DALLAS — Watch the Inside Texas Politics segment with the mayor in the video player above.
When Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson campaigned for mayor, he promised to pass meaningful ethics reform.
He said the city needed it, and when he was elected, he would do something about it. The Dallas City Council agreed. This week it unanimously approved an ethics reform package.
Johnson considers the ethics reform package a significant milestone. “We elevated it to the top of our agenda, and by a 15-0 vote - we’ve done something that’s truly historic," he said on Inside Texas Politics.
The new ethics code creates an Office of Inspector General with a full-time investigator and/or prosecutor to investigate city corruption claims.
The mayor also discussed violent crime and how it compares to previous years.
“Right now, we are down year-to-date in homicides, down year-to-date in aggravated assaults, down year-to-date in overall violent crimes,” the mayor said.
He gave credit to Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia for the decrease in violent crimes. Johnson said the chief had an actual plan to reduce violent crime - and it's working.
The mayor is up for re-election in 18 months. He was non-committal about whether he’ll run again for his seat, saying he’s happy being mayor now.
“I will make that decision at some point next year and announce that at some point in the future. Right now, I am focused on getting through this term and continuing the successes we’ve had,” he said.