County revives Technology Information Council to implement records‑retention policy; commissioners name primary and alternate appointees

County officials asked the Board of County Commissioners to reestablish an Oklahoma County Technology Information Council to provide oversight, training and coordination for a newly proposed records retention policy.

Presenter Jessica said the Policy and Governance committee recommended using the prior 2013 council framework to provide training and oversight for records retention, data‑center needs, phone system modernization and related technology policies. The committee recommended appointing primary and alternate members from elected offices so the council could meet early next year and support departmental policy adoption.

Several commissioners named their appointees during the meeting. The clerk’s office listed Walter as primary and Matthew as alternate; the sheriff’s office listed David Baysden as primary and Tim Melton as alternate; the assessor named Mike Morrison and Brian Hutchins; other named appointees included Brandy Mertens (primary) and Katie Arata (backup) for one seat, Chuck Jolley as a primary (alternate to be provided later), Kimberly Zuhdi (primary) with Paul Foster secondary, and district representatives Joe Lau and John Pettis along with Rick Buchanan and Jennifer Bowen for another district seat.

The board approved the measure and the clerk recorded the votes. County staff said the revived council will help implement records retention policies across elected offices and advise on technology needs.

No substantive policy text was finalized at the meeting; the council is intended to meet after appointments are finalized so it can begin training and draft the countywide records retention processes.