Nueces County fire marshal lacks certifications to perform inspections, investigate fires

In October 2019, Nueces County commissioners, a local fire chief, the sheriff and emergency management officials for the county and the Port of Corpus Christi were on the same page: A county fire marshal office would greatly benefit residents in the county and the region.

Commissioners voted unanimously to create the office. Until last month, the office was reporting to the county office of emergency management, which is led by Nueces County Judge Barbara Canales.

She said filling the position was difficult.

It was not until a year later that Canales appointed Jose Olivares, a retired Corpus Christi police officer with no firefighting, fire marshal, or fire investigation or inspection experience, to lead the newly formed Nueces County Fire Marshal's Office.

"We had months of the posting being open, and we did not have any success in finding anybody that was a former firefighter. We did not have any fire marshals from other jurisdictions that were interested," Canales told the Caller-Times on Tuesday. "Jose was kind of the closest match because he held a peace officer license, and he came to us from CCPD."

Olivares, 51, was hired with the expectation he would obtain all of the necessary certifications within six months, a timeline outlined in the fire marshal job description.

However, nearly two years since he was hired, Olivares has not earned those certifications, state records show. That fact has sparked inquiries from two commissioners about whether Olivares can perform in the position he was hired, whether he should be dismissed and whether the county office should exist at all.

Commissioners were slated to discuss the issue on Wednesday but ultimately voted to postpone the discussion until the court's next meeting, May 25, because Olivares was not available to speak to the court.

The item was first placed on the agenda during the court's April 27 meeting but was postponed to Wednesday for the same reason.

Attempts to reach Olivares for comment on Wednesday were not successful.

Pending certifications for Olivares

The Texas Commission on Fire Protection, a state agency that regulates the training of firefighters and fire inspectors and investigators, requires fire inspectors to take exams for certifications. Olivares had no certifications listed as of Wednesday.

The Nueces County Fire Marshal's Office itself cannot be certified by the state agency until Olivares earns those certifications, Canales said.

Canales told the Caller-Times that Olivares is working with the state agency to earn the necessary certifications, which are being paid for by the county. Olivares is "right around the corner" from obtaining those certifications, she said, adding that one of the courses is taking place next week.

Canales attributed the delay in his getting certified to the COVID-19 pandemic — specifically, the vaccine rollout that began shortly after Olivares was hired.

"What has been the impediment for everybody? Why are there more than 6,000 backlogged cases in the (district attorney's) office? Why is our jail at 99% (capacity)? Well, because of COVID-19. It's the same thing here," she said.

More: Nueces County has an overpopulated jail and a court backlog. Here's what's being done.

In the meantime, Canales said Olivares has assisted with emergency management operations, including fighting fires, assisting with preparedness and administering COVID-19 vaccinations.

"He's been working with (emergency management). He's been to the explosions and on TV with me. It's not that he was in charge of any of that, but that he was there as a helping hand," she said. "We were all on vaccines, all of (2021)."

The job description for the fire marshal requires the ability to obtain the following certifications within six months of appointment:

• Certification by the Texas Commission on Fire Protection as basic fire investigator.

• Certification by the Texas Commission on Fire Protection as fire inspector I and II plus plans examiner.

• Certification by the Texas Commission on Fire Protection as arson investigator.

• Certification as a code enforcement officer by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulations.

• Certification as NIMS 100, 200, 700, 800.

• Certification as NIMS 300 and 400 is preferred.

• Certified as a firefighter is preferred.

Another requirement is to have a basic peace officer certification by the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement.

A TCOLE spokesperson, Gretchen Grigsby, told the Caller-Times on Monday that no law enforcement agency has commissioned his license. The Nueces County Fire Marshal's Office also was not a TCOLE-certified agency, she said.

A U.S. Army veteran, Olivares has worked as a peace officer at the Nueces County Sheriff's Office and the Corpus Christi Police Department. He retired from CCPD in 2016.

Olivares ran an unsuccessful campaign for Nueces County sheriff in 2016. Running in the Democratic primary, Olivares was defeated by former sheriff Larry Olivarez.

In 2018, Olivares was on a list with dozens of candidates vying for the seat after former sheriff Jim Kaelin, a Republican, announced his retirement. That appointment went to current Nueces County Sheriff J. C. Hooper.

Questions aired in court

Questions about Olivares' credentials have been raised in commissioners court before.

In February, Precinct 1 commissioner Robert Hernandez questioned whether the court should rely on burn ban recommendations from Olivares. Hernandez brought up the issue of Olivares' certifications again when commissioners were considering new regulations on game rooms. At the time, the court had planned for the fire marshal's office to handle the administration of permits.

Asked by Hernandez for the status of his certification during the court's Feb. 2 meeting, Olivares told commissioners he was attending Houston Community College and hoped to earn a certification in May.

During the court's April 8 meeting, Hernandez talked about the certifications again, asking Olivares to provide copies of his certifications to the court. Olivares offered to produce a copy of his TCOLE license.

Hernandez declined, saying the TCOLE license alone didn't make him a fire marshal.

Conversely, Canales said Olivares meets the minimum requirements to be a fire marshal and is seeking to earn the certifications to conduct arson investigations and fire inspections.

"He is on track," she said. "If he does not earn those certifications, then that might be something to talk about."

Inquiry from commissioner brings questions of certifications forward

Precinct 4 commissioner Brent Chesney told the Caller-Times he raised the issue of Olivares' certifications after receiving emails and phone calls about the fire marshal, claiming he was not certified to conduct fire inspections.

Chesney said he then went to the county's human resources department, which informed the commissioner that because the fire marshal's office reported to the office of emergency management, the commissioners could not call him in to conduct a review of his qualifications for the job.

During the court's regular April 27 meeting, commissioners voted 3-2 to have the fire marshal's office report to the court, with Canales and Precinct 3 commissioner John Marez voting against the measure. The motion also stated that no changes to the fire marshal job description could be made without approval from the court.

Canales said that when the fire marshal's office was established, there was a "genuine disagreement" among commissioners about whether the office was to report to the county judge or the court.

An executive summary published with the agenda item that commissioners approved to establish the office states the fire marshal would report to the office of emergency management. However, Chesney said he believed it was the intention of the court to have the fire marshal report to the court, citing the actual motion passed by the court.

"For better or for worse, for the last 18 months, (Olivares) was reporting to the county judge. I don't believe that was the intent of the court," he told the Caller-Times on Wednesday. "So there was definitely a mistake made in how that got set up. ... That's why I made the motion two weeks ago to clarify."

What could happen next?

The outcome for the office and Olivares remains to be seen.

In an interview with the Caller-Times on Wednesday, Hernandez said he would like to see Olivares removed from the position because the fire marshal has not been forthcoming about the status of his certifications.

"For nearly two years, he's been misleading us. We've been paying him to be a fire marshal," he said. "He isn't able to do that."

Chesney said the court should possibly reevaluate whether the fire marshal's office is needed and consider other options.

"I think it's an opportunity to look at the whole thing again. That's the silver lining here," he said.

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One possibility, he suggested, could see the county and the city of Corpus Christi signing an interlocal agreement to have the city's fire marshal — a position already in place — to service the county.

"I'd like at the end of the day for us to really look to see if there's a better way to do this," Chesney said.

Canales said Nueces County still needs the fire marshal's office. She characterized the commissioners' inquiries into Olivares as an attack rooted in politics.

"What I am opposed to is the disparagement of a good man who is a first responder," she said. "This is nothing more than some members of the court, honestly, just trying to enunciate something that that they have a problem with, which is emergency management."

Chase Rogers covers local government and industry in South Texas. Contact him at chase.rogers@caller.com or on Twitter @chasedrogers. You can support local journalism with a subscription to the Caller-Times.

This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Nueces County fire marshal Jose Olivares lacks multiple certifications