Folks, it is 1-0-1, so we are going to go ahead and gavel in and call this personnel committee agenda to order. We will start with, actually, I'll give you the date. It is Monday, April 6th. It is 1-0-1 p.m. Let's do our introduction, starting with Ms. Staphopoulos. Mary Staphopoulos, Office of General Counsel. Jason Teal, Council Secretary. Chris Miller, At-Large Group 5. Nick Allen, At-Large Group 3. Kevin Carrico, Council District 4 and Chair. Joe Carlucci, District 5. Rockman Johnson, District 14. We have in the crowd, they have microphones. Go ahead, Mr. White, past President White from the west side. Randy White, District 12. Right. Ken Amaro, City Council, District 1. Ron Salem, Group 2 At-Large. We should go ahead and let you guys introduce yourselves as well. Phillip Peterson, Councilor's Office. Kim Taylor, Council Auditor. All right, and we also have Ms. Hampsey here from Council Research. All right, so we are calling this to order. First up is the discussion on the Council Auditor position. I think we have to call for public participation first. Is that right? Mr. Chair, you have a couple of instances on here. You have public participation for this item, which you would just take up before you vote. So you can take it up now, or you can allow the conversation to occur, and then as long as you take up the public input before you vote on the matter, you can do it either way. We have one card for this matter. We'll go ahead and get it out of the way. Mr. Nooney, two minutes. Come on down. Your time starts now. All right, well, hello. I am John J. Nooney, Jacksonville City Council Resolution 2023-0819. I'm in City Council District 4, CPAC 3, School Board District 3. And just going from the agenda, the Council Auditor position. Well, I don't know who it's up, but if I got a gut feeling, it's going to be one of the best appointments the city could be making. And in that spirit of the Council Auditor, it's almost like our CPAC, you know, representing the entire city. So I would hope that this legislative body, the legislative branch, as well as the executive branch, and everyone that's here will almost join me in supporting what could be the first council auditor park for Duval County, Jacksonville. And so I just want to have that on the record. I will probably be trying to advocate for it throughout the entire state. And thank you for allowing me to participate in this process. And I'll take any questions. And thank you. All right. Mr. Nooney is standing by for questions. I don't see any. So we are going to move on. I think the most appropriate thing to do is probably turn it over to our current council auditor. And many of us probably know what is going to be said, but I'll let you say it. Yes, sir. Thank you, Council President. With my upcoming retirement at the end of May, I had reflected in my letter to you all that I absolutely recommend Philip Peterson, who is the current assistant council auditor to this role. He has this month, I think 21 years this month, that I've worked alongside him. And I can tell you, I can speak for two of the most important traits, which are trustworthy, loyalty. There's many more. He has the utmost integrity for this job. And when you work with somebody long enough, you know those traits come through every time. But his historical experience that he has, that he can continue to carry the city council through stability, consistency, everything from better Jacksonville plan to any economic development agreement. I mean, he has all of that institutional knowledge. So I highly recommend that this council consider, this committee consider him for that position. I think that anything else, like you just have that right here in this person, who I've seen throughout all the years, carry the city council through many different pieces of legislation. He's conducted audits. He's done special projects. He's worked on, you know, big projects like the JEA in 2018, considering the sale for that. He's worked on a lot of things in this office, and I highly recommend him to take on my position after I retire. All right. Thank you for that. I'll take the floor first. I know everyone's probably going to want to speak, but I'll take the honor of the chair here to more swan songs, I'm sure, will come and more speeches for you, Ms. Taylor. But you have been an institution in your role and a true champion for the city and advocate for this council and all the constituents that we serve. And I'm sure we'll have resolutions and speeches and plenty of things coming as you progress toward your final retirement date. But I just want to say personally thank you for your service. And so we are left here with looking at replacing you, and I appreciate all the things you said about Mr. Peterson. You know, we could consider, you know, casting a nationwide search for the next council auditor, and we could go through those motions and post it if we wanted to. But Philip Peterson is built for this role. He's been doing, you know, the work beside you for, like you said, 21 years. I don't think there is a person in the United States of America that could come in and be a better replacement for you than Philip Peterson. So if we have a nationwide or a local search, my mind is made up, and I'm one of this committee. So I'm going to let the body talk and let them put their two cents in, but I'm all in for making the motion at some point to have Philip Peterson be the next council auditor. And I'll just let everyone chime in from there. We'll just start down there with Dr. Johnson. He raises his hand first, and we'll let everyone speak. Thank you so much, Mr. President. And Mr. Chair, in this role, I appreciate your work in there. Before I give my comments, I have to say that Ms. Taylor has been stellar, not just here, but I had a chance to spend some time as a younger person, being a younger elected years ago, with the former council auditor, Bob Johnson, who I consider still a dear friend, who speaks so incredibly highly of your work and what he sees from afar. I was just honored to come in and be able to be a part of that lineage. And so before I even say anything about Mr. Peterson, what I know, and I'm sure we will say more of this, as the president indicated, but this council is so much better because of your leadership for it. I am so thankful for you always shooting straight and giving us the information we need so that we are empowered to make the decisions that are going to move this community forward. And always know, I know you'll be stepping away from the auditor's office, but know that your phone may ring just because we want to say hi, because I know personally I've had some amazing personal conversations with you. And God has really blessed you, and I'm honored to call you a friend, and I know God has so many other blessings coming for you in retirement. I tend to agree with you, Mr. President. I think one of the reasons, and I have to ask this question, through the president to Ms. Taylor, your retirement is going to be the end of May. I think I read that correctly. Yes, sir. Through the chair, it's May 27th. And the reason I ask that question, Mr. President, is because I kind of agree with what you said in the fact that the council, come June, will have a month, and then the new council leadership takes over. So I don't think we have time to do a national search to cast a net. Not that we have a person that doesn't deserve it, but I just don't think the time element is there. So it does make sense to make sure that the city government work continues. I've worked closely with Mr. Peterson. I think he's a phenomenal person who brings so much to the table, not just in light of what this work is, but in the sensibility of the Jacksonville community. And I think that's what we need, people who understand the community, but who also understand the fiscal responsibility that we all have. And so I, like you, Mr. President, am going to be very supportive of not creating a process, but of certainly moving Mr. Peterson's nomination forward. All right. Thank you. Let me acknowledge Councilmember Peluso has joined us. Did you want to speak to Mr. Carly? Sure. Are you recognized? All right. Thank you, Mr. Chair. So, you know, when I first got elected, I came in and I was met with what I now consider kind of the dream team, which is Kim, Phillip, and Brian, and all the rest of the people there. And it is, just looking back on it now, we're spoiled. We are incredibly spoiled because you guys have so much information and so much knowledge. You make it so easy for us that when my constituents ask me questions, I can say with 100% confidence and, like, authority, after you've given me the information, that it's take it to the bank, no questions asked. And that means so much to me, and I know it means much to everyone here, but, Kim, you're incredible. You, you know, you have all those characteristics, but with – it's more about, like, keeping the office together, right? Like, everyone in your office, when I come down there and kind of just joke around, everyone's in good spirits, everyone's happy, everyone's – there's no tension, and that speaks to the leader of that office. And you carry a respect and kind of – I don't know the right word – just dignity for that office role in general of what you're doing, auditing all of our finances. Like, that's important. You don't – y'all are never political. You're never biased. You give straight answers, and I appreciate that. And, look, moving on to Phil, you carry all that. And even if there was time, even if we had all the time in the world, you are the guy who would win the nationwide surge. And I mean that sincerely. And it's – when you work with people for one year, two years, three years, you just – you know. You know when you know this is the guy. So, obviously, I'll be supportive of Mr. Peterson today, and I look forward to calling you council auditor. All right. Thank you, Mr. Carlucci. Real quick, before I keep going, Mr. Fopolis, so put us in the right posture. At some point, someone needs to move to appoint Mr. Peterson, if that is the desire of the committee. That is correct. So, the motion would likely be something in the nature of move to nominate Philip Peterson to be appointed as a council auditor. And then what I would do is, if that motion passes by the committee, I prepare a resolution to be introduced by the personnel committee for council consideration. All right. Mr. Vice President. All right. Thank you, Mr. President. First, to Kim, you will be remembered as an incredibly accomplished council auditor. I hope you take serious pride in that. You've done an amazing service to your city. I think the entire council recognizes that and thanks you. One of your greatest accomplishments, too, that's clear to me, is the team that you built. And it goes to Philip, it goes to Heather, it goes to Brian, and even beyond them, that you've created such a great team to be able to support you and support what the city council demands of you is one of the best accomplishments that I think you could take pride in. And there's a little secret that anyone who's been a finance chair knows. They always say that being finance chair is one of the most difficult jobs in council. It's not really because you have this team that Kim built and the council auditor before her built supporting you. And they make it easy. They really do, which brings me to Philip, who has my wholehearted support to be council auditor. And normally I would say this is a kind of job, a serious management job in the city that we should post for all applicants. But this role in particular requires a highly specialized skill set, requires immense familiarity with the city, requires continuity and leadership. And I think there's a precedent, several leaders of the council auditor, even prior to Kim, where the council auditor mentors a successor. It's clear that Philip has been mentored as a successor here, and Philip will do an amazing job as council auditor for this city. I move to nominate Philip Peterson to be appointed as council auditor. Second. Motion and a second. On that, we'll continue discussion. Mr. Miller. Thank you, Mr. President. I think most of my colleagues have said the things that I would say, but I'm going to say a few more. Just because I really appreciate both of you. And for me, this nomination, considering this changeover, to me, is just a given. It's just a natural way for us to go. Even if we had lots of time for a national search, this is just the right fit. Philip, you're the right fit to take over where, while Kim moves on to other things, it's just absolutely the right fit. And I appreciate that you always, always gave us the right information. You made sure you were right before you gave us that information. You didn't come back and go, ooh, I told you this, but never, never. I could always count on, and I've heard from past council members saying the same thing. They could always count on the auditors. And that's because of the team that you put together and the standards that you set, Kim. You set such high standards that we could always and can always count on the auditors. And I know, again, I think this is just a formality, and Philip has my full support, and I'm sure ours, that you're going to be the next council auditor, and you will continue those high standards and that dependability. And for me, you did it. You always had exchanges, and you were so kind, so nice, so pleasant to work with. You don't always get that when there's a lot of sometimes stress and short timelines for quick turns on information and, come on, got to go, got to go, got to get it. And you always, you and your team always remained pleasant through that all, and it made it a good experience, not only a trustworthy experience, but a good and pleasant experience for us. And I'm sure that will continue. And, Kim, it looks like you're going to have a park named after you. I mean, what the heck? No, the only thing I said to Kim, and I'll wrap this up. The only thing I said to Kim was, you didn't ask me. Nobody asked me if you could retire. I mean, what is this? We are going to miss you so, so much. But, Phillip, won't miss a beat. Won't skip a beat. Absolutely not. But because of you forming and keeping that team going on the right path, and that that will continue. So, thank you very much. There will be more time for that, as was said. But, Phillip, you have my 100% support, and I appreciate you so much. Thank you. All right. Thank you, sir. We do have a motion and a second. I'm going to read into the record of one-way communication that was sent by Council Member Diamond and then see if any of the other members would like to speak. But it says, Dear Members of the Personnel Committee, I write to express my strong support for Phillip Peterson's appointment as Council Auditor for the city. The role of the Council Auditor is one of the most critical positions within our legislative branch. It requires not only technical expertise and financial acumen, but also integrity, independence, and the ability to communicate complex findings in a clear and actionable manner. Phillip Peterson embodies each of these qualities. I'll forego reading the rest of it. I think we understand. Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely, Council Member Rory Diamond. And, Pastor President White, would you like to speak? Thank you, Mr. President. I'm just here also to support Mr. Peterson. You know, we're making a great decision. Y'all do know he's from the west side. I told his wife he is the smartest man on the west side, and I do believe that he is. Thank you, Phillip, for all you're doing. Thank you, again, for getting him lined in the right direction, and you enjoy your retirement. And thank you very much, committee. All right. Thank you, Mr. Past President. Council Member Morrow. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Very quickly, first, let me congratulate Kim publicly. I did it in private, and I know she is looking forward to the days that she doesn't have to go through the budget and things of that nature. So, Kim, enjoy your retirement. The last time I was here at the personnel committee, we were doing something quite the opposite. We were, in fact, dealing with a city employee that had become a problem. And so, it's a pleasure for me to be here for something more on the positive side. I think the nomination is the right posture. I believe that Phillip, in my short tenure here on city council, has demonstrated to me that he's extremely knowledgeable. He's a person of integrity. He has this financial astuteness that is necessary for the position of council auditor. The positive side of approaching and making the decision to put him in this capacity now is very simple. It also demonstrates to those in the office that there is a possibility for promotion and elevation. And that's something that is very difficult to find often in government spaces. And in spite of timelines, the city doesn't have to spend the money to do a search because what we have already in-house is just as valuable as whatever you may be looking for out-house. And Phillip also has one character that I've noticed in him, something that is often missing in government, that oftentimes when those who are in the highest place of office, they often forget the fact that they're still public servants. And I don't think Phillip has lost that. And so I think that the nomination of moving him forward is indeed the right one. And I will support him. And I hope that we all do as well. Thank you. All right, Pastor President Salem. Thank you, Mr. President. I've been here six and a half years along with Council Member White in this group here today. And I remember in 2020 when Kyle Bailey stepped down and we went through a decision where we promoted Kim Taylor. And I'm not going to say anything more about Kim Taylor today because this is Phillip's name. That transition was seamless, as many of you have now experienced with Kim. I've had the pleasure of working with Phillip for those six and a half years. He fulfills every request that you bring to him, and he does it very timely. He's always available. And I come from a corporate environment where we normally would look around and search. There is no reason to do any search here. You're not going to find anyone with the knowledge that Phillip has about this consolidated government, how it works, the finances. And those of us that have been president and those of us that have been finance chair, you get the work. You have the pleasure of working with these two on a daily basis, and you really understand what they bring to the table. And I just wanted to read off some names of past council auditors. I know all these people, Bob Johnson, who I'm on a campaign for everyone to call the Bob Johnson room instead of the green room because he deserves that. He was Kim's mentor and a fantastic council auditor, Richard Wallace, Kirk Sherman, Kyle Billy, and Kim Taylor. And there's no reason in the world that Phillip Peterson can't follow in those footsteps. Thank you, Mr. President. All right. Thank you. And Council Member Peluso. Thank you, Chair. I don't think there's much I can say that other people haven't have said. I spoke with Kim when she announced it or when she came around and told us in the past. I don't think there's a single person on this 19-member body that can say a bad word about Kim Taylor. She has been nothing but a consummate professional and incredible in everything she does. And I think as we look for her successor, I think the same thing with Phillip Peterson. You're not going to find a single person that's going to say a negative thing about him or his work ethic. It's the natural progression of things. We've seen this with other council auditors in the past. So I'm very comfortable with this decision. I'm very excited for Kim as she goes on to retirement and very excited for Phillip, for us bugging him at all hours of the day and night. Thank you all. All right. Thank you. Mary, do we need public comment on the motion as well? Mr. Chair, you took public participation prior to the nomination, and I believe he spoke to the matter with the expectation that Mr. Peterson would be the nominee. So if you've taken up all the cards that were received, then I think you can proceed forward. What I would just like to let the committee know that to the extent that the motion is approved, I'll be filing a resolution on behalf of the committee, and it will include a prospective effective date for Mr. Peterson's appointment of May 28th. So it would be the day after Ms. Taylor's retirement is effective. And that's traditional for this type of resolution to be filed that way. All right. We're going to take a verbal vote, all in favor of the nomination of Phillip Peterson to take over as council auditor after the retirement of Kim Taylor. Say aye. Aye. Any opposed, say nay. The ayes have it. Dr. Johnson. Even though no one said anything negative and Peluso said there's no negative to say about Phil, stop answering your phone on the weekends through the chair. I'm joking. I'm joking. We appreciate that. You can literally call this man any hours of the day or night, and Kim's the same way. I don't understand how they do it, but you can literally call them any time. That office, I don't know when you all sleep, but thank you both for your service. Thank you. Congratulations, Phil. All right. Moving on down the agenda, any other personnel matters to discuss while we are convened? Mr. Teal. No, Mr. Chair. I think that's it. All right. And it says public comment on here. Mr. Chair, that was there in case you took up additional matters that would potentially have led to a vote. So I think unless you otherwise wish to take additional public comment, you don't have to take it again as you took it on the matter that was voted. All right. Sounds good to me. And then before we adjourn, we come right back for executive session. Is that right? Can you explain what happens there? Correct. So the next committee meeting is the executive committee, which is comprised of the president, the vice president, and the finance chair. And that you will be taking up the matter of Mr. Peterson's salary. And that is a function of the executive committee. All right. Well, it's 126. We are adjourned. And we will convene the executive session in four minutes. Thank you. Good day. Good day.