Through the chair, if would I be able to explain why we're reenacting this, if that's all right.

Um, while you guys are filling it out, I'm just explaining this so the uh audience knows.

Um, the reason why we're reenacting the votes from last meeting is after the first meeting last week, we discovered that the meeting notice wasn't appearing online.

So, in order to uh make sure that there's no open meetings act violation, we're now reenacting the votes from the first meeting.

Um that everybody can see who votes which way.

Is this one?

Yeah.

Oh caveat.

Madam Clerk, do you have the results of the ballots?

I have the results.

The clerk will read the ballot results.

For vice chair, I have three votes for Jackson.

And I have one vote for Hill.

And for Chairperson, I have three votes for Hill and one vote for Jackson.

Congratulations to the chair, Erica Hill and Vice Chair Tiffany Jackson.

I would now turn the remainder of the meeting over to the chairperson.

Thank you.

Okay, so we will now review the uh resolutions requesting relevant input and information from City Council Mayor and the City Clerk.

Through the chair, if I may.

But I will say that the resolution setting meeting schedule has been modified slightly from the version that was mod voted on at last week's meeting.

That's because we were informed after last week's meeting that this meeting room will not be available for the meeting dates that were selected after this date.

So that was the November seventh, November thirteenth, and November seventeenth meeting dates.

However, the November thirteenth meeting date was um already it was already the auditorium was already reserved for that date.

So I did put a reservation in for the seventh and seventeenth.

Um and so I have everything all but confirmed.

Um once I have final confirmation of that, I'll put the commissioners know.

Um so that's the that's the only change that was made in that uh resolution.

Still the same meeting time, same dates.

We did have one extra meeting date in there as a precaution.

So losing that 13th, the 13th is a meeting date.

But if not, if it's coming up to the 17th and it doesn't look like we're going to be able to complete the commission's duty of determining the elected officials' salaries, we will schedule an uh a subsequent date at that 17th meeting.

Okay, so is that the reason why the 13th is not listed?

Correct.

Okay.

And I did add um in the provision following the schedule.

Uh clarification that the October 22 and 28 meetings will be in this room and that the other meetings will be in the auditorium.

Thank you.

Yeah, yeah.

Okay.

Um so we'll proceed with the resolution to accept the resolution of the Detroit Elected Officials Compensation Commission requesting relevant input and information from Detroit elected officials.

Thank you.

Any objections?

No.

No.

So moved.

We'll move on to the resolution of the Detroit Elected Officials Compensation Commission requesting a report from the Office of the Chief Financial Officer on how the Commission's actions may be affected by the budget process and for a fiscal impact statement.

So any objections?

No.

We have the resolution of the Detroit Elected Officials Compensation Commission setting commission settings schedule of 2025 meetings.

So moved.

Any objections.

We have another.

That's it.

Through the chair, I believe there was one more the uh for the requesting reports from the uh HR department.

Yeah, I don't see it here.

Oh, it's up.

Okay.

And the resolution of the Detroit Elected Officials Compensation Commission request reports from the Human Resources Department on current salaries and salary history of the city's elected officials, current salaries for similar positions in other municipalities, recent history of the city's general wage obligations and previous adjustments made by the commission.

Is there a motion to accept any objections?

No.

No.

Thank you.

All right.

Seeing those objections, we want to move on to the presentations, hearings, and discussions.

Is it is there presentations?

I see the clerk at the table.

Are you making presentation today?

I will.

Okay.

First and foremost, I want to say thank you for being here.

Your job is also a thankless job, but I appreciate you all being here.

Um for this particular uh commission.

And I'm here because in my opinion and my quest is that we get candidates who are excellent, if we can, right?

We want to get the best representation for this city.

We want to get the highest qualified.

You know, when I took this office initially, um, and 2005, I know.

Um, this job was like a retirement job, but I was a woman in my 40s, and it wasn't a retirement job for me.

And the work, the way that the work has progressed, if you don't have a college degree, yes.

If you don't have some significant management experience, you won't do well.

We've gone through so many issues just because of the way I the way our society has moved, the way the city has grown, and and and just the the environment that we live in today.

Our job our lives are threatened now.

I had to go before Congress and speak and ask them if they would consider it uh uh consider it a um a felony, not a felony, but is it a felony?

And so that passed, thank God.

But you know, the the job is changed.

When I when I first started, my salary is like 80,000, and then it went down to the 70s for many years.

And for me, it was okay.

I didn't even know what this job made when I um paid when I first uh ran.

I ran because it was a need.

It was a need because the presidential election in 2004, it took us two weeks to get our results back.

And I thought for the largest city in the state that we could do better and we should do better, and we have every sense.

But now, you know, as I look to the future, I'm not gonna be sitting here forever, probably not much longer.

But uh, we want to pay the way for good quality candidates, those individuals who are willing to go over and beyond because this is a thankless job and it's not a nine to five job.

And and Commissioner Hill, you know you worked with us, and I thank you always.

Uh this is a uh uh a very pressing job.

And I only speak for the clerk's position because that's the only position I know of intimately.

And so I will forever be here because I will forever want my city to be represented well.

I don't want to be ashamed when I turn on television and I look at and listen to my elected officials.

And I know you don't want to be ashamed either.

And the only way we can do that is we have to pay for good work.

And if you look at my call centers, you'll see many of my staff make more than me.

That matters not what matters is that the work gets done, right?

That I cannot be there and the work gets done, right?

The only way that can happen is if we pay them.

That's if we pay them.

And I don't know if you all are getting paid, but you should be.

You should be.

Your time matters.

Your time is worth something.

And so that's why I'm here, and I'll be here at every meeting that I'm able to be.

So thank you for that.

Thank you, Madam Clerk.

Thank you.

Um questions, any comments.

All right.

Are there any other presentations, hearings, or discussions?

Councilman.

I would like to make a presentation.

Go ahead.

Thank you.

My name is Councilman Scott Benson.

I am here to support the elected officials compensation committee with information about why the elected officials in the city of Detroit that come under your auspices should receive a pay raise.

And it's largely in line with what Madam Clerk has indicated.

And I'll just read another passage from a letter that has been submitted from myself and supported by my colleague, Angela uh Callaway, Councilwoman Callaway with Phil Callaway.

Um beyond budget metrics, the quality of life for Detroit residents has demonstrably improved across key areas.

We have seen a meaningful reduction in the city's poverty rate, signifying that economic growth is reaching our communities, their strategic efforts to stabilize and improve neighborhoods has led to a substantial increase in residential property values, rebuilding the wealth of our homeowners, concurrently targeted investments in public safety have contributed to a significant reduction in violent crime and the overall quality responsiveness of city services have dramatically improved, making Detroit a safer, more desirable place to live and invest.

Yet the compensation pales to those other clerks within the region.

And to be clear, in the past, the city has indicated, well, we're not sure if we have the financial capacity to approve a compensation adjustment.

That is not true.

In the fiscal year 2026 budget, Detroit City Council and the Mayor both authorized a $300,000 increase annually to the compensation of these elected officials, which means that we do have the ability to pay an increased equitable adjustment to the compensation packages of these.

Thank you.

Any other any questions or comments from Councilman Benson?

Commissioners.

Commissioner?

Yes.

May I just add one thing that I left out?

I just want to say really quickly, just to make it easy for you, that the City of Detroit with our population of 600,000 plus.

The Grand Rapid Clerk makes almost $50,000 more than me, and she only has 74 precincts.

The warring clerk, well, as of 2016, we won't go there, we'll go current numbers.

So let's look at Sterling Heights clerk.

She has 43 precincts.

I have 400 precincts.

She makes over $30,000 more than I make, or the City of Detroit makes.

Yes.

Okay, perfect.

So we reached out to a number of similarly situated cities with uh populations that are similar to the city of Detroit.

Um the groups that we reached out to have both full-time and part-time city council members.

Uh however, the data that we pulled to remain comparable to the city, um, we included just the data for those that have full-time city council members.

Um the closest in population that we were able to kind of um compare to would be Boston, Louisville, and Memphis, but all of the cities that we surveyed have uh strong mayoral forms of government.

So in those findings, um what we found is that the the mayor is paid uh at market.

Um, however, the city council members are about eight percent below market.

Uh city council president is approximately 13 percent below market, and the city clerk is approximately 30 percent below market.

Um thank you.

Commissioners, you have any questions for HR?

I mean, we have the actual printout that um identifies each of those cities and what the compensation is for each of those.

Yes, there should have been one included in your packet.

Yes, I have that.

I'm just asking commissioners do they have questions?

None from me.

No, all right.

Um, is there any other thank you?

Thank you, Miss Frank.

All right.

If there are no more presentations, hearings, or discussions.

Um, I entertain a motion to accept the presentations that have been presented today.

Through the chair, yes.

Sorry, before we get to that.

Um, I was just gonna ask is is if there was anybody from the office of chief financial officer.

Oh, I'm sorry.

Um did you want to give a presentation?

Okay, okay, so not at this time.

We just need to read it for ourselves.

Um I did not receive a writing from the Office of Chief Financial Officer.

Was there a report forthcoming?

Will there be one forthcoming?

Okay.

I can't hear him.

Yeah, we can't hear you.

You can come up, please.

Good afternoon.

I'm Matt Spith, Deputy Budget Director.

Uh the OCFO office doesn't have materials at this time.

I believe how it typically would work in the past is um when HR would provide you know their market study that they just shared with the commission once there are proposed wages, we would then do a costing analysis and provide our uh financial analysis once those information is available.

So you all don't have a um any um information on weighing in on whether the budget amendment is if will be effective as councilman stated there's we already know that the increase has been included included in the budget, but you all don't have a statement or anything to present around that question.

I can confirm council member Benson stated that there was 330,000 added to the fiscal 26 budget.

That resource is there.

Okay.

So we can get a copy of that.

And it is recurring, and we can get a um the chair, which is it possible for us to get a copy of that resolution that was passed for we can provide a copy of the budget that shows the line of resources recurring in the uh okay 26 budget for your financial plan.

Correct.

Thank you.

So let me just be clear.

So we requested a resolution from the OCFO's office, and you're saying that you don't normally do that, so there is no response to that as at all.

You just don't respond to the request, and you uh make a presentation.

I'm just asking because uh it feels as though everybody needs to be something in writing.

A fiscal impact analysis to show whatever the commission's proposed.

Okay, once we decide what that is going to be.

What's that once we decide what that's going to be?

Okay, all right.

You know what the impact would be on the budget.

Okay.

All right.

Any other questions, commissioners?

Any other presentations?

Anyone else?

No mayor's office.

Councilman Bitts.

Thank you.

And then as concurred by the OCFO's office, my suggested compensation adjustment fits squarely within that reoccurring budget line item, and there would be surplus to be returned to the general fund.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Okay.

There are no more presentations discussions or hearings.

I make a motion to accept the presentations that have been uh submitted today for our review and consideration.

So moved.

Any objections.

Right.

We will move on to new business.

Um, new business, I did make a request um from a resolution for um just an opinion from the uh the office of the inspector general um to just weigh in on whether or not so they can weigh in.

I'm not even going any further.

So that didn't make that uh request of Alex to prepare a resolution.

So I'd like to submit that um on the record.

Thank you.

Um and so this resolution of the Detroit Elected Officials Compensation Commission requesting opinion from the inspector general.

Uh whereas, in accordance with section 2-2-4 of the 2019 Detroit City Code, the Detroit City Detroit Elected Officials Compensation Commission is required to meet an odd number of years to consider the salaries of city elected officials, and whereas section 3-107 of the 2012 Detroit City Charter provides that the elective officers of the City of Detroit are the mayor, the nine city council members, the city clerk, and the seven elected board of police commissioners, and whereas pursuant to section 7802 of the 2020 2012 Detroit City Charter, elected members of the Board of Police Commissioners are not entitled to salaries, whereas, in accordance with section 2-2-3 of the 2019 Detroit City Code, the Detroit Elected Officials Compensation Commission may recommend adjustments to the salaries of the city elected officials subject to the city council rejection through adoption of a resolution by a two-third vote with 30 calendar days within 30 calendar days after the filing of the commission's determination with the city clerk, and whereas consideration of relevant information allows the Detroit Elected Officials Compensation Commission to make more well-informed determinations of whether or how to adjust the salaries of elected officials in the city of Detroit, and whereas the Detroit Elected Officials Compensation Commission has received public comment suggesting that residents of the city city question the viability of the city's budget and consider compensation increases for Detroit's elected officials to be the detrimental to the overall budget of the city, and whereas pursuant to section 7.5-301 of the 2012 Detroit City Charter, the Office of the Inspector General is an independent city agency headed by the Inspector General tasked with the rooting out waste, abuse, fraud, and corruption in city government, and whereas section 2-2-5 of the 2019 Detroit City Code requires the city clerk to provide such administrative assistance as the elected officials compensation commission shall reasonably require.

Now, therefore, be it resolved that the Detroit Elected Detroit Elected Officials Compensation Commission hereby request the inspector general of the city of Detroit to provide an opinion on increasing the compensation of the city's elected officials and be it further resolved that in accordance with section 2-2-5 of the 2019 Detroit City Code, the City Clerk is requested to provide the necessary administrative assistance to facilitate this request.

Very well.

With no objections, we are asked for the Office of Inspector General to provide their opinion.

All right, we will move to the status of reports from City Council Mayor, Board of P Police Commissioners, and City Clerk.

And I think have you all had an opportunity to read the um city clerks.

She made her presentation, so we have what we have from the city clerk.

We have not received anything from the mayor, and of course, the board of police commissioners don't have compensation.

Um then we have Councilman Benson and Councilmember Callaway that made their presentation for the city council.

Is there anything additional that we need to add to the status of those reports?

Any questions, commissioner?

Um just for confirmation.

Um city clerk, can you I can't read this?

My eyes are bad, but what is this exactly?

And I don't know.

There's an electronic version.

I did not have a chance to read through that.

Yes, the electronic version was sent to you uh earlier today.

Okay, but can you tell me what it just for purposes?

So uh for purposes of this meeting, that is a document of nearly 500 clerks and election officials across the state, their compensation, their uh amount of staff, amount of precincts, benefits, whether they're full-time, part-time, appointed, elected, and so forth.

What you'll see is that uh clerk Winfrey or the clerk of the city of Detroit makes nearly less than 25 of the clerks in this state.

And that document was sent to everyone via email.

Thank you.

All right, any other questions.

All right, well, no questions.

I make a motion to support the status of reports from City Council, Mayor, Board of Police Commissioners, and City Clerk.

So move.

No objections.

No objections.

Uh we have a status of reports from the human resource department.

Yes.

Oh, sorry.

Uh I would suggest making a motion for the uh reports to be received and filed.

We'll do.

I'm not sure if that's exactly how it always is, but I I see city council do that, and I I think that that's the proper way to dispose of these uh these items.

Thank you.

So I'll make a motion to receive and file the report from the city council mayor, board of police commissioners, and city clerk.

So moved.

Any objections?

All right, so move no objections.

I make a motion to re uh receive the status reports from the human resources department, receive and file.

So move lesson.

Any objections?

No.

And finally, um the status of reports from the office of chief financial officer, as we did receive a written report.

We have a confirmation that they will provide uh the necessary documentation once we make a determination on uh any adjustments to compensation.

So is there a motion to accept the report from the uh office of the chief financial officer?

Oh sorry, I uh after this.

I okay, okay.

I just had a question.

So are we are going to receive information though from the office of the chief financial officer first, just proof of that there was a vote to include the 300,000, 330,000.

Uh through the chair, I I would suggest there be a motion to postpone this item uh and until the next meeting or the meeting after um, whichever you know, and until the OCFO is ready to give its fiscal impact statement, which it from the presentation that was given earlier.

Uh to me, it sounds like that'll happen once the uh commission provides a you know a contemplated um increase.

So we will we'll defer this and then accept it once we're you're saying we're gonna accept it once we've made it he that we've made a decision and then they do the work, or so what are we going to do with the information he provided for us today?

Are we go we should request that that became in writing?

Um I would I would say you we accept the presentation um, but as far as the writing goes, uh that part will be deferred until after um after they make a present either a presentation or uh provide a fiscal impact statement.

Okay, um I think we can provide costings if the commission provides offers.

I can cost it on real time and compare it to the budget.

Um, but that would just be kind of an informal okay.

So once again, that's once we've made some uh a recommendation, and then you'll cost it and then provide it to us.

Yes.

Okay.

All right.

Um, so I guess the answer to the question, Commissioner, is no, we don't have a report prior to any work that we do.

Um, and I would imagine that there needs to be a correction in the process.

Um, because if it seems as though in the past there must have been something presented, or there would not be a precedent for us to remake a resolution or a request for resolution.

So I just think I'm trying to make sure that we are operating within the process correctly, and if that's not the case, then there should be this should there will be something saying that that happens after we've made a determination so that the commissioners are well aware of what we're supposed to be doing.

Is that makes sense?

Yes, through the chair.

This this agenda was based on the second meeting of the most recent elected officials compensation commission.

Um, and I agree with you.

It would make more sense to keep this line item until after the fiscal impact statement has been provided.

Okay.

Um so I will make a note and the file, and hopefully going forward two years from now, we'll make sure not to make that same mistake.

Okay.

Okay.

Thank you.

All right, thank you.

So we uh make a motion to accept the report from the office of the chief financial officer.

With the amendment of we'll accept his verbal report versus and then we would okay that was supported, no objections?

No.

Okay, and then we'll uh make a motion to defer the costing and the impact report until after we made our determination or our recommendation for compensation.

Also, um, some of with a friendly amendment of just to defer it till our next agenda item.

Is that a caveat?

Yeah.

All right.

Any objections?

All right.

Seeing that uh is there any public comment?

Through the chair.

Before we get to public comment, um, I just want uh make sure that we have a vote on the approval of minutes.

Um it wasn't included on the agenda at first again.

Uh was I based it off of whatever happened a few years ago.

Hopefully, they did remember to add that to the agenda item uh at the table.

But um I I just noticed that now, and we should probably do that before uh before we get too far down the line.

Okay, thank you.

Um is there a motion to approve the previous minutes?

You all have a chance to look at them.

And that was from last minute.

Yep.

Um, just uh through the chair, just I was wanted to just clarify what we're doing.

Um I'm a little confused commissions operate differently than boards with directors and stuff.

So I'm in this kind of for the first time on a commission.

So when we accept these minutes, I guess this question is for our attorney uh Mr.

Henderson.

What which of these minutes represents considering we redid some of the items, including the agenda and where it is, and I just want to make sure we don't have a public comment issue and to not know where they're going and what time.

So where do these go?

Does that page get removed and replaced with the new locations and dates?

Um the chair, that's telling me what you do.

That's all right.

Through the chair.

Um that's a great question.

Uh the reenactments of the votes that were taken today were really just so the two I'll back it up.

The uh the open meetings act provides reenactment of votes as a way to um avoid any kind of civil action that would invalidate a decision.

Um this is really just us being cautious and uh maybe overly respectful of the open meetings act by doing the reenactment.

Um I would consider all of the decisions that were made at the last meeting, even though they were made in a at a meeting that was not completely in compliance with the open meetings act, um, that they're still valid.

Uh we did have members of the public here attending that meeting.

Uh, but this is just to make sure that there is no um possibility that a civil action could lead to an invalidation of the decisions that were made and really the decisions that were made um other than the adoption of the proposed rules and the election of the chairperson and vice chairperson, we're all procedural in nature.

Um but again the reenactment today was just to um comply with the subsection five of section 10 of the open meetings act, which provides that if there is is a civil action that's initiated to invalidate a decision on on the grounds that the public body took an action that was not in conformity with the requirements of the open meetings act.

Uh the public body may, without being deemed to make any admission contrary to its interest, reenact the disputed decision in conformity with this act.

Um and a decision reenacted in that manner shall be effective from the date of reenactment and shall not be declared invalid by reason of a deficiency in the procedure used for its initial in uh sorry by reason of a deficiency in the procedure used for its initial enactment.

So by doing the reenactment today, we pretty much are preemptively uh taking away any kind of relief that could be uh sought through a civil action to invalidate a decision.

Through the chair, I I get that if I can ask a few more questions.

Um I get I get what you're saying about the civil action and just open meetings act, and I think the fellow commissioners do as well.

I just want to make sure the public knows where they're going, but they'll be properly noticed.

I'm just being extra clear here, so I understand what I'm asking.

Um I just want the public to know where they're going and when, so we don't have an issue going forward, and um also does it matter that the votes we did not vote exactly the same way.

Um, you know, I I think Nicholas moved when I moved last time, but it was ultimately accepted.

That doesn't matter, correct?

Correct.

The result oh so the minutes from last week will be posted online on our events page.

And the votes from last week stand.

The meeting happened, the votes stand, they will be filed properly.

Got it.

Okay, thank you.

Through the chair, also because the results were the same, uh, you know, to whether one person moved for the for the motion the motion for consideration or you know, somebody else did, that doesn't that's not really going to make any kind of um difference when it comes to the end result.

Um so it is okay, it might make some historians years from now a little confused when they look at the record, but at the end of the day it's the same result.

Um and the the commission voted the same way.

Okay, Mayor, if if I may, um I think to answer your question, um when you vote for the approval of the minutes from the previous uh meeting, it's just what happened then, you approve what happened then.

So and then when we have this meeting, you'll approve though you'll see those changes and they'll be approved when you approve it or not at that time.

But if you all would like, and I'll read I I I spoke with the uh council.

If you would like, because this is what we do for a living, if you would like for uh the clerk's office to look over your agendas prior to just to make sure that you know we're all in compliance and nothing is missed, we'd be happy to we would love for you to do that.

Thank you.

We'll do it all right, very good.

Any more questions, commissioners?

I guess the motion was still on the table to accept the minutes.

So I'll move to accept the minutes from uh October 22, 2025.

All right.

Uh any objections.

All right, so all right.

Um if there is nothing else, we are uh at the time of public comment.

Is there anyone here for public comment once going twice?

So there's no public comment.

Public comment is closed.

I make a motion to adjourn.

Any objections thank you.

Um the meeting has been adjourned, and we will reconvene on uh the step uh uh October the 7th in the auditorium, correct?

November 7th.

I'm November 7th.

I'm sorry, I'm going backwards in time.

My bad.

November 7th.

And the auditorium.

Okay, very good.