SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH – Nov. 30, 2015 – (Gephardt Daily) — Salt Lake City’s Mayor-elect Jackie Biskupski has sent an e-mail to city workers outlining her transition plan as she prepares to assume office in January. She’s also asked dozens of current staff members to submit their resignations.
Biskupksi released a statement Monday saying the e-mail was was part of an effort to ensure the transition between her and Mayor Ralph Becker’s administration is “transparent, fair, and respectful for both city employees and the public.”
The newly-elected Biskupski said she has identified 34 appointed staff positions, including some department heads, whose jobs were being scrutinized to make sure “the wishes of voters are reflected throughout city government.”
Biskupksi asked all but two current department heads to submit their resignations pending review. “As is common in mayoral transitions, I have requested that all appointed department heads, as well as the mayoral staff, submit a letter of resignation to me by January 4th, 2016,” Biskupski said. “Each of these resignations will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis and, as soon as possible, I will determine whether to accept individual letters of resignation.”
The two department head resignations Biskupski did not ask for are those of Interim Police Chief Mike Brown and Fire Chief Brian Dale. “Due to the importance of public safety, I have decided not to request at this time the resignations of Interim Police Chief Brown and Fire Chief Dale,” the mayor-elect said. “I would like the opportunity to work with both of them to evaluate their performance and to determine whether they will support my vision for public safety.”
Biskupski will be sworn in as Salt Lake City’s next mayor on January 4, 2016.
The e-mail she sent to city workers outlining her transition plan is below:
Mayor-Elect Transition Process
Sent to all Salt Lake City employees on 11/30/2015
Mayor-Elect Biskupski and her team are hard at work preparing for the transition on January 4th from Mayor Becker’s administration. The Mayor-Elect has assembled her transition team (“Transition Team”) consisting of fifteen individuals with diverse backgrounds, including government, human resources, business, law, and consulting. The members of the Transition Team include Robert Bergman, Simone Butler, Julio Garcia, Sandra Hollins, Rebecca Chavez-Houck, Karen Kwan, Patrick Leary, David Litvack, Carita Lucey, Tiffany Provost, Sue Rice, Jonathan Ruga, Bill Rutherford, Dave Spatafore, and Marcia White.
The transition process will include:
- A high level review of the most critical departments and divisions of the City;
- A review of all department heads and mayoral staff; and
- Development of Mayor-Elect Biskupski’s plan for her first 100 days in office.
The Mayor-Elect and her Transition Team have designed the transition process to be fair, to be respectful of the needs of City employees and the public, and to be implemented in a manner that will minimize disruption and create as positive a work environment as possible.
The Mayor-Elect has already met with several department heads and expects to complete those initial department head meetings within the next several days. Those meetings will be promptly followed by meetings between the department heads and members of the Transition Team. As is a common approach in mayoral transitions, department heads and mayoral staff will be asked to submit resignation letters effective January 4th, 2016 (the positions to which this applies are listed on Exhibit A attached hereto). As soon as possible, Mayor-Elect Biskupski will determine whether to accept any letters of resignation, which decisions will be made on a case-by-case basis after the various meetings between and among the Mayor-Elect, her Transition Team, department heads, and mayoral staff. Between now and then, the Mayor-Elect will begin the recruiting process for many appointed positions. More information about the recruiting process will be provided imminently.
There are two exceptions to the foregoing. Given the importance to public safety of the police and fire departments, Mayor-Elect Biskupski will not ask for letters of resignation at this time from Interim Police Chief Brown or Fire Chief Dale. Rather, she would like the opportunity to work with both of them to evaluate their performance and to determine whether they will support her vision for public safety.
Appointed positions not constituting department heads or mayoral staff will be evaluated early next year. Information regarding that process will be provided as it is developed.
The Mayor-Elect’s First 100 Days Plan will be announced shortly after her Inauguration and is expected to include initiatives with respect to homelessness, affordable housing, air quality, economic development, education, transportation, community outreach, and streamlining City policies and procedures.
