Baton Rouge Municipal Fire and Police Civil Service Board Regular Meeting – June 22, 2026

The board met to approve routine personnel actions, set examinations, and receive a presentation from the Office of the State Examiner on a new digital personnel action system. All motions passed unanimously.

Consent Calendar

• Agenda Approval: The agenda was amended to add an Office of the State Examiner presentation (agenda item 17) and to include Matt Kelly and James Thomas in the rehire list (amendment to item 12). The amended agenda was approved.
• Minutes: Approved the minutes from April 27, 2026, and May 18, 2026.
• Personal Action Forms: Approved personal action forms for the Baton Rouge Fire Department and Baton Rouge Police Department.
• Examinations (Police): Called for examinations for Police Criminal Information Specialist, Police Cadet, and Criminal Intelligence Analyst.
• Applications (Police Captain): Accepted applications for Police Captain.
• Rejected Application (Police): Rejected the application of Tanya Winley for Police Communications Officer 2 (posting period 3/27/26–4/6/26) due to not meeting the five-year confirmation requirement.
• Rejected Application (Fire): Rejected the application of Kyle Duncan for Deputy Fire Chief with waiver (posting period 3/27/26–4/16/26) because the applicant was still a promotional district chief.
• Test Results Accepted (Fire):
  • Fire Communications Officer 2: 8 passed, 3 did not pass, 1 did not show.
  • Fire Communications Officer 3: 2 passed, 1 did not pass, 0 did not show.
  • Fire Inspector 1: 3 passed, 4 did not pass, 0 did not show.
• Test Scores Accepted (Police): Police Fingerprint Technician 1: 1 did not pass, 3 did not show.
• Rehires (Police): Approved rehire of former officers Xavier Barge (resigned Feb. 17, 2026, good standing), Judd Daryl McGee (resigned Feb. 2, 2026, good standing), James Thomas (left Nov. 2024), and Matt Kelly (left June 2022). These individuals will not need to retake the civil service entrance examination.
• Examinations (Fire): Called for examinations for Hazardous Materials Officer, Assistant Chief of Investigations, Fire Investigator, Medical Training Officer, Fire Apparatus Technician, and Fire Inspector 2 (with a waiver to allow unconfirmed Fire Inspector 1 candidates to take the exam, as the eligible list was exhausted).
• Certification Date Correction: Corrected the certification date for Lee Peoples in the Fire Department due to an administrative error identified during an internal audit.
• Substitute Appointments (Fire): Noted the following substitute appointments effective May 30, 2026: John Borchen (Assistant Chief of Special Services), Kyle Morris (Chief of Fire Prevention), Lawless Threaton (Assistant Fire Chief of Prevention), and Darrell Brown (Fire Inspector 2).

Public Comments & Testimony

• No public comments were offered.

Discussion Items

• Report on Board Accommodations: Board members reported an ongoing search for reasonable accommodations for board operations. Space at the BRPD complex is being considered, but Joseph Butler (building and grounds) has not provided cost estimates. The board’s budget has no allocated funds, so any funding would require a special request. No timeline was given. The board will revisit the topic as more information becomes available.
• Office of the State Examiner (OSE) Presentation on New Technology: Ms. Bordelon and Mr. Jimmy Henry presented the new online Personnel Action System. Key points:
  • The system has officially launched; Baton Rouge is scheduled to go live the week of August 2, 2026, as a stress test for the system.
  • The system is designed to digitize personnel records, ensure compliance with civil service law, and flag potential violations before approval.
  • Department roles: department user (enters PAFs), department chief or designee (approves), appointing authority (approves). Board roles: board secretary (Ms. Harris) and two board member licenses (chairman and vice chairman). The OSE cannot afford licenses for all board members.
  • Departments must verify employee records (names, SSNs, dates of birth, class status, salary, pay cycle) within three weeks; the OSE will provide current records for review.
  • After verification, the OSE will conduct a meeting with department users, the board secretary, and the chairman/vice chairman to log in and provide training.
  • The system will generate PDFs of PAFs for the board secretary to disseminate to all board members prior to meetings.
  • The OSE will comment on actions via a microphone icon if compliance issues are identified.
  • The system is due to be fully completed by December 2026; Baton Rouge’s large jurisdiction will serve as a stress test.
  • Board members asked about access; only the chairman and vice chairman will have login credentials, but the secretary can print PDFs for all members.

Key Outcomes

• All motions carried unanimously with no recorded opposition.
• The board acknowledged the OSE presentation and will proceed with preparations: designating department and board users, verifying employee records within three weeks, and scheduling a training meeting for the week of August 3, 2026.
• The accommodation search remains ongoing; no immediate action was taken.
• The meeting adjourned without further business.