Board of Fire and Police Commissioners Special Meeting – June 22, 2026
Board of Fire and Police Commissioners Special Meeting – June 22, 2026
A special meeting of the Joliet Board of Fire and Police Commissioners was held on Monday, June 22, 2026, at 10:00 AM in City Hall Council Chambers. The primary agenda item was approval of the Joliet Police Department 2026-2028 New Hire Eligibility List. A public comment raised concerns about proposed changes to military preference points for promotions.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Chris O'Hara, President of Joliet Firefighters Local 44, addressed the Commissioners regarding proposed changes to the calculation of promotional military preference points. He stated that the department learned of the changes about two weeks prior through the chief and HR, but had received no response to multiple emails and phone calls seeking clarification. He expressed concerns that changing the calculation method just weeks before the list was expected to be finalized (July 12) was unfair to affected members, as the process had been ongoing for eight months. He noted that the policy is governed by state statute (65 ILCS 5/10-2.1-1 through 11) and that any rule change should come before the Board. He also indicated that the department had not received a preliminary promotion list from HR or the Board, relying instead on a list calculated by the chief.
Discussion Items
- No additional discussion occurred among Commissioners regarding the military preference points issue. The Board did not take any action or make a recommendation on the matter during the meeting.
Key Outcomes
- Approval of Joliet Police Department 2026-2028 New Hire Eligibility List: A motion was made by Commissioner Pat Strocchia, seconded by Commissioner Tomas Ponce, to approve the list. The motion carried by a vote of 3 ayes (Commissioners Ponce, Coleman, and Strocchia) with two members absent (Chairman Quinn Adamowski and Commissioner John Stefanski). The list was approved as presented.
Meeting Transcript
But you're all everything. Good morning, everyone. I'd like to call the board and fire police commissioners meeting to start here. It is 10 a.m. on Monday, June 22nd, 2026. First, I'll take the roll call. Chairman Quinn Adamowski. Commissioner Coleman, present. Commissioner Poncey. Commissioner Stefanski. Commissioner Pat Stoshio. Present. That's the other name right. Good job. All right. We do have a quorum. Are there any citizens to be heard on the agenda items? Alright, seeing none. Our agenda item for today is the Joliet Police Department 2026. Through 2028, new higher eligibility lists. It's up for approval. May I have a motion? Motion. I have a second. Oh. Motion passes. Alright. Do we have any new or old business? Nothing for final action. Any public comments. Good morning. How are you guys doing? Good. It's Chris O'Hare. I'm uh president of Juliet Firefighters level 44. Can you pull it up a little bit? Yeah. A little better? Yeah. All right. Um we're here today to talk to you guys about the military preference points. We were made aware uh probably two weeks ago that there were going to be some changes and how they're going to be calculated. Uh we got that information from our chief through HR. We've reached out to HR multiple times trying to get an answer on how this is all gonna work and why it's going to change. Um we've yet to get response back. Uh wait in a week for two emails and a phone call, nothing. I have an acknowledgement saying that hey, we hear you. We'll sit down and meet with you. Um there's definitely some questions that we feel. Uh I mean the list is supposed to be going to the final uh signatures of you guys July 12th.
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