decided during an emergency meeting<\/a> to allocate $5 million for legal expenses as it joined a lawsuit filed by Denton County officials over hiring decisions. The suit was moved to Tarrant County this week.<\/p>\nRTC members said the suit\u2019s intention is to clarify the Metropolitan Planning Organization structure in North Texas. The transportation council is an independent policy body composed of 45 elected and appointed officials who would have the ability to hire and fire transportation department staffers, instead of the council of governments as Little maintained.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Through a spokesperson, Little declined an interview request. Previously, he told the Fort Worth Report that he required all council of government department heads to file succession plans for the future.<\/p>\n
In a statement Tuesday, the council of government acknowledged that Morris was “reinstated” to his job in compliance with the temporary injunction.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe court\u2019s order is a preliminary measure that returns Mr. Morris to his position while litigation filed by Denton County and the Regional Transportation Council against the NCTCOG and NCTCOG Executive Board members proceeds,\u201d the council of governments said. \u201cIt does not address the merits of the case.\u201d<\/p>\n
NCTCOG said the organization and its executive board \u201cwill continue to operate in accordance with applicable laws and established governance processes as the matter moves forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
A trial date for the case is set for Nov. 9.<\/p>\n
In an email to RTC members Tuesday, Bailey said the judicial decision regarding Morris\u2019 employment is \u201ca positive step for the region.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe appreciate the Court\u2019s order and the clarity it provides moving forward,\u201d Bailey said in his email. \u201cWe are hopeful this matter can be resolved in a timely manner in a way that\u00a0 best serves the long-term transportation needs of North Texas.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fort Worth City Council member Elizabeth Beck said Judge Chupp saw that Little didn\u2019t have the authority to fire Morris.<\/p>\n
Little \u201coverstretched and that was reflected today with the court undoing his decision,\u201d Beck said. \u201cIt righted a wrong and it addressed unscrupulous behavior by the executive director of COG.\u201d<\/p>\n
Denton County Judge Andy Eads said the suit was filed to address \u201cthe overreach\u201d of the council of governments board of directors and Little.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was very pleased for our region that our transportation director has been returned to their position,\u201d Eads said Tuesday. \u201cI think this is great for long-term planning, for our different modes of transportation but also in the short term, so we can fully execute the plans for FIFA.\u201d<\/p>\n
More importantly, Eads said, \u201cWe\u2019re pleased that this order affirms our position, which is that for transportation decisions to be voted on, they have to be voted on by officials that are within the Metropolitan Planning area and not outside of that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bailey said the transportation council will move forward with a Metropolitan Planning Organization agreement with the Texas Department of Transportation to reconfirm that RTC is the policy-making body responsible for transportation decisions in North Texas. The agreement would be similar to those used in other Texas metro areas, such as Houston, San Antonio and Austin, officials said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI look forward to putting our best foot forward,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Bailey said the group will work to put its differences with the council of governments executive board aside and \u201cwork for the betterment of the region.\u201d<\/p>\n
With the World Cup games coming to North Texas within weeks, the region will implement a comprehensive transportation plan to move people to the games in Arlington.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow we have our leadership in place to make sure we have a successful World Cup,\u201d Bailey said.<\/p>\n
Eads said he hoped that the council of government executive board would address Little\u2019s actions in the dispute \u2014 and consider the legal expense and damage to long-standing relationships among government officials in the region.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hope they take that into consideration as they move forward,\u201d Eads said.<\/p>\n
Beck added, \u201cI see how important regionalism is. The council of governments and the RTC has been that convening place for years. I think Todd Little failed to understand who he is responsible to \u2014 and it’s the elected officials across the region that represent the millions of people who live here in DFW.\u201d<\/p>\n
Editor\u2019s note: This story was updated May 5 with additional comments from Regional Transportation Council members and the North Central Texas Council of Governments.\u00a0<\/p>\n
This <a target=”_blank” href=”https:\/\/fortworthreport.org\/2026\/05\/05\/michael-morris-steps-back-into-transportation-job-after-judges-ruling\/”>article<\/a> first appeared on <a target=”_blank” href=”https:\/\/fortworthreport.org”>Fort Worth Report<\/a> and is republished here under a <a target=”_blank” href=”https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nd\/4.0\/”>Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License<\/a>.<img src=”https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fortworthreport.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/cropped-favicon.png?resize=150%2C150&quality=80&ssl=1″ style=”width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;”><\/p>\n
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