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Hoover council OKs up to $10,000 for Kroll to answer written questions on earlier forensic audit
Summary
The City Council authorized a limited follow-up engagement with Kroll Associates, capped at $10,000, to provide written responses about a previously released forensic audit. Residents urged more public transparency and some council members raised chain-of-custody concerns.
The Hoover City Council on Feb. 3 approved Resolution 8374-25 authorizing a limited engagement with Kroll Associates — not to exceed $10,000 — for the firm to review and provide written responses to questions about its earlier forensic audit.
The vote followed questions from council members and extensive public comment pressing for transparency. Council President Lyda called for the vote after the motion was made and seconded; the resolution passed by voice vote.
The resolution authorizes the city attorney to engage Kroll for the narrow purpose of answering questions about the audit report. The council discussion included concern about the chain of custody for the audit work and how responses would be distributed. A council member asked that any answers be returned unedited and posted to the city website; the clerk and staff indicated they would provide the documents to the council.
Residents attending the meeting pressed for more open, in-person discussion. Robin Schultz, a Black Park resident, reviewed a timeline of the audit’s public history and questioned the process for submitting and answering questions. "At the end of the day, what we're looking for is transparency in this thing. We want the questions to be answered," Schultz said.
Ashley Lovell, a Hoover resident who said more than 120 questions have been submitted, urged the city to host a town-hall–style session with a Kroll representative so residents could ask questions directly. "Hoover residents deserve full transparency from our city leadership and the lack of openness regarding their Kohler Report is unacceptable and continues to erode the public trust," Lovell said.
Council member Posey acknowledged the public comments and the numbers but said he would go along with the council’s chosen process. "I agree. I, I'm glad Robin ran the numbers. I just I feel like that's something we could have done months ago," Posey said, adding he would support the council's decision.
The resolution does not itself change the scope of the original forensic audit; it funds a limited, follow-up response from Kroll. Public commenters noted the city previously discussed alternate forums for questioning Kroll, including an in-person session; the council chose written responses for this engagement. The resolution's authorization is capped at $10,000.
The council completed the vote after public comment and several council remarks. The motion passed and staff indicated the responses would be circulated to council and the mayor's office. The manner and timing of any public posting were discussed but not spelled out in the resolution.
