Okay.

All right, welcome to the Wednesday 1 p.m.

meeting.

Today is June 24th.

Item number one, I call this meeting to order.

Item number two discussion with the personnel director regarding charter and other considerations related to the creation of division head positions in the classified service.

Before we get started, can I just say a few words?

Alright, there has been some media coverage on these topics.

So I think it's important to frame this discussion and to be very honest.

I am disappointed to read some of the feedback related to this topic.

I specifically do not think comments targeted at the councils or individual counselors' motivations or work ethic are appropriate, accurate, or professional.

The council rule or council roles in the city are clear.

We establish a budget, evaluate and make recommendations on administrative practices, approve the divisions of the city, and some of the rules related to the rules and regulations of the merit system.

Last week we completed a budget process, a process that included an in-depth discussion on employee pay and the impact of reclassifications.

Following the council's approval, less than one business day later, the highest classified position ever was created in the civil service system, was approved as a division head by the mayor, a new pay scale was approved, and the position was immediately listed for internal applications.

One week later, the same position, and I assume additional related reclassifications appeared on today's mayor's agenda.

So in today's discussion, we have asked the personnel director, Erica.

Thank you for being here.

Sure.

Uh, to discuss the classification of division heads in the civil service, particularly as it relates to charter provisions currently in Article 10.

I'm going to ask my colleagues to avoid discussion of specific individuals in these positions, but rather focus on our discussion on these charter provisions and other considerations such as HR processes for classification, reclassification, budgetary impacts, and other considerations in making these decisions.

So Erica, thank you again for being here.

Explain the role of the personnel director, and then explain the difference between a division head and a department head.

So the purpose of the civil service system is to provide for job security, and that a merit process is established and followed as we hire people to do the jobs that are required to be done to keep the city running, right?

So we have specialists in water operation and engineering, and we want to make sure that qualified individuals fill those roles.

So that is the main purpose, so that we don't have political political spoil system where an elected official can hire their brother-in-law or sister-in-law who has no experience in those areas, and it could put the city and citizens in jeopardy.

Part of my role as the personnel director is to ensure that when we are posting jobs and we're going through hiring process, that the individuals who apply, whether they're internal or external, meet the minimum qualifications as taking on the job description, and that we give them a fair process in going through that.

Internal applicants do get first choice of the jobs and they're considered first and they have a grievance process if they are not selected or not certified.

So that's part of their merit protections.

So my role is to work with that and make sure that once those jobs are created, that they are posted fairly, that we have fair hiring processes, and that we are following uh the job descriptions, and what was the third part of your um explain the difference between a division head and a department head, and can you speak up just a little bit louder?

Sorry.

Um so that is more of a legal art from the charter and doesn't necessarily fall under the merit processes.

Um there is discussion, and I do know the difference just from 30 years of experience here at the city, but um there is that is part of I believe what is stated in the mayor's authority, and I may look to Jack to clarify there.

So the charter doesn't really define division head, but it does discuss it in the context of managing the departments of the city, so it's a it's a level above the departments in the organizational structure of the city.

Okay, so you have a division head with department heads under those, okay, and every department has those steps or those well, not necessarily some over the years, departments have reported directly to the mayor, police and fire most often, but others as well.

Economic development every structure in every administration is different.

Okay, um, I'm gonna go next.

So since we're talking about this definition of department head and division head, and don't have a clear delineation, I guess it's subject to the the administration and how they're structured, except that in Article 10, Section 5B of the charter, it does say that the appointee position shall include the heads of any divisions.

So it is articulated there in terms of political appointees, correct?

Right, that it carves out an exception to kind of the rule that all employees will be in the classified service, it lays out a handful of exceptions to that rule when uh included in that or up to 16 appointments by the mayor, uh, including uh division heads.

Well it says shall include the heads of division.

So right now, as I understand it, we have two divisions in the city of Tulsa as it's structured now.

We have the administration under the chief administrator, and we have public safety under the public safety commissioner.

Those were created by this administration like less than 18 months ago.

Um, when were you asked to evaluate the roles of the city administrator and public safety commissioner?

Well, the city administrator position was evaluated last year in the spring of 2025, and a classified position was created and posted at that time, so that one came first.

Do you know, like, was it May?

Was it March?

Uh I the position has an effective date of sometime in mid-May of 2025.

How long would it take you to conduct something like that?

It depends on how many other things we had going on, but usually when the mayor's office asks for something, you're getting quite quickly.

So, I would say 30 days potentially.

What position is there?

The city administrator.

So, and then for the public safety commissioner, when were you asked to evaluate that?

Um, that's been within the last full month and a half.

Okay, um, I love that it goes fast for the mayor's office.

Maybe we can get some council consideration on our reclassifications.

I know that counselor Lincoln and I had to impress upon the previous administration that more than a year for council reclasses are just not what we need.

So I think I think it's going faster than that, but I think we also have some asks out there.