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City solicitor outlines smaller staffing footprint, outside counsel bump for bargaining year
Summary
City Solicitor Beth Oldmixon described her office's workload across 20+ departments and boards, noted the office will operate with 2.5 assistant solicitors in FY27, and asked the council to approve a modest increase in outside counsel funding (from $55,000 to $70,000) to support collective bargaining and occasional specialized matters.
Beth Oldmixon, representing the City Solicitor's office, reviewed the FY27 request and the office's scope of work covering routine legal advice for more than 20 departments, numerous boards and commissions, public records inquiries and claims handling.
Oldmixon said the office currently operates with three and a half full-time attorneys including herself and plans to proceed with 2.5 assistant solicitors for FY27 after staffing adjustments. She described two major anticipated projects for FY27: (1) collective bargaining negotiations for cityside agreements and (2) a charter-mandated ordinance review in a year ending in seven.
Because bargaining work typically requires specialized or outside counsel support, Oldmixon asked to increase the outside-counsel line from $55,000 to $70,000. She said the litigation line is intended for filing costs, process service and occasional assistance when internal staffing was thin; some prior-year increases reflected short-term staffing gaps and one-time outside counsel use.
Councilors thanked the solicitor for responsiveness, asked about dynamics in the litigation line (FY26 actual vs. budget) and heard that while a smaller in-house team will prioritize work, some responses could take longer. The solicitor said she expects to use outside counsel selectively for matters like recounts or specialized negotiations and will prioritize routine responses in-house.
The committee closed the solicitor review and moved on to the police department presentation.
