A representative from the Texas Public Policy Foundation, a conservative nonprofit, sent a letter to the Dallas city attorney's office stating his intent to sue the city over its new paid sick leave ordinance Monday — a little over a week before the law is slated to take effect on Aug. 1.

In a letter addressed to Interim City Attorney Chris Caso, Robert Henneke, general counsel and litigation director for the foundation's Center for the American Future, asked Dallas to follow San Antonio's lead and delay implementation of its paid sick leave until Dec. 1.

Henneke gave the city a deadline of 5 p.m. Tuesday for an answer.

"Dallas now has the opportunity to show goodwill towards its business community by not forcing businesses to sue their city in order to obtain the same result," Henneke wrote. "Let's do this through agreement rather than by litigation."

People celebrated after seeing the vote for earned paid sick time passed during a City Council meeting at Dallas City Hall on April 24, 2019. The council voted to mandate Dallas businesses within the city limits to provide earned paid sick time to employees. (Vernon Bryant / Staff Photographer)

Caso declined to comment Tuesday.

The Texas Public Policy Foundation also didn't respond to requests for comment Tuesday. In the letter, Henneke said he would not publish the notice or discuss it through the media "in the spirit of good faith negotiations."

Dallas officials could try to settle or negotiate with the foundation to avoid a lawsuit. But City Council members said the city will continue with the plan to implement the ordinance by Aug. 1.

The ordinance would require all employers to provide their workers in Dallas with one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked. Henneke said his lawsuit would challenge the law.

The argument echoes business representatives' lawsuit against San Antonio's ordinance, which was also scheduled to take effect Aug. 1. In the lawsuit against San Antonio, business representatives argued that the law goes against the state's minimum-wage act.

Juliet Barbara, spokeswoman for the Workers Defense Project, said it's a flawed argument that conflates the definition of "wage" with benefits. She said her organization wasn't surprised and said advocates will continue to fight for implementation.

"We have always known that there is a network of groups that claim to represent local interests but really are part of this broader national agenda to block paid sick time," Barbara said. "This is a pretty typical strategy. ... These groups come in at the 11th hour with a flawed legal argument."

Beverly Davis, who directs Dallas' Office of Equity and Human Rights — which is charged with enforcing the ordinance — said she didn't receive any information about the letter and doesn't know whether it would impact the law's implementation.

"We're moving forward with Aug. 1," Davis said.

City Council member Chad West said that while he supports the idea of the ordinance, he's worried the previous council sped through the vote.

"I think it's morally the right thing to do as an employer ... [but] I think that some of the implications of it for our small-business owners still need to be heard," he said. "I'm going to support whatever the court does in this case. At this point, we're just going to wait and see."

The council approved the ordinance in a 10-4 vote in April. Then-Mayor Mike Rawlings and council members Lee Kleinman, Adam McGough and Jennifer Staubach Gates opposed it.

Gates said that employers were clearly "blindsided" by the ordinance, and that the city didn't engage with the business community before the ordinance was crafted.

"As much as I believe in the benefit of sick leave, I don't think it should be mandated as a city ordinance," Gates said. "It's not our lane."

In addition to the ordinances in Dallas and San Antonio, Austin's paid sick leave law faces a legal challenge.

The state appeals court delayed Austin's ordinance last year while parts of the case are tied up in court.