Ben Franklin Transit’s board of directors may have fired its former CEO but that won’t disqualify him from receiving unemployment benefits.

The transit agency’s own investigation of Tom Drozt earlier this year found two instances where he likely violated procurement and financial policies, which were among several other allegations from a senior agency leader Drozt had hired.

However, the state Employment Security Department, in its decision letter to Drozt, said that while BFT had fired him, “we looked at the information and found your actions were not misconduct. When we find no misconduct, you are eligible for benefits.”

Drozt told the Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business ESD’s determination is evidence that BFT’s board used the investigation as a pretense to remove him, ostensibly to curry favor with the Teamsters Local 839, the union that represents most of the transit agency’s employees. And his removal has precipitated the ousting of other managers and administrators at BFT, he said.

“I understand this is not a finding of wrongful termination, but I believe it is relevant given the public reporting surrounding my departure,” Drozt wrote in an email to the Journal.

BFT could appeal the decision but agency officials told the Journal that they would not contest Drozt’s request for unemployment benefits.

“The BFT Board of Directors relieved Tom Drozt of his duties due to a loss of confidence in the direction he was taking the agency,” said Steve Bauman, the board’s chair, in a statement to the Journal.

Russell Shjerven, secretary-treasurer, with Teamsters Local 839, denied any cooperative effort with BFT to have Drozt removed.

“I don’t know why Mr. Drozt doesn’t just go away,” he told the Journal. “Leave our community alone, you’ve done enough damage.”

Allegation investigation

The allegations against Drozt came to light in late November 2025, 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 his boss that went against standards to safeguard taxpayer dollars, ensure compliance and uphold financial transparency.

The transit board placed Drozt on paid administrative leave in early February and hired Seattle-based investigator Rebecca Dean to review the allegations. Dean’s report said that from constantly looking for ways to issue contracts without competitive bidding processes, a drive to move quickly on projects spending taxpayer dollars and personally test driving a golf cart for the agency for six weeks, that “one of the common themes in this investigation: Drozt’s impatience with, and resistance to, normal public sector procurement processes.”

BFT’s board voted unanimously April 9 to fire Drozt after reviewing the report’s findings.

Unemployment benefits

Individuals who lose their jobs due to misconduct often do not qualify for unemployment benefits.

State law specifically qualifies what misconduct includes, such as insubordination, dishonesty related to the job, breaking the law, deliberately violating standards of behavior and instigating violence or illegal actions.

However, the law also describes what is not considered misconduct, such as inefficiency, unsatisfactory conduct, or failure to perform well due to not having the skills for the job, ordinary negligence, and good faith errors in judgment or discretion.

While BFT declined to comment specifically on the state’s determination, Shjerven said it isn’t a surprising development.

“It doesn’t mean he’s not guilty,” he said. “In my line of work, if someone needs to be terminated, you let them file for unemployment and you don’t fight it.”

All employers in the state of Washington pay state and federal unemployment taxes. Revenue from state taxes is the primary source of funding for the state’s unemployment trust fund, which covers the costs of unemployment benefits to those out of work and looking for a job. Those taxes are partly calculated based on how many past employees have claimed unemployment benefits from specific employers in recent years.

Drozt said he is still determining his next steps as he and his attorney await documents through public records requests related to his time at BFT and his termination.