IV.
Testimony from Jody Brooks
Ms. Brooks was still under oath from the morning session. She was joined by Sean Granat,
OGC. Chair Salem talked about the JEA internal staff survey of all employees, and he
asked if the results will be shared with the JEA Board. CM Salem requested the responses
from the open ended questions be shared with the Board. CM Salem asked about the staff
assessment being conducted by an outside law firm with individual interviews, and
whether those results will be shared with the Board.
Ms. Brooks gave a prepared opening statement wherein she described her position,
resume, and her experience with previous JEA leadership. Ms. Brooks asserted that she
has not seen toxicity or racism from the current CEO Ms. Cavey. She spoke briefly about
the collection of capacity fees.
Mr. Teal asked questions about Ms. Brooks' job duties, now and when Mr. Stowe was the
CEO. He asked what divisions Ms. Brooks oversees. He asked how long Ms. Brooks
prepared for this testimony. He asked who provides support for Board services and
whether "talking points" are provided to the Board chair. Mr. Teal asked about the ethics
hotline and how filed complaints are handled. There was discussion about severance
packages and post-employment consulting contracts.
Mr. Granat noted that the discussion needs to stay within the scope of the committee's
charge.
Mr. Teal asked if the CAO is permitted to provide legal services or advice, and whether
Ms. Brooks had ever been warned not to do so by Regina Ross. Mr. Granat said that
answer should not be provided as it would be covered under attorney-client privilege.
CM Salem asked about the capacity fee issue and when it was discovered. Mr. Brooks said
the inconsistent collection was an unintentional administrative oversight. CM Salem
commented on the practice on one on one meetings with Board members, and advocated
for fewer of such and more transparency in that regard.
Mr. Teal asked a series of questions about Mayo and capacity fees, the timeline, how the
issue was recognized, the Board's awareness of the issue, the disputed amount uncollected,
and related settlement discussions. CM Pittman asked what other entities were impacted
by the capacity fee issue, and there was discussion about the effect on bond ratings. Ms.
Brooks indicated that the CEO is empowered to certain settle disputes on JEA's behalf, up
to $1 million for items in litigation and $50 million for items not in litigation.
CM Salem asked about workplace climate and Ms. Brooks reiterated that she did not
witness toxicity. CM Carlucci encouraged letting the Auditors do their work on the
capacity fee issue, and he commented on the interplay with politics, toxicity and the SIC.
