Meeting approves payment of about $24,000 for employee pending that employee's approval

The Chair announced the body was returning to open session and said it would not take immediate action because the employee needed to consult with family. A committee member moved to approve payment for the employee, identified in discussion as Lauren, with the action explicitly made conditional on the employee's approval.

The committee member said, "I move that we pay Lauren the 24,000 and change plus, additional expenses based on inflation and extra OT and earn interest he could have earned on that 24,000 to put 24,000 in his pocket after taxes, Projected taxes." Staff directed a colleague identified by the spoken name "Casey" to include the amount in the tentative budget. The staff member told Casey, "you'll have to add that to the tentative budget."

Officials discussed timing for processing the payment and agreed it could not be paid until July 1. One speaker also referenced "30 years," a point that was not explained in the transcript and remains unclear. The Chair asked for a motion "to do what we, that what we discussed in closed session pending the the approval of of our employee," and the committee member made the motion. The motion was seconded and the Chair called for a vote; at least one participant vocalized "Aye," and the Chair indicated the action could proceed.

The meeting record shows the payment was approved subject to the employee's consent and the inclusion of final numbers in the board's final budget. No formal vote roll call or complete tally is included in the transcript; the recording contains vocal "Aye" responses but does not list individual votes by name. The Chair closed the open session and moved to end the meeting.

Next steps noted in the discussion were that staff and the named colleague Casey would finalize the budget math and return the finalized numbers for formal approval at a later meeting if the employee agrees to the terms.