition, Grim and Maynard filed
a lawsuit against the city Monday,
claiming city government leaders vio-
DRC investigates
Denton Municipal Electric under fire
9
lated the Texas Open Meetings Act and
the Texas Whistleblower Act in the
course of the investigation.
Robert Goodman, a Dallas attorney
who specializes in employment law,
filed the lawsuit in a Dallas County dis-
trict court on behalf of the former DME
employees. He said Grim and Maynard
were not sure they could get a fair trial
in Denton County.
“Not with the politics as they appear
to be,” Goodman said.
The city has not been served with the
,'A
Hileman
Watts
quest.
Maynard failed to cooperate and be
See DME on 9A
Health
care bill
teeters
on brink
TODAY
IN DENTON
T\v\
L
Mostly sunny,
hot and humid
High: 96
Low: 75
Three-day forecast, 2A
• Adf fV fAm-
1
aos
STATE
GOP leaders unveil
replacement legislation,
discord continues
■«
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i
i
A Texas man who be-
By Erica Werner and Alan Fram
Associated Press
WASHINGTON
leaders unveiled a new health care bill
Thursday in their increasingly desper-
ate effort to deliver on seven years of
promises to repeal and replace “Oba-
macare.” They immediately lost two key
votes, leaving none to spare as the par-
ty’s own divisions put its top campaign
pledge in serious jeopardy.
President Donald Trump declared a
day earlier that failure would make him
“very angry” and that he would blame
Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-
came trapped inside an
ATM slipped notes to
customers via the receipt
slot pleading for them to
help him escape, police
said Thursday.
Republican
I
Page 2A
Photos by Jake King/DRC
First responders work to repair a broken gas line Thursday on West University Drive near Alice Street in Denton after a
contractor hit a gas line running along West University Drive near Alice Street.
NATIONAL
■
1
GAS
MASKED
Ky
Ul
J »I
But talking with reporters aboard
Air Force One en route to France,
Trump also acknowledged the chal-
lenges lawmakers face.
“I’d say the only thing more difficult
than peace between Israel and the Pal-
estinians is health care,” Trump said.
“But I think were going to have some-
thing that’s really good and that people
are going to like.”
The reworked bill McConnell pre-
sented to fellow Republicans aims to
win conservatives’ support by letting in-
surers sell low-cost, skimpy policies. At
the same time, he seeks to placate hes-
itant moderates by adding billions to
combat opioid abuse and help consum-
ers with skyrocketing insurance costs.
But it wras not clear whether the Re-
publican leader has achieved the deli-
cate balance he needs after an embar-
rassing setback last month w7hen he
abruptly canceled a vote in the face of
widespread opposition to a bill he craft-
ed largely in secret.
/"If I I I I
Millions of Americans
wrho rely on Social Securi-
ty can expect to receive
their biggest payment
increase in years tins
January, according to
projections released
Thursday by the trustees
who oversee the program.
Page 3A
Crews work to seal leak
after contractor hits
pipeline, closing street
i
gh\
By Julian Gill
Staff Writer
jgill@dentonrc.com
Natural gas poured out of a broken
pipeline for several hours Thursday in
front of the Denton Center, resulting in
slower business at the shopping center
and evacuations at nearby shops and res-
taurants.
No one was injured. According to fire
department spokesman Kenneth Hedg-
es, firefighters were called to the scene at
9:12 a.m. after a construction crew struck
the Atmos Energy pipeline, which is at
West University Drive and Alice Street.
I
INTERNATIONAL
4
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Traffic on Sunset Street is rerouted off West University Drive after a contrac-
tor hit a gas line on Thursday, closing nearby businesses.
Worn out from months
of living in tents, about
150 Syrian families decid-
ed this week to return to
the city of Homs — even
if it meant going back to
a life under Assad’s rule.
Page 10A
See GAS LINE on 9A
See HEALTH CARE on 9A
Patrick proposes millions for
teacher bonuses, retirement
U J
I,
FIND IT INSIDE
retired teachers, inject $200 million into
the Teacher Retirement System, give $150
million to struggling small, rural districts
and provide $60 million for new facilities
for fast-growth school districts and char-
ter schools.
Over the next two years, Patrick said,
$700 million to pay for the plan would
come from a deferral of funds to managed
care organizations. Over the long term,
$700 million wrould be directly allocated
from the Texas Lottery if voters approved
an amendment to the Texas Constitution
to ensure that transfer of funds continues
indefinitely
%
By Aliyya Swaby
The Texas Tribune
AUSTIN — With less than a w7eek be-
fore the start of a special session of the
Texas Legislature, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick
laid out a proposal Thursday to give
teachers bonuses and increase their re-
tirement benefits, with plans to pay for
both long term using money from the
Texas Lottery.
Patrick called a press conference to roll
out his priorities for the next 30 days and
tear down the House’s plan for revamping
a faulty school funding system as a “Ponzi
scheme.”
Patrick’s plan, in part, would provide
$600 to $1,000 bonuses to long-term and
2A
CALENDAR
1C
CLASSIFIED
Less Than A Third of Classroom
“’ting Goes to Teacher Salaries
4C
COMICS & PUZZLES
4C
DEAR ABBY
5A
GOOD LIVING
9A
OBITUARIES
8A
OPINION
7A
RELIGION
IB
SPORTS
2A
WEATHER
'
Marjorie Kamys Cotera/The Texas Tribune
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick addresses the media Thursday at the Texas Capitol about
his plan to provide bonuses for long-term and retired teachers, days before the
start of a special legislative session.
5
See EDUCATION on 9A
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Parks, Scott K. Denton Record-Chronicle (Denton, Tex.), Vol. 113, No. 346, Ed. 1 Friday, July 14, 2017, newspaper, July 14, 2017; Denton, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1131386/m1/1/: accessed June 24, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; .