Lago Vista mayor says chamber edited deal, seeks locked contracts

The Lago Vista City Council took no vote on Nov. 5, 2026, on how the city sends contracts out to be signed.¹ Mayor Shane Saum asked staff to "review and analyze and come back to us" with what the city can and can't do.² He said the city had sent the chamber of commerce an agreement as a Word document, which he called "the mistake that we made." He said the chamber edited "multiple substantive sections" before signing it, and added, "That was on both of us."³ The mayor's agenda item report, the written summary attached to each agenda item, lists the financial impact as "N/A," or not applicable.⁴ We have not yet asked the chamber about the mayor's account. We will update this story if it responds.

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A two-host briefing. The voices are AI generated. Read the transcript.

Two copies of the same page of plain gray lines lie side by side on a worn oak desk below a window with live oak branches. A brass padlock rests on the left sheet, a fountain pen lies between them, and the right sheet has a torn corner and one line out of place. AI illustration. — AI illustration. Image credits.

When we wrote this story, the city had not posted minutes for this meeting, so this story is based on the meeting video.⁵

What the purchasing policy is

The city's purchasing policy is the rulebook for how Lago Vista buys goods and services and signs contracts. The council adopted it on Sept. 7, 2023, and amended it in 2024 and 2025. The city manager proposes its rules, and the council approves them. Any contract for more than $100,000 must be approved by the council first. So must any spending over $50,000 that is not in the budget.⁶

The policy has a code of ethics for vendors. A vendor who breaks it can be barred from city work. Any change order, a written change to a contract's work or price, must be in writing and signed by a city official. The original of each contract goes to the city secretary, with a copy to the finance department.⁶

The copy of the policy in the meeting packet does not say how a contract must be sent out for signature. It does not mention subcontractors.⁶

What came before

The chamber is the North Lake Travis Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Center.⁷ Our September story found no signed agreement with the chamber in the council records we reviewed.⁸ In September, the chamber's proposed changes to an earlier city draft were shown in the council packet, our Oct. 27 story reported.⁹

On Oct. 15, the council agreed to pay the chamber $10,177 a month for three months, and all of it may come from the General Fund, our Oct. 16 story reported. That is $30,531 in all. The vote was 6 to 1, and Saum cast the only no vote.¹⁰ The chamber's executive director wrote on Oct. 26 that the city had sent a new proposed agreement on Oct. 19, and that it was not yet signed.⁹

Saum put this item on the Nov. 5 agenda. His report says recent contract matters showed ways to tighten the city's rules. "Of particular concern is the practice of transmitting editable contract" documents for signature, it says. It asks the council to look at locked signing, marked-up copies of any changes, checks of returned contracts, and ethics rules for vendors.⁴

The Nov. 5 meeting

The council met in its chambers at 5803 Thunderbird. The item was a discussion, with no action listed.¹¹

Saum said he asked for the item because of the recent contract with the chamber. He said the city gave the chamber a Word document, which can be edited, and called that "the mistake that we made." He said the chamber sent it back signed "as if nothing had been changed." He said it happened recently but did not name the agreement or give a date. He said the fault was shared, "That was on both of us."³

City Council meeting, Nov. 5, 2026, from 3:32:44 to 3:33:46 in the city's video. Trimmed only at the start and end. Watch the full meeting from this moment. Video credits.

Saum asked Director of Economic Development Eric Zeno whether the city has DocuSign, a service that locks a document for signing.^7,12 Zeno said the city has a free version that "caps out" after a certain number of documents. He said the municipal court sends documents for signature through PDF software.¹²

Saum said council members are "stewards of taxpayer dollars." He said every city contract should have a section on vendor honesty and ethics. If a vendor tries to trick the city, the contract should let the city get out, he said.² He asked staff to check the current rules and, if something is missing, to ask the city attorney, Brad Bullock.^2,7

Council Member Amanda Chavarria said she had caught "very egregious changes" in land deals she has worked on.^11,13 She said a PDF can be printed, scanned, and edited, then sent back as if it was never edited. She urged the city to "purchase a license for DocuSign," which sends an email as soon as a document is signed. "Adobe is just too easy to work around with AI," she said.¹³

City Council meeting, Nov. 5, 2026, from 3:35:38 to 3:37:08 in the city's video. Trimmed only at the start and end. Watch the full meeting from this moment. Video credits.

A staff member answered, "when doing it with the chamber, that was my first time." He said "you can lock down pretty much everything in there" and get an email if a document comes back changed. No one at the meeting explained how that locked-file process fit with the Word document the mayor described.¹⁴

A council member then described their own experience, saying "they changed the file name by one number" and the software did not catch it. The member did not say whose document it was. The member asked that every contract include a clause against changing an original document.¹⁵

Mayor Pro Tem Norma Owen said she had heard in the community about "a primary vendor that did not pay the subs," meaning subcontractors.^11,16 She called it "third hand" and named no vendor. "Our policy doesn't have anything about the subs," she said. She said she used ChatGPT, an AI program, to compare the procurement statutes on the city's procurement page with its policy, and it listed 20 items to update. She asked that the city attorney review them "over this first quarter," after the charter work.¹⁶

City Council meeting, Nov. 5, 2026, from 3:38:53 to 3:40:32 in the city's video. Trimmed only at the start and end. Watch the full meeting from this moment. Video credits.

Interim City Manager Ron Joy said state rules for private security firms make them tell the client who their subcontractors are.^11,17 He called that "good business practice."¹⁷

Saum closed the item. He said the council usually reviews its policies each year as a new council is sworn in, and the purchasing policy will come back then. For now, he said, the council could "ask staff to start" the review and talk with Bullock. The council moved on without a vote.¹

What it could mean for taxpayers

The mayor's report notes that city contracts involve public money.⁴ The policy requires council approval for contracts over $100,000.⁶ The mayor's report says big changes to an agreement the council approved should not take effect without proper approval, and that the safeguards should cover grants and other agreements involving public money.⁴ The Government Finance Officers Association, a national group of public finance officials, says governments should keep internal controls over contract rules for the grants they receive.¹⁸ No one gave a cost for a paid DocuSign license.¹³

What we could not find

Which chamber agreement the mayor meant, the version the city sent, and what the chamber changed.³
The list of 20 items Owen said her review found.¹⁶
Whether any city vendor has failed to pay its subcontractors.¹⁶
What a paid DocuSign license would cost the city.¹³
How the locked-file process staff described fits with the Word document the mayor described.¹⁴
The chamber's account of the changes.

What you can do

Read the purchasing policy in the meeting packet, starting on page 62.⁶
Ask the city for the chamber agreement as sent and as signed, using the city's open records request page.¹⁹
Speak during citizen comments at a council meeting, using the form on the city's website.¹¹

Podcast transcript

Read the transcript

Host 1. This is the Lago Vista Watchdog. The two voices you're hearing are AI generated, reading a story our newsroom checked against public records.

Host 2. Today, a talk at the Nov. 5 City Council meeting about how the city sends contracts out to be signed.

Host 1. Here's the bottom line. The council took no vote. Mayor Shane Saum asked city staff to review the rules and come back with what the city can and can't do.

Host 2. He also raised a specific case. He said the city sent the chamber of commerce an agreement as a Word document, and the chamber edited several substantive sections of it before signing.

Host 1. And he said the city shared the blame. He called sending that Word file the mistake that we made.

Host 2. His written report on the item lists the financial impact as not applicable.

Host 1. We have not yet asked the chamber about the mayor's account. We'll update the story if it responds.

Host 2. The city hadn't posted minutes when we wrote this, so the story is based on the meeting video.

Host 1. So what rules does the city already have?

Host 2. Lago Vista has a purchasing policy. The council adopted it in 2023 and has amended it twice since.

Host 1. The council must approve any contract over $100,000. It must also approve any spending over $50,000 that isn't in the budget.

Host 2. Vendors have an ethics code, and one who breaks it can be barred from city work.

Host 1. But the copy in the meeting packet doesn't say how a contract has to be sent out for signature. It never mentions subcontractors either.

Host 2. Some background on the chamber. Our September story found no signed agreement with it in the council records we reviewed. Also in September, the chamber's proposed changes to an earlier city draft were shown in the council packet.

Host 1. Then on Oct. 15, the council agreed to pay the chamber $10,177 a month for three months, $30,531 in all, and all of it may come from the General Fund.

Host 2. That vote was 6 to 1, with Saum the only no.

Host 1. Later, the chamber's executive director wrote that the city had sent a new proposed agreement, and that it was not yet signed.

Host 2. Now to the meeting itself. Saum put the item on the agenda. He said the chamber sent the document back signed as if nothing had been changed. He did not name the agreement or give a date.

Host 1. He asked the city's director of economic development, Eric Zeno, whether the city has DocuSign, a service that locks a document for signing.

Host 2. Zeno said the city has a free version that caps out after a certain number of documents.

Host 1. The mayor told the council that its members are stewards of taxpayer dollars. He wants every city contract to have a section on vendor honesty and ethics, with a way out if a vendor tries to trick the city.

Host 2. Council Member Amanda Chavarria said she had caught very egregious changes in land deals she has worked on.

Host 1. She warned that a PDF can be printed, scanned, and edited, then sent back as if it was never edited. She urged the city to buy a DocuSign license.

Host 2. In her words, Adobe is just too easy to work around with AI.

Host 1. A staff member answered that with the chamber, that was his first time. He said the software can lock a document down and send an email if it comes back changed.

Host 2. No one at the meeting explained how that locked file fit with the Word document the mayor described.

Host 1. Another council member described their own experience. Someone changed a file name by one number, and the software didn't catch it. The member didn't say whose document it was.

Host 2. Mayor Pro Tem Norma Owen said she had heard, third hand, about a main vendor that did not pay its subcontractors. She named no vendor.

Host 1. She said the city's policy has nothing about subcontractors. She used ChatGPT to compare the procurement laws listed on the city's procurement page with the policy, and it flagged 20 items to update.

Host 2. She asked for the city attorney to review them over the first quarter, after the charter work.

Host 1. Interim City Manager Ron Joy noted that state rules make private security firms tell their clients who their subcontractors are. He called that good business practice.

Host 2. Saum closed by saying the council usually reviews its policies each year when a new council is sworn in, so the purchasing policy will come back then.

Host 1. For now, he said, staff can start the review and talk with the city attorney, Brad Bullock. Then the council moved on without a vote.

Host 2. What could this mean for taxpayers? City contracts involve public money, and the mayor's report says big changes to a deal the council approved shouldn't take effect without proper approval.

Host 1. The Government Finance Officers Association, a national group of public finance officials, recommends internal controls over contract rules for grants. No one gave a cost for a paid DocuSign license.

Host 2. There's a lot we couldn't find. Which chamber agreement the mayor meant, and what was changed. The chamber's side of it. And Owen's list of 20 items.

Host 1. To weigh in, you can read the purchasing policy in the meeting packet, or ask the city for the chamber agreement as sent and as signed through its open records page.

Host 2. You can also speak during citizen comments at a council meeting.

Host 1. Thanks for listening to the Lago Vista Watchdog.

Sources and documents

Every fact in this story comes from the records below. The small numbers in the story point to them. Links go to the exact moment in the meeting video or the page in the document.

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