The Texas Accountability Project has learned that the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) has paid over $8 million to over 7,500 employees as “hazard pay” in response to COVID-19. The simple truth is that all Texans have faced heightened risk during this time. Many Texans are in jobs that require daily interaction with the public and have not received “hazard pay” sourced from the taxes paid by hard working Texans. Many families are suffering severe financial distress. The TxDOT employees receiving the payments are primarily in maintenance-related jobs, and we want to understand more about what increased risk TxDOT believes justifies these payments. Financial relief is needed for many Texas families, but “hazard pay” in this context appears to be highly improper compared to the risks incurred by people in other sectors. We will investigate to learn more.
