Public Safety Committee Meeting – April 7, 2026
Public Safety Committee Meeting – April 7, 2026
The Public Safety Committee met on Tuesday, April 7, 2026, at 10:05 AM. The meeting began with approval of the March 3, 2026 minutes, followed by a detailed presentation on the city's workers' compensation program and a discussion on mental health resources for first responders. Councilmembers heard testimony from a firefighter and department representatives, and several future data requests were assigned.
Consent Calendar
- Approved the minutes from the March 3, 2026 meeting unanimously.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Skylar Ainsworth, firefighter: Described systemic breakdowns in the workers' compensation process for first responders. He noted a spike in denials since key city staff left in 2024, surgery approvals routinely denied in favor of physical therapy, and that the city's reliance on a third-party administrator (Sedgwick) prioritizes cost savings over appropriate care. He argued that the city, as self-insured, has the authority to override denials but currently does not, leading to prolonged delays, increased costs (overtime backfill), and emotional stress on employees and families.
- Buck (Police Department): Briefed on the R3 program – a large-scale public‑private partnership providing non‑clinical resources for moral injury. Police officers can attend using training time, at no personal cost.
- Cliff (Fire Department): Noted that fire personnel currently must use vacation time or rely on limited monthly slots for R3 participation because minimum staffing requirements create overtime. He also described a counseling program funded entirely by grants and community partners providing seven free sessions with culturally competent counselors (first responders, veterans, spouses) to avoid therapists becoming overwhelmed by trauma.
Discussion Items
- Workers' Compensation Overview (Kristen Smith, HR Director): Presented the state framework, city's self‑insured status (100% taxpayer‑funded), annual claim volume (~1,500–1,700), and types of claims (strains, falls, misc.). She outlined state‑mandated provisions (causation, presumptive coverages for TB, heart attack/stroke, certain cancers), 15‑day determination window (60 days for presumptive), and dispute resolution. The city's above‑and‑beyond programs include nurse case managers, athletic trainers (Baylor Scott & White), early detection screenings for firefighters, and expanded injury leave (up to two years for first responders). A competitive bidding process for a new third‑party administrator will occur in FY27.
- Claims Navigation & Provider Network: Discussion on adding providers to the network (two per month average), single‑case agreements for out‑of‑network specialists, and the role of Sedgwick as the current TPA. Councilmembers pressed on delays in approving out‑of‑network care and the lack of a formal waiver process.
- Internal Support & Care Coordinators: HR is recruiting two senior HR analysts dedicated to police and fire to serve as escalation points and liaisons with departments, Sedgwick, and independent nurse case managers.
- Mental Health Resources: Presenters described the R3 program (proactive resiliency) and the counseling follow‑up program. Councilmember Beck raised concerns about disparity between police and fire in accessing training time for mental health programs. Councilmember Boys noted that vacation time in fire counts as productive time, but policy could be adjusted to create a carve‑out.
- Legal Authority: Assistant City Attorney Stephen Cumbey confirmed that the City Council can direct the city to accept a claim or approve surgery even if Sedgwick denies it, because the city is self‑insured and has ultimate authority over claims decisions.
Key Outcomes
- Council requested the following data for future meetings:
- Denials & appeals: Number of surgery/treatment denials by the city and percentage overturned on appeal, plus historical provider data.
- Officer‑involved pursuit incidents: Injuries (to officers, suspects, bystanders) and costs incurred over the past 12–24 months, along with potential technology resources to aid pursuits.
- Cardiac arrest survival reporting: Follow‑up on opportunities identified in a previous informal report.
- The discussion on e‑bikes and scooters was deferred to the next Public Safety Committee meeting.
- The meeting was adjourned at approximately 11:30 AM, with the chair noting this is the beginning of an ongoing conversation on workers' comp and mental health support.
Meeting Transcript
All right, good morning, everyone. Uh, thank you for coming out. It's a little after 10, it's 10 05. We're gonna go ahead and call the public safety committee meeting for Tuesday, April 7th to order. The first item of business's approval of the March 3rd, 2026 uh minutes. Move to approve. All right, all in favor is aye. Any nays? No, okay. That one passes. All right. Um this next presentation is um actually quite an important one. Um I never like to rush meetings for the sake of rushing meetings, so I do want to make sure we give this one the time it deserves. Um, and so with that being said, we're gonna go over workers' compensation overview. Uh, director Kristen Smith from Human Resources is here to give that. Or she's not. Kristen will provide the overview, but I want to do a quick introduction. And I want to do an introduction to the workers' comp program overview that you're about to receive for two reasons. One is the former HR director, and second, as the assistant city manager responsible for the oversight of the human resources department that administers the workers' compensation program. I want to share that the city is part of the state's workers' compensation program that basically regulates the framework around medical care and wage replacement for employees that are injured on the job. That open that program that we participate in has been around since 1913, and the city has been a participant in that program for decades. Beyond compliance with state requirements, what you're going to hear in today's presentation are things that we do above and beyond what the law requires. You're also going to hear that our goal is even just more fundamental, that employees go home safely at the end of a shift. And so there's lots of efforts that go into that on related to on the job training that our first responders receive. In addition to that, they also receive PPE and protection equipment. And then, of course, the safety net of the state state regulated insurance in the event that they sustain a job-related injury or an occupational illness. The duties of our first responders carry an inherent risk, and we recognize that. They are the first to go into situations that would prevent that would uh expose them to injuries and illnesses that occur on the job. And so again, beyond the state regulatory requirements, the city provides support for injury prevention. We provide early detection, so there's screenings that are provided to our first responders, and then recovery. Some of the examples that you're going to hear more about are the athletic trainers that are provided to first responders at no cost to those individuals. You're also going to hear about our nurse case managers that help with complex workers' compensation claims, and then annual health screenings that we provide to our firefighters for early detection of occupational illnesses. On average, the city receives over a thousand claims every year. Vast majority of those claims are from our first responders. And while I say those numbers, I want to say that behind each of those claims and each of those numbers, there's an employee, there's a worker, there's a work group, and there's a family that's impacted, and that perspective matters. What you're gonna focus, what we're gonna focus on in today's presentation is really about the overall program in the administration. The individual cases, while those situations matter to the individuals, to the employees, to the city, we are legally prohibited from talking about medical situations of our employees. So today's presentation is really gonna look at the overall program administration and ways that we can strengthen this program in a consistent and fiscally sustainable manner for the benefit of our employees and the trust of our taxpayers. So before I allow Kristen to come up, I do want to share that Kristen has been with us for all of six months in one day, and we're gonna lean into her newness to the organization and her public and private experience to really look at how we administer the program and opportunities for change. So with that, I'm gonna turn it over to Kristen to provide the overview. Thank you. Again, I'm Kristen Smith. I am the HR director here at the city. I'm here to provide a very high-level overview of workers' compensation, both as a framework outlined by the state as well as provisions that are in place for the city's specific program. All right. Alright, so the state actually sets the framework and outlines guidelines for workers' compensation for all employers across the state. At very fundamental levels, workers' compensation is in place to ensure employees who are injured or become ill as a result of their work that they receive treatment, timely care, and in some situations, compensation for their situations. The regulatory body for workers' compensation in the state is the Texas Department of Insurance. They provide both the framework that we are required to follow. They ensure compliance and they can also take enforcement action.
openpublica.com