BEAUMONT, Texas — The Beaumont City Council voted 5-2 Friday to establish a 19-member "bond facilitation committee" for a proposed $264 million bond issue that voters will decide Nov. 4, following a heated special meeting that exposed divisions over transparency and leadership.

Mayor Roy West opened the 9 a.m. meeting at City Hall with a forceful defense of his selection process, directly addressing criticism that has dominated social media in recent days.

"There have been no secrets here," West said. "Today our city council, this council has the opportunity to ask to remove any of the proposed names and the opportunity to propose new names for this oversight committee."

The controversy began earlier this week when Ward I Council member Cory Crenshaw said he learned about the committe

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