Commissioner’s Corner: Grant Moody
Commissioner Moody is our most recent addition to the Commissioners Court, and InfuseSA is delighted to introduce him to you. In future newsletters, we hope to also bring you interviews with our Commissioner’s from Pct. 1 and 2 and with our County Judge.
Commissioner Moody serves Pct. 3, which covers a large area of northern Bexar County. He comes to the job with some skill sets that could enable him to serve the court and the voters well. He brings a rich mix of both public and private sector experience. He has a master’s degree in statistics and business analytics, as well as a master’s degree in business administration. He has worked in leadership roles at both USAA and Valero. In addition, Commissioner Moody is a 4th generation Veteran, serving on active duty as a Marine pilot and continues to serve in the Marine reserves. To sum it up, he brings a unique and fresh perspective to governance and to the challenges facing Bexar County.
The scope of his job is that of the entire court, and we addressed this in our newsletter article last month.
Commissioner Moody’s first comment about his current position was that he has a huge opportunity to improve the lives of the average citizen. That immediately endeared him to InfuseSA. He looks at problems from a business perspective, and his mission, as he expressed it, is to “focus on solving problems”. I probed him on what exactly that meant, and he said it meant “seeking solutions that actually produce positive outcomes”. Again, this is exactly the kind of focus we need! He also felt that about 80% of the issues facing the court are non-partisan, so there is a lot of room for effective collaboration. The primary question that guides his decision making: “Is this a county function; or better put, can we ask the taxpayer to pay for this as a legitimate function of the county government?”
His priorities are improving public safety, reducing property taxes, addressing transportation and infrastructure needs, and getting additional funding for our courts to reduce the backlog on our jails. He believes the biggest problems the county currently faces are public safety/law enforcement, mental health needs, homelessness, and the immigrant flow affecting Bexar County.
An important point that surfaced in our conversation is that debt per capita in Bexar County is $1,000 per citizen, and this is the highest in the state of Texas. Commissioner Moody was clear that this is a huge concern and that he is very committed to “tightening the belt,” i.e., being the best steward possible of our tax dollars.
In a recent press release from his office, he addressed “Building Safer Schools”. He discussed the recently passed HB 3, which targets creating safer learning environments for Texas children.
In the bill are provisions for training for School Resource Officers (SROs), specifically to help them be seen as allies in creating a safe environment for the students. Our Commissioners Court recently approved a contract to provide constables to one of our largest growing school districts. The bill also contains the option for school districts to participate in a school marshal program with mandated training. Commissioner Moody’s office worked to find a way to get an official training site right here in San Antonio. And finally, mental health needs will also receive funding to proactively intervene in identified concerns. He noted that Bexar County is uniquely positioned to embrace the provisions of the bill and to tailor them to our local needs. He also stated that he is committed to working diligently to ensure that educators are well prepared to address safety issues in Bexar County and have the necessary resources to provide timely intervention. There is no doubt that every one of us wants to ensure the safety of all children, and we’re glad that this is receiving targeted attention.
We certainly appreciate the complexity of problems that he and all on our Commissioners Court must address. We want to express our appreciation to Commissioner Moody for coming on board to represent all of us. The amazing thing is that besides the enormous issues that need to be managed on an ongoing basis, his office is available for each of us to personally reach out to with a need or a concern. Do take him up on this. Commissioner Moody, many thanks from all of us.