Hawk Cove, Texas, August 11, 2026. A letter dated today from GFA Law, PLLC, of Temple, “COUNSEL FOR JAMES MULLIS,” is headed “Demand for Payment and Notice of Material Breach of Contract” (letter, p. 1; p. 5). It is addressed to the City “c/o Rhonda Mckeehan, City Administrator,” with a copy to Mayor Darren Evans and the Council. It asks for $514,536.64.
Everything below about why is the letter’s account, in its words. No court has decided any of it, and we hold no filed suit.
The two agreements
Mr. Mullis holds two agreements with the City, both dated May 25, 2023, and both approved that evening with “ALL MEMBERS PRESENT” in agreement (minutes, pp. 4–5): the “Agreement for City Wastewater Plant Operator” (agreement) and the “Employment Agreement for City Public Works Director” (agreement). Each runs “until the anniversary of this Agreement in the year 2033” and renews for six more years unless the City sends 180 days’ notice by certified mail (operator, §3.2; director, §3.2). Each requires that “All actions” by the Council on it be taken “by unanimous vote of all five (5) voting members” (§1.1). Each was signed for the City by Mayor Darren Evans and Mayor Pro-Tem Tiffany Taylor (operator, p. 8; director, p. 8).
And each has a Section 13.10: if the City ends it early by “Involuntary Termination,” the City “agrees to pay” a lump sum “equal to the amount which would have been due and payable had the Agreement, and any extensions, not been terminated,” within thirty days (operator, §13.10; director, §13.10). A contract to 2033 with a clause like that is the kind of paperwork that keeps.
What the letter says
- The termination. The City ended both contracts by a “Notice of Termination of Employment dated June 29, 2026, signed by Ms. Mckeehan and made effective immediately,” issued “unilaterally by the City Administrator, with no such Council vote” (p. 2).
- The reason, according to the letter. “The City terminated Mr. Mullis because he refused to break the law.” It says the Administrator “directed and pressured Mr. Mullis” to “falsify TCEQ documents and reports” so the City could qualify for USDA funding, and that he refused (p. 2). That is an accusation in a demand letter. We hold no record that decides it.
- The procedure. The letter says none of the certified-mail notice, ten-day wait or Executive Session hearing the contracts call for before an involuntary termination took place (p. 3; the contracts’ §§13.7–13.9).
- The amount. $287,248.34 for the Public Works Director agreement, $182,288.30 for the Wastewater Operator agreement and $35,000.00 in “Additional breach-of-contract damages and attorney’s fees”: “TOTAL AMOUNT DEMANDED $514,536.64” (p. 3).
- The deadline. “on or before September 10, 2026. If the City fails to make full payment by that date, Mr. Mullis is prepared to file suit against the City, and against responsible officials in their individual capacities to the extent permitted by law” (p. 4).
- Housekeeping. A notice to preserve, among other things, “all text messages” and the records of any session “concerning Mr. Mullis or his termination” (p. 4).
For scale
The FY2027 amended proposed budget sets aside “$42,000 for the IRS payroll-tax payment agreement” (page 1). The September 10 deadline has passed. We will post a petition when one is filed. More on what the City owes is on Finances, and the full terms of both agreements are on Officials.