Art Martinez de Vara wears many hats in South Texas. He is an attorney with a practice based in Houston and Von Ormy, a community of about 1,100 people just outside San Antonio. He also serves as the town's mayor. But over the past two decades, he has become best known for his work promoting limited-government concepts across Texas.
In February, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit accusing Dallas officials of failing to adequately fund the city's police department and violating a voter-approved measure requiring it to hire up to 900 new officers. The legal action was made possible in part because of ballot measures that Martinez de Vara helped draft through his work with Dallas HERO, a nonprofit funded in part by Republican megadonor Monty Bennett.
"I filed this lawsuit to ensure that the City of Dallas fully funds law enforcement, upholds public safety, and is accountable to its constituents," Paxton said in a news release. "When voters demand more funding for law enforcement, local officials must immediately comply."
Martinez de Vara's personal website describes him as a state historian, an anthropologist and an attorney, in that order. He has made a name for himself in Texas conservative circles as the architect behind the formation of several small towns with minimal local governments — what some call "liberty cities" that feature little to no taxation and scant regulation.
What the Right Is Saying
Supporters argue the measures represent accountability and responsiveness to voters. Proponents say Dallas residents who approved these ballot measures were demanding more resources for public safety, and city officials should be required to follow through on voter mandates.
Martinez de Vara has defended his work as empowering citizens rather than restricting government. His approach in small towns like Von Ormy emphasizes self-reliance and minimal municipal interference. In Kingsbury, Mayor Shirley Nolen — a supporter of Martinez de Vara's limited-government model — acknowledged the trade-offs: "That's kind of a double-edged sword," she said. "There's no regulation."
The Dallas HERO coalition argued that dedicating more budget to police hiring would make the city safer and ensure local officials answered to constituents rather than special interests.
What the Left Is Saying
Critics say the measures championed by Martinez de Vara have created chaos for city governance. Dallas officials, nearly all of whom opposed the charter changes, say they are being forced to cut essential services and staff to fund new police hires under requirements with no compliance timeline. Crime in Dallas has continued to drop even as the city struggles to meet the mandates.
"The Republican officials running Texas have long sought to gain leverage over the Democrat officials running the state's largest cities, so I am not surprised that Attorney General Paxton joined with HERO lawyers to sue Dallas," said Cal Jillson, a political science professor at Southern Methodist University.
Dallas has already faced lawsuits under the new charter provisions. A couple sued the city for allowing construction of a church basketball court near their home, arguing it violated noise regulations — a claim only possible because the amendments stripped the city of its immunity from litigation. A judge dismissed those claims tied to the charter amendment, but that ruling is on appeal.
What the Numbers Show
Dallas is required under its 2024 charter amendments to hire up to 900 additional police officers. The city agreed last year to fund 350 new officer positions as a first step toward compliance, with no deadline specified for meeting the full requirement. Von Ormy, incorporated roughly 18 years ago at Martinez de Vara's urging, still lacks a municipal sewer system and relies entirely on septic tanks.
At least two other small towns that Martinez de Vera helped incorporate continue to struggle with basic service provision. The Texas Government Accountability Association — another nonprofit where Martinez de Vara served as attorney — is funded in part by Bennett, whose hotel empire has made him a significant Republican donor in the state.
The Bottom Line
Martinez de Vara's influence extends far beyond his 1,100-person hometown. His legal work reshaping city charters has created new pathways for lawsuits against local governments across Texas. Dallas officials are now navigating compliance with mandates they opposed while defending against litigation they say should be barred by sovereign immunity.
The case is likely to test the boundaries of what state law allows in terms of restricting local government authority and enforcing voter-approved charter amendments. What happens next in Dallas could set precedent for how Texas cities balance public safety funding against other municipal priorities.