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DeKalb County committee interviews candidates for Audit Oversight Committee; appointments deferred to April 3
Summary
The Finance, Audit and Budget Committee interviewed two candidates for vacancies on the county's Audit Oversight Committee and voted to defer formal appointments to the April 3 meeting while staff provides additional appointment-source documentation.
At a meeting of the DeKalb County Board of Commissioners' Finance, Audit and Budget (FAB) Committee, chaired by Commissioner Ted Terry, the committee interviewed two candidates for openings on the Audit Oversight Committee and deferred action on formal appointments to April 3.
The interviews were part of agenda item 2025-0340, described by staff as the appointment process for the oversight committee of the Office of the Independent Internal Auditor. Director Campbell explained that the oversight committee previously vetted applicants and forwarded a shortlist to the Board; the committee said staff would provide a full accounting before votes are taken so commissioners know which specific seats are being filled.
Melody Curry and Eric McLaughlin each answered a standard set of questions from the committee. Melody Curry said she was "passionate about exercising my civic duty, through local government," and described experience in internal audit, risk management and consulting for banking, health care and aviation. Curry told commissioners she has worked on programs related to regulatory compliance, discussed conducting annual risk assessments to set audit priorities and said she had no volunteer roles that would pose a conflict. She also said confidentiality is central to her work and that she would follow appropriate need-to-know protocols for sensitive audit matters.
Eric McLaughlin, a certified public accountant, said he applied after a former oversight committee member recommended him and said, "I felt like it was my civic duty to do so." McLaughlin described early-career audit work at Deloitte that included audits of school district finances and said his current practice performs audits of organizations that receive federal funds, including single-audit work. He told commissioners he had not done extra study of the Georgia Department of Audits and Accounts before the interview and that he is available for either a one-year or four-year term.
Commissioners pressed candidates on familiarity with government-specific regulations and on how they would address rapidly changing regulatory requirements. Both candidates described using risk assessments, testing internal controls and working with business or process owners to develop management action plans when gaps are identified. Director Campbell told the committee HR had solicited interest and that the audit oversight committee had interviewed and short-listed candidates before forwarding names for this review.
After the interviews, Commissioner Terry opened the floor for a motion to defer formal votes on appointments so the committee could consolidate appointment-source information and confirm which seats would be filled. The committee voted to defer item 2025-0340 to the April 3 meeting.
The committee also agreed to continue interviews at future meetings until two vacancies are filled. Staff said one candidate was completing final paperwork and one additional interview is scheduled for a later committee meeting.
Votes and next steps: formal appointment votes were deferred to April 3; staff will provide a document listing vacancies, appointment methods and which seats will be offered when the committee resumes action on item 2025-0340.
