City of Jefferson board approves June finances, elects officers and notes new three-business-day meeting notice rule

The City of Jefferson board, meeting at 5:30 p.m., approved its June financial report and the minutes of its June 11 meeting and conducted officer elections, including the appointment of Sean Pu as vice president and the reappointment of Porsche Johnson as secretary and treasurer.

The board approved the June financial statement on a motion by Mr. Charles, seconded by Mr. Westbrook; the chair asked for a voice vote and the motion carried. Members also approved the consent agenda, which the chair said encompassed the minutes and financial items as a single motion.

During discussion of the town's recent sewer work, board members reviewed payments tied to the Owen Street sewer upgrade, citing a roughly $540,000 total obligation and saying the city used pandemic-era American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds for part of the project. The chair said the town and city appear to have split costs roughly 50/50 and that the board will ask the city administrator for a formal accounting to confirm final allocations and any remaining funds.

The board conducted required July officer elections. A nomination for Sean Pu as vice president was moved and seconded and approved by voice vote; the board also moved to reappoint Porsche Johnson as secretary and treasurer and approved that reappointment. The board discussed that Elaine handles much of the practical minute-taking and financial administration work between meetings.

The chair warned members about a new state-level public notice requirement the legislature recently enacted, which the board has interpreted with guidance from the Texas Municipal League (TML) to mean notices must be posted three business days before a meeting (excluding the day of notice and the meeting day when counting). To comply with that schedule for the board's usual Tuesday meetings, the board agreed to post notices by Wednesday at 5 p.m. the week prior.

Board members set their next regular meeting for August 12 and noted August is the month to begin budget work. The chair encouraged members to refer residents and local businesses to the city's assistance application (the application is posted on the city website and the chair offered to email it to members) and said the board currently has "over a million" dollars available for city-justified projects, subject to allowable uses and further accounting.

A motion to adjourn passed by voice vote and the meeting ended.