Fort Smith board directs administrator to pursue disciplinary action against chief human resources officer

The Fort Smith Board of Directors voted unanimously April 29 to direct Acting City Administrator Jeff Dingman to initiate disciplinary action regarding the city's chief human resources officer and to report back to the board "in a swift and timely fashion." The motion was made after the board returned from an executive session that had been convened to discuss discipline related to the chief human resources officer.

Board members said little publicly before the vote. The motion was moved and seconded during the open meeting; the clerk then called a roll call vote. Directors recorded votes in favor from Director Zirico, Director Goode, Director Kemp, Director George Kasabas, Director Christina Kasabas, Director Settle and Director Martin. The clerk announced the motion passed 7 in favor, 0 opposed. No additional public details about the disciplinary measures were disclosed at the meeting.

The executive session was announced earlier in the meeting when the board stated it would convene to "talk discipline and terminate chief human resources officer," an item listed on the meeting agenda. After reconvening, the board made the formal motion directing the acting city administrator to begin disciplinary proceedings and report back to the board.

The board did not provide further specifics about alleged misconduct, the timeline for any disciplinary steps, or whether the administrator's action could include termination. The motion directs the administrator to initiate "any disciplinary action concerning the chief human resource officer and then report to the board of directors in a swift and timely fashion," language taken from the motion recorded in the meeting transcript.

The board did not identify additional authorities (statutes or personnel policy sections) at the time of the vote. The acting city administrator and the chief human resources officer were present on the meeting agenda; the administrator was named during the motion. No staff report, investigative file, or personnel policy citation was made publicly during the meeting minutes read aloud.

The board took no further public action on this personnel matter at the meeting. Members indicated the matter would be handled through the administrator’s office and reported back to the board at a future date.