The Austin Firefighters Association plans to hold a vote of no confidence in Fire Chief Joel G. Baker following his failure to deploy emergency teams to Kerr County ahead of the deadly July 4 floods. The decision follows growing outrage that Baker did not respond to the state’s request to send Austin’s specialized units, reportedly due to an $800,000 reimbursement delay from past state deployments.
Over 100 people, including 27 children, have died in the Guadalupe River floods, and dozens remain missing. Firefighters say the department’s lack of action may have cost lives.
Chief Baker, appointed in 2018 as the first black fire chief in Austin, made diversity hiring a central focus of his tenure. In 2020, he publicly prioritized increasing representation of minorities, including African American, Latino, Asian, and LGBT communities, stating that the department should “reflect more of the community we serve.”
Baker’s focus on diversity extended to department hiring goals, including an effort to identify barriers preventing more African applicants from being hired. “If I can do it, they can do it,” Baker told Fox 7 in an earlier interview.
Controversy deepened in 2022 when volunteer chaplain Dr. Andrew Fox sued the department after being dismissed over blog posts opposing transgender athletes in women’s sports. Fox’s comments, shared on his personal website, drew anonymous complaints from within the department. The lawsuit, backed by Alliance Defending Freedom, cited violations of religious liberty and free speech. The dismissal occurred under Baker’s leadership.
While a no confidence vote would not remove Baker from office, it signals severe dissatisfaction among Austin’s firefighters. The department defended its decision not to deploy to Kerr County, citing concerns over local readiness and resource availability.
