Precinct 3 Commissioner James Noack
As the only elected official currently on the court without a family member working for Montgomery County, Precinct 3 Commissioner James Noack is calling on the Commissioners Court to halt the practice of nepotism.
“I want a complete review of hiring practices, performance evaluations, salary reviews and reporting structures for all cases of nepotism,” said Noack. “Furthermore, I expect strict adherence to the state nepotism law and am seeking assistance from the district attorney, county attorney and Human Resources Department to investigate this issue.”
Nepotism is plainly defined as the practice among those with power or influence of favoring relatives or friends especially by giving them jobs and Montgomery County seems to operate more like a family business than a larger employer with over 2300 employees. Montgomery County has family members working together and we have elected officials with spouses, children and siblings working for the county.
It is illegal in Texas for a public official to hire, appoint or approve payment for an individual based on the degree of the relationship of consanguinity. An elected official would be violating this law if they were to give a job to a parent, child, sibling, grandparent, grandchild, great-grandparent, great-grandchild, aunt/uncle or niece/nephew. A relationship by affinity (marriage) is also a violation of the nepotism prohibition.
