As the City of Bandera prepares to adopt its 2026– 2027 fiscal year budget on Thursday, city officials are facing another staff departure amid ongoing discussions about salaries, staffing levels and potential budget reductions.
Permitting Clerk Jaki Perkins submitted her resignation this week, joining Code Compliance Officer Teri Dollar, who resigned earlier this month.
Dollar did not publicly provide a reason for her departure.
Perkins’ resignation follows an Aug. 25 budget workshop during which council members debated whether the city should continue funding the permitting position or transition some duties to new software.
Kunz said the city already has $14,000 budgeted for the program from funds carried over from the previous fiscal year and recently completed a demonstration of the system.
“The contractors would go in and apply for their own permits,” Kunz said. “It would put it all together, and it really would give us all a better handle on what work we're doing, what we're supporting in the town, and whether we're in the black or the red.”
However, Kunz argued the software would not eliminate the need for staff oversight.
“Just because you're taking the onus on to the contractors to enter the information, you still have to follow through coordination,” she said. “You still have to verify and approve.”
During the salary discussion, Breen proposed a 10% reduction for department head salaries, saying some compensation levels appeared out of line with comparable communities.
Morrow voiced support for reducing exempt employee salaries and limiting raises.
Kunz responded that her review of compensation packages in other municipalities showed Bandera falls within industry norms when total compensation, including benefits, is considered.
“I looked at cities that published their budgets online,” Kunz said. “Every single one of them was between 39 and 46 percent over base salary for their total compensation package. From a compensation package, we are probably in the middle range.”
Council members also expressed concern about the effect utility increases could have on residents.
Morrow said she was reluctant to raise rates to support higher employee compensation.
“I just hate to see us increase rates just to support the lifestyle of our employees,” Morrow said.
Deanna McCabe echoed concerns about residents on fixed incomes.
“I’m hearing stories of someone with fixed income, older, can’t fix their car because they have to pay bills or have to let their home insurance go because they can’t pay utilities,” Mc-Cabe said. “There’s got to be some sort of balance.”
Kunz maintained that the city’s current budget remains balanced and warned against making staffing reductions before a full operational review can be completed.
“We have a balanced budget with the current salaries, the way they are, with the raises that we talked about and still have money for the projects that we want to do,” Kunz said. “I don’t want hasty decisions.”
But McCabe cited her own research on salaries.
“I respectfully disagree with the salaries,” McCabe said. “I think that they are, in looking at some of the cities that I looked at, they're pretty high.”
McCabe later noted that much of her research came from the Texas Municipal League salary survey, which she used to compare compensation levels across municipalities The council is expected to make a final decision on salaries on Thursday, Aug. 27.
The council went on to approve a budget proposal which included a 5% increase in municipal utility rates, while trash collection rates will remain unchanged.
The motion passed with McCabe casting the lone dissenting vote.
The city currently has vacancies for treasurer and code compliance officer, and council members have not yet determined whether the permitting clerk position will be filled or restructured as part of the upcoming budget.
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