Jackson Finance Committee Meeting - August 12, 2026

The Finance Committee of the Jackson City Council met on Wednesday, August 12, 2026, at 3:02 PM. The meeting included presentations from the Department of Communications and Constituent Services and the Department of Information Technology. The communications presentation was postponed due to incomplete materials, while the IT presentation proceeded with extensive discussion on cybersecurity, budget, vehicle counts, and staffing.

Discussion Items

Department of Communications and Constituent Services (Presentation Postponed)

• Director Nick Lott presented an organizational chart showing four divisions: constituent services, PEG (Public, Educational, and Governmental) access, publications, and communications.
• The department has three vehicles: one operational (a 2005 van), one deadlined for years (still appearing on inventory), and one inoperable for two years (repair deemed uneconomical). Council members questioned definitions of "deadline" and surplus property procedures.
• Constituent services has only one staff member (Pearl Campbell) and no vehicle; a previous vehicle was reclaimed by the police department. Council members expressed the need for additional personnel and a dedicated vehicle for constituent services.
• Councilman Foote suggested stationing a constituent services representative near the podium during public comments to improve responsiveness.
• The proposed FY27 personnel budget is $729,554, up from $498,813 in FY26. The increase was attributed to moving divisions (action line, marketing, PEG) from general government into the department per ordinance. Council members requested a detailed updated org chart reflecting proposed positions, salaries, and budget assumptions.
• Councilman Grizzell moved to postpone the presentation for better preparation; the motion passed 3-0-1. The presentation is rescheduled for Monday.

Department of Information Technology (Presentation Completed)

• Director Nathan Slater outlined FY27 focus areas: strengthening cybersecurity, modernizing aging infrastructure, reducing costs, and improving staffing.
• Key accomplishments: regained FAA compliance for tower beacons, secured a $1 million cybersecurity grant, discovered a $30,000/month duplicate payment to two phone providers, and initiated a timekeeping system upgrade.
• Top budget drivers: Tyler Munis financial system ($580,000), Microtech tower maintenance ($184,000), and UKG time clock system ($154,000).
• Vehicle count: reduced from approximately 19 to 8 operational vehicles. Council praised the reduction.
• Personnel: proposed budget of $1.9 million includes some raises for field positions using vacant position funds. Director Slater requested additional salary increases to retain staff, noting the loss of a top engineer to private industry. Councilman Grizzell expressed reluctance to support raises beyond first responders given flat budget constraints.
• Franchise administrator position ($46,000) was questioned by Councilman Grizzell for managing only three tower clients; Director Slater defended the role including contract management and FAA compliance.
• Councilman Hartley raised concerns about cable companies' hanging cables and unpaid franchise fees. Discussion revealed only Comcast pays cable franchise fees; fiber providers (AT&T, C Spire) are governed differently. A potential contingency contract with a collector to recover unpaid fees (30% commission) was mentioned but questioned by Council members who suggested using AI to find low-hanging fruit first.
• Tower rentals generate $4.25 million annually for the tech fund. Cable franchise fees from Comcast approximately $650,000 per year go to the general fund.
• The CFO clarified that $1.3 million in alleged savings from duplicate payments is not actual money in hand; it requires legal recovery.
• Council member encouraged creative reimagining of roles and use of AI to improve efficiency. The CAO confirmed that directors have been urged to find savings within their own budgets.

Key Outcomes

• The Communications and Constituent Services presentation was postponed (motion carried 3-0-1) and rescheduled for Monday.
• The Information Technology presentation concluded with no formal vote; council expects the director to consider reallocating funds internally for priorities like raises or AI investment.
• No executive session was held; council determined no additional personnel discussions were needed for the day.
• Council directed continued exploration of cable company regulations and fee collection, potentially using AI before hiring external collectors.
• The budget process continues with additional meetings scheduled: fire/police/public works on Thursday, and JRA/airport/JPS/library on Friday, with deliberations starting Monday.