Personnel committee approves one-week internal posting for chief of legislative services

The Jacksonville City Council personnel committee voted to open the vacant chief of legislative services position to internal applicants for one week and to accept applications from city departments and constitutional officers, the committee decided during a personnel meeting.

Committee members said the shortened, internal-only posting is intended to fill the vacancy quickly while giving current city employees a first opportunity to apply. Rockman Johnson, City Council member for District 14 and a personnel committee member, moved to authorize the internal posting; the committee approved the motion by voice vote.

The decision matters because the chief of legislative services supports council operations and continuity. City staff said limiting the initial posting to internal applicants would speed hiring and reduce the volume of external applications the city must process.

Ms. Hayes, director of employee services, told the committee that the posting "can open it up internally ... to all departments and to the independent authorities" and that resumes would be processed through the city's applicant tracking system. "We would determine eligibility, initial eligibility, and then we can return that eligible list over to city council," she said.

Members debated how broad the internal pool should be. One committee member suggested specifying a Duval County residence preference and noted that applicants familiar with city council technology and procedures would likely be better positioned to step into the role quickly. Another member said the city should not rule out former employees who know the office's institutional history.

The committee sought clarification about whether independent authorities are part of the internal posting. Ms. Hayes clarified that independent authorities are not on the city's personnel rolls; the city can provide the posting to those authorities but the internal posting formally covers city departments and constitutional officers.

During the meeting a public commenter, John Lernay, urged transparency and public access to the council secretary position, saying, "we have to restore the public trust." Lernay also requested that there be a way for the public to reach whomever is appointed.

Next steps communicated at the meeting: the city will post the position internally for one week, the employee services team will screen applicants for eligibility via the applicant tracking system, and an eligible candidate list will be returned to the council for further consideration.