The board of the Tri-Cities' transit agency unanimously agreed April 9 to fire its embattled top administrator following an investigation into allegations of financial malfeasance. 

CEO Tom Drozt had been on paid administrative leave since Feb. 6 as Ben Franklin Transit’s counsel led the investigation.  

Board members did not share details of the investigation’s final report before voting in public session to terminate Drozt’s contract without severance following a closed-door session discussion. It was stated that Drozt was called into the latter half of that nearly hourlong meeting but only attended for a couple of minutes. 

The Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business has submitted a public records request for a copy of the investigation’s report to the board. 

The board also voted unanimously to extend Brian Lubanski’s tenure as interim CEO. Lubanski, BFT’s chief experience officer, has served in that role since Drozt went on leave. 

Drozt became BFT’s CEO at the end of August 2024, replacing Rachelle Glazier, with the board’s unanimous approval. He came with 25 years of experience in the transit industry, including serving as the deputy chief at Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority in Atlanta, Georgia, and general manager at MV Transportation in the greater Los Angeles area. 

The alleged financial issues came to light in late November, after CFO Alex Smith, who Drozt previously worked with and brought to the Tri-Cities, sent an email to BFT’s board about “a pattern of decisions and directives” from Drozt that went against standards to safeguard taxpayer dollars, ensure compliance and uphold financial transparency. Smith resigned his position only weeks before reaching out to the board. Those decisions allegedly included awarding no-bid contracts to people associated or related to Drozt or whom he had requested favors from. Smith also alleged Drozt had informal discussions with a few commissioners about diverting roughly $3 million of the agency’s cash reserves into a grant-like program for non-transit purposes. 

The investigation also came on the heels of ongoing tensions between BFT’s leadership and the union representing many of the agency’s workers.