The Texas Tribune just reported the following this morning:
Kyle Janek, the head of the state’s embattled Health and Human Services Commission, will step down and be replaced by his former deputy, sources with direct knowledge of the move said Friday.
Gov. Greg Abbott is expected to announce Friday that Chris Traylor, who recently retired from the health agency, will take over for Janek. Traylor is a former commissioner of the Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services.
Under Janek, the commission has been dogged by a contracting scandal. Government-issued reports have been sharply critical of his leadership, and lawmakers have called for him to step down.
On Tuesday, Traylor was feted by co-workers at a retirement party inside an auditorium at the Texas Health and Human Services Commission headquarters in Austin as Janek watched the proceedings silently.
Abbott’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Terri Langford with Patrick Svitek who contributed to this report (see original).