By Matt Stringer of The Texan The Texas Public Information Act (TPIA) governs how records held by the state government must be provided to the public, including how fast they must be released, which records are excepted from disclosure, and how to force the government to produce them. Two separate but similar lawsuits against city […]
Posted inOdessa City Council
Steady Progress Being Made At City Hall
Following the appointment of interim City Manager Agape Bernal and City Attorney Dan Jones, the first quarter of 2023 has seen many changes in the governance of the City Of Odessa. “While change is never easy, City staff is responding well to the new administrative leadership and we’re seeing many positive signs telling us that […]
Posted inState
Oil and Gas Workers Association Membership Claims Questioned
An Odessa-based non-profit “Oil and Gas Workers Association (OGWA)” suddenly gained national attention last year, with a claim the organization boasts 46,000 members. This large membership claim helped propel it into national prominence as a major authority on energy policy and focused a media spotlight on the man behind the organization, Matt Coday. But partial […]
Posted inFeatured
Gov. Abbott To Speak at School Choice Event in Odessa
First Christian Academy in Odessa is hosting Gov. Greg Abbott Thursday, March 23 for a Parent Empowerment Tour, discussing school choice related issues. According to a press release, “parent empowerment is built on the foundational principles of transparency, quality, respect, and choice,” and the effort is “bringing together the community to focus on this vital […]
Posted inOdessa City Council
Casey Hallmark’s Accusations Against Odessa Council Crumble After Investigation
During two previous Odessa City Council meetings, former Downtown Odessa, Inc. (DOI) Director Casey Hallmark alleged numerous instances of bullying and intimidation by Odessa Mayor Joven and Odessa City Councilmen Mark Matta and Chris Haney. As a result of Hallmark’s allegations, the city hired Tommy Sheen, a Lubbock based attorney, to conduct a thorough independent […]
Posted inLocal
A Second Look at the DNOW/Toby Eoff Lawsuit
Publisher’s note: Last week, Odessa Headlines published a story about the verdict in a lawsuit brought by Distribution Now (DNOW) against Odessan Toby Eoff and others. When news of the verdict broke we were, quite frankly, surprised as there had been no local information regarding the case. In our initial investigation, we obtained the bulk […]
Posted inLocal
Nearly $9M Jury Verdict awarded against Odessan Toby Eoff
A unanimous Fort Bend County jury late Wednesday, February 22, 2023, found that prominent Odessa businessman Toby Eoff willfully and maliciously conspired with other former employees of DistributionNOW (DNOW) to steal the energy sector giant’s trade secrets. The verdict included a finding that Mr. Eoff breached his fiduciary duty to Houston-based DNOW when he conspired […]
Posted inEconomic Development
ODC To Host Joint City Council/County Commissioner Meeting
Ector County Judge Dustin Fawcett, Odessa Mayor Javier Joven, and Odessa Economic Development Corporation Board Chairman Kris Crow announced today their respective entities will be hosting a joint work session of County Commissioners’ Court, City Council, and the Economic Development Corporation. “This is the first meeting of its kind between our three entities with the […]
Posted inOdessa City Council
Swanner Working To Improve City Permitting and Inspection
Councilmember Denise Swanner is carrying through on her campaign promise to improve the permitting and inspection process for city residents and is focused on customer service within the department.
Posted inOpinion
Russell: The OA’s Antics Are Just Too Much
After reading a lengthy “editorial” by the Odessa American (OA) containing several attacks by the former daily newspaper against our publication, I felt a response on behalf of Odessa Headlines would unfortunately be in order. Two words came to mind after reading the OA’s editorial: Gish Gallop. According to one source, the generally accepted definition […]