[00:00:02] ALL RIGHT. COMMITTEE. IT IS 11:18 A.M. AND I AM CALLING THIS MEETING OF THE THE SPECIAL CALLED MEETING OF THE COMMITTEE ON [Call to Order] FINANCE TO ORDER. BEFORE WE GET STARTED, JUST A LITTLE PROCEDURAL HOUSEKEEPING. WE ARE GOING TO START OFF WITH MISS BONNIE IS GOING TO ADDRESS US ON THE PROCESSES OF THE CITY AUDITOR INTERVIEWS AND, AND JUST SORT OF TALK ABOUT GENERALLY WHAT THE PROCESSES WERE. WE'RE NOT GOING TO GET INTO ANYTHING ABOUT THE CANDIDATES OUT HERE. WE WILL THEN GO INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION AND WE HAVE TWO CANDIDATES TO INTERVIEW TODAY THAT WERE RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE NOMINATING COMMISSION. WE WILL DISCUSS THOSE CANDIDATES IN THEIR. WE HAVE A COUPLE OTHER ITEMS WE NEED TO ADDRESS IN CLOSED SESSION AS WELL, WHICH I'LL READ INTO THE RECORD. WE'LL COME BACK AND THEN GO INTO BRIEFING ITEM B AT THAT POINT. AND WITH THAT BEING SAID, I WILL TURN IT OVER TO STAFF FOR DISCUSSION ITEM A, WHICH IS INTERVIEW FINALISTS FOR THE CITY AUDITOR AND RECOMMEND CANDIDATES FOR [DISCUSSION ITEMS (Part 1 of 2)] CITY COUNCIL CONSIDERATION. DO WE HAVE SOMEBODY FROM HR? WHILE SHE'S COMING UP, I WAS JUST JUST CLARIFIED WITH THE WITH THE HR DEPARTMENT THAT WE ARE REQUIRED BY CODE TO HAVE THE CITY AUDITOR APPOINTED BY NOVEMBER 27TH. COUNCIL MUST BEFORE THAT, OF COURSE, RATIFY THE NOMINATE THAT PERSON AND APPOINT THEM. AND SO THAT WILL BE EITHER THIS NEXT COMING AGENDA MEETING AT THE END OF OCTOBER, OR IT WILL OCCUR AT SOME POINT IN NOVEMBER. SO WE'VE GOT A COUPLE OF OPTIONS THERE. BUT WE DO HAVE A REQUIREMENT PER CODE TO HAVE THE AUDITOR IN PLACE BY THE END OF NOVEMBER. YOU READY TO TAKE IT AWAY? GOOD MORNING. MY NAME IS ERICA HERRERA. I'M TALENT ACQUISITION MANAGER, AND WE CONDUCTED SOME INTERVIEWS WITH THE NOMINATING COMMISSION FOR THE FINANCE AUDITOR. AND WE'RE GOING TO HAVE THE CHAIR OF THIS COMMISSION JOINING US SOON TO GIVE INFORMATION ABOUT WHAT WAS THE PROCESS FOLLOWED. AND THEY PROPOSED THREE CANDIDATES. UNFORTUNATELY, ONE OF THEM WITHDREW THIS MORNING. BUT WE'RE GOING TO HAVE THE INFORMATION FOR YOU SO YOU CAN MEET THOSE CANDIDATES TODAY. VERY GOOD. DO WE HAVE MISS FORTNEY ONLINE? I THINK THEY ARE WAITING ON HER TO JOIN, BUT SHE'S JOINING. PLEASE ALLOW US. ONE MINUTE. [00:05:14] OKAY. CHAIR OF THE NOMINATING COMMISSION FOR THE CITY AUDITOR IS JOINING MICHELLE. HI, MICHELLE. CAN YOU HEAR US? WE JUST NEED YOUR AUDIO. WHAT'S THAT? NO, NO. GOOD MORNING. MICHELLE. I THINK THAT YOU'RE MUTED. OKAY. CAN YOU HEAR ME? YES, WE CAN HEAR YOU. THANK YOU. GOOD MORNING. GOOD MORNING. MY APOLOGIES. I WAS ON A TEAMS CALL THAT I WAS SENT A LINK FOR. SO NO PROBLEM. WE JUST WANTED WE INVITED YOU TODAY. FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE AND LEADING THE NOMINATING COMMISSION. I WANTED YOU TO PROVIDE JUST A SHORT CONTEXT FOR US ON THE PROCEDURE THAT YOU WENT THROUGH. AND WITHOUT TALKING ABOUT THE CANDIDATES SPECIFICALLY IN OPEN SESSION HERE, I WANT TO JUST GET YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE PROCESS AND DELIBERATIONS THAT YOUR YOUR COMMISSION WENT THROUGH. CERTAINLY. SO I'M MICHELLE AND I CHAIRED THIS COMMITTEE. MY BACKGROUND IS THAT I WAS THE MANAGING PARTNER FOR EY AND DALLAS FOR 11 YEARS AND A CPA. ALSO ON THE COMMITTEE WAS PAULINE MEDRANO, WHO IS THE DALLAS COUNTY TREASURER. LEANNE SHEFFIELD, WHO IS THE SENIOR POLICY ANALYST FROM THE U.S. GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE. KEVIN MARCH, WHO WAS THE FORMER CFO OF TEXAS INSTRUMENTS, AND JOHN STEVENS, WHO IS THE FORMER CFO OF AT&T. SO EACH MEMBER WAS SELECTED BECAUSE THEY MEET THE CRITERIA WITHIN THE REGULATIONS THAT GOVERN THIS APPOINTMENT PROCESS. THE CANDIDATES FOR THE POSITION WERE IDENTIFIED BY THE PLACEMENT FIRM POLI HIRE THAT SPECIALIZES IN RECRUITING CANDIDATES FOR THE GOVERNMENT FOR GOVERNMENT POSITIONS. AND EACH OF THE CANDIDATES PRESENTED TO THE COMMITTEE WERE QUALIFIED FOR THE POSITION. WE INTERVIEWED FOUR CANDIDATES IN TOTAL AND DETERMINED THAT THREE SHOULD ADVANCE FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION. WE DID DELIBERATELY WANT TO INCLUDE THE THE CITY OF DALLAS EMPLOYEES SERVING AS INTERIM, BECAUSE YOU ALL HAVE MORE INFORMATION THAN JUST PROVIDED IN A 45 MINUTE INTERVIEW. AND THAT SEEMED IMPORTANT. AND I BELIEVE SOMEBODY HAS SHARED THAT ONE OF THE CANDIDATES HAS DROPPED OUT. THAT'S RIGHT. OKAY. SO THAT WAS REALLY THE PROCESS. DO YOU ALL HAVE ANYTHING ELSE FOR ME? CAN YOU JUST VERIFY THAT YOU DID YOUR COMMISSION DID VERIFY OR I GUESS DID THAT, THAT ALL OF THE CANDIDATES YOU NOMINATED WERE QUALIFIED. THEY MET THE QUALIFICATIONS. AND DID ALL OF THEM UNDERSTAND THAT THERE IS A RESIDENCY REQUIREMENT AS PART OF THE AUDITOR APPOINTMENT. MY UNDERSTANDING IS THEY DID BEFORE THEY EVER AGREED TO INTERVIEW OR APPLY FOR THE POSITION. AND ALSO FOR THE, FOR Y'ALL'S INFORMATION AS WELL. WE DID INTERVIEW THEM, WE HAD A KIND OF PRE-POPULATED SET OF QUESTIONS THAT COVERED VARIOUS TOPICS LIKE AUDIT RISK. HOW DO YOU CREATE AN AUDIT PLAN? HOW DO YOU FOLLOW IT? HOW DO YOU NAVIGATE GETTING ALONG WITH CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS AND ALSO WHAT TYPE OF LEADER YOU ARE, WHAT TYPE OF CULTURE THAT YOU ESTABLISH FOR THE TEAM. SO I'VE, IN MY OPINION, I FELT LIKE THAT THE INTERVIEW WENT WELL. WE'RE VERY THOROUGH AND ADDRESSED THE THINGS THAT YOU GUYS WOULD BE INTERESTED IN ADDRESSING. [00:10:03] THANK YOU. AND I'LL ASK IF THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE PROCEDURE NOT GETTING INTO THE SPECIFIC QUALIFICATIONS OF ANY CANDIDATE OR THEIR RECOMMENDATIONS. CHAIR MORENO. THANK YOU CHAIR. GOOD MORNING. CAN YOU TELL US HOW LONG THE JOB POSTING WAS OPEN FOR, AND DID YOU ALL HAVE DIFFICULTY ATTRACTING APPLICANTS WITH THE REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS? I THINK KENYATTA CAN ANSWER THAT, BUT HE DID ANECDOTALLY SAY THAT IT WAS DIFFICULT THAT THEY DIDN'T GET A LOT OF APPLICATIONS IN. WE, THE COMMITTEE DISCUSSED THE FACT THAT WE ARE LIMITING BY REQUIRING THE RESIDENCY IN THE CITY OF DALLAS REALLY ARE LIMITING YOUR CANDIDATE POOL, PARTICULARLY IN NORTH TEXAS, BECAUSE ANY OF THE SURROUNDING CITIES OR CITY AUDITORS MAY CHOOSE NOT TO APPLY BECAUSE THEY DON'T WANT TO MOVE THEIR FAMILY, ESPECIALLY IN THIS PARTICULAR REAL ESTATE MARKET. SO I DON'T KNOW IF Y'ALL HAVE THE ABILITY TO CHANGE THAT OR ADDRESS THAT, BUT I WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU TO CONSIDER IT. AND IF I MAY. THANK YOU, CHAIR FOR, FOR YOUR SERVICE ON THE COMMITTEE. MY NAME IS KENYATTA UZELL. WAIT, HOLD ON ONE SECOND. WE NEED TO GET YOUR VIDEO OPERATIONAL HERE. OKAY. OKAY, WE CAN SEE YOU. LET'S TEST THE AUDIO. GREAT. CAN YOU HEAR ME? WE CAN HEAR YOU AND SEE YOU. GO AHEAD. WONDERFUL. THANK YOU. YES. I WAS THINKING CHAIR FOR HER SERVICE ON THE COMMISSION TO TO ASSIST IN THE SELECTION. RECOMMENDATIONS TO YOU ALL. MY NAME IS KENYATTA UZELL. I'M THE FOUNDER AND CEO OF POLI HIRE STRATEGY HERE IN DC. WE CONDUCTED AN EXTENSIVE SEARCH. IT LOOKS LIKE WE MY FIRST UPDATE WAS PROVIDED TO THE CITY IN MAY OF, OF, OF THIS YEAR. YES. MAY OF THIS YEAR, THE END OF MAY, RIGHT BEFORE THE HOLIDAY. AND WE PRESENTED OUR CANDIDATES TO THE, THE SELECTION COMMITTEE IN APPEARS TO BE EARLY OCTOBER, LATE SEPTEMBER. DON'T HAVE THAT EXACT DATE IN FRONT OF ME. HOWEVER, THERE WERE 45 APPLICANTS, OF WHICH ONLY 11 MET MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS, WHICH WERE NUMBER ONE TO HAVE A CPA. ONLY 11 HAD CPAS. LET'S START THERE. ONLY 11 HAD CPAS. SO I SAY THAT WAS THEIR DIFFICULTY IN THIS TYPE OF ROLE. WHEN YOU DO HAVE SOME OF THE PARAMETERS THAT EXIST, WHICH ARE QUALIFICATIONS SUCH AS THOSE CERTIFICATION, CPA, A RESIDENCY REQUIREMENT. THEN ALSO THE CAVEAT OF THE APPOINTMENT IS A TWO YEAR APPOINTMENT OUTSIDE OF A LENGTHIER APPOINTMENT. YOU FIND THAT YOUR REGIONAL CANDIDATES CHOOSE NOT TO RELOCATE INTO THE CITY BECAUSE IT IS ONLY STATUTORILY A TWO YEAR APPOINTMENT, AND ANYTHING CAN CHANGE AT THAT POINT. SO THAT FACTUALLY IN CONVERSATIONS WITH INDIVIDUALS, THAT WAS SOMETHING THAT WAS TAKEN INTO CONSIDERATION BY PROSPECTIVE CANDIDATES, AND THEY CHOSE NOT TO SUBMIT THEIR CREDENTIALS. BUT I'LL ALSO SAY, IN DOING THESE SEARCHES AROUND THE COUNTRY, HAVING 11 QUALIFIED CANDIDATES WHO MEET THOSE MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS IS ACTUALLY PRETTY TYPICAL AND STANDARD IN THIS CURRENT MARKET AND POLITICAL, POLITICAL CLIMATE NATIONWIDE. THANK YOU. MORE QUESTIONS, MR. RIDLEY. HOW MANY PEOPLE WERE INTERVIEWED OUT OF THE 11 QUALIFIED NOMINEES? BY, BY OUR FIRM, ALL 11 OF THOSE QUALIFIED DID RECEIVE INTERVIEWS BY POLI HIRE. THOSE WHO MET THAT THAT MINIMUM THRESHOLD OF BEING QUALIFIED FURTHER WENT ON TO OTHERS WITHIN OUR FIRM. AND THE RECOMMENDATION, I BELIEVE MAY HAVE BEEN FOUR IF I'M NOT MISTAKEN, CHAIR, FOR THE CHAIR TO THEN FURTHER MEET. SO, IN OTHER WORDS, THE COMMISSION INTERVIEWED JUST FOUR OF THE CANDIDATES. ABSOLUTELY. BASED ON YOUR RECOMMENDATIONS? YES, BASED ON OUR RECOMMENDATIONS. AND IF I'M NOT MISTAKEN, I DON'T KNOW IF THEY SAW EACH OF THOSE. THEY DID SEE EACH OF THOSE INDIVIDUALS, I BELIEVE WERE MINIMUM UNQUALIFIED OR RESUMES OR SO, BUT. WE DID AND POLI DID SHARE THE SET OF RESUMES FOR WHAT THEY DETERMINED WERE TIER TWO CANDIDATES. AND THEY DETERMINED AND WE CONCURRED THAT THE, THE QUALITY OF THE CANDIDATES DROPPED SIGNIFICANTLY, THAT THE FOUR WERE THE MOST QUALIFIED FOR SURE. OKAY. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. GREAT QUESTIONS. ANYONE ELSE? ALL RIGHT. AT THIS TIME, COLLEAGUES, IT IS 11:33 A.M. [EXECUTIVE SESSION] ON OCTOBER 19TH, 2026. THE FINANCE COMMITTEE MEETING WILL NOW GO INTO CLOSED SESSION UNDER SECTION 551.074 OF THE TEXAS OPEN MEETINGS ACT ON THE FOLLOWING MATTERS [00:15:07] DESCRIBED ON TODAY'S AGENDA AGENDA ITEMS A, B, AND C. ALL RIGHT. GOOD AFTERNOON. IT IS 1:01 P.M.. AND AND THIS MEETING IS NOW COMPLETED. ITS CLOSED SESSION UNDER SECTION 551.074 AND 551.071 OF THE TEXAS OPEN MEETINGS ACT AND WE ARE RETURNING TO OPEN SESSION. I AM WAITING FOR A MOTION, MR. [DISCUSSION ITEMS (Part 2 of 2)] CHAIR, I MAKE A MOTION TO MOVE BOTH CANDIDATES FORWARD TO FULL COUNCIL. SECOND. ANY DISCUSSION? ALL THOSE IN FAVOR SAY AYE. AYE. ANY OPPOSED? MOTION CARRIES. COLLEAGUES, WE ARE GOING TO HOLD OFF ON ITEM C AND TAKE THAT UP AT THE NEXT COMMITTEE AGENDA. AT THIS TIME IT IS 1:02 P.M. AND THE FINANCE COMMITTEE HAS CONCLUDED. THANK YOU. * This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.