WASHOE COUNTY DEBT MANAGEMENT COMMISSION QUARTERLY MEETING
FRIDAY 1:00 P.M. February 21, 2025
PRESENT:
Naomi Duerr, Reno City Council, Chair Eugenia Bonnenfant, At-Large Member, Vice Chair
Joe Rodriguez, Sparks City Councilmember (via Zoom)* Christine Hull, Washoe County School District, Member (via Zoom)
Susan Severt, GID Representative, Member Brian Erbis, At-Large Member
Janis Galassini, County Clerk Trenton Ross, Deputy District Attorney
ABSENT:
The Washoe County Debt Management Commission convened at 1:00 p.m. in regular session in the Caucus Room of the Washoe County Administration Complex, 1001 East Ninth Street, Reno, Nevada, and via the Zoom application. Following the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag of our Country, County Clerk Jan Galassini called roll, and the Board conducted the following business:
D AGENDA ITEM 3 Public Comment.
*1:02 p.m. Member Rodriguez arrived.
There was no response to the call for public comment.
Chair Duerr acknowledged the new Members of the Debt Management Commission (DMC), beginning with Member Rodriguez, who introduced himself as a former Trustee of the Washoe County School District (WCSD) Board of Trustees and a current Sparks City Councilmember. Chair Duerr acknowledged Member Hull, who introduced herself as the District A Trustee for the WCSD Board of Trustees. Member Hull noted that she was a lifelong Washoe County resident and expressed her excitement about participating as a Member of the Commission. Chair Duerr acknowledged Member Erbis, who introduced himself as one of the At- Large Members of the Commission and thanked Chair Duerr for the opportunity to serve on the DMC.
Chair Duerr noted that Member Erbis had already met with Deputy District Attorney (DDA) Trenton Ross. She then asked if Members Rodriguez and Hull had also been
introduced to DDA Ross for a briefing. Member Rodriguez stated that he had not yet contacted DDA Ross but indicated that he would do so before the next DMC meeting.
Chair Duerr attested that the DMC served a unique function and elaborated by briefly describing the scope, responsibilities, assignments, decision-making protocol, and management process overseen by the Commission, which she noted had been in place over the last eight years. She welcomed the new Commission Members again and reiterated that contacting DDA Ross and Washoe County’s financial team would be beneficial. She acknowledged DDA Ross and the financial team as the Commission's official staff that assisted in meeting preparations. She introduced County Clerk Jan Galassini and acknowledged the work of the Washoe County Clerk’s Office in ensuring that DMC meetings adhered to the schedule.
Chair Duerr stated that the meeting would be short and noted that there were only a few actionable items to discuss before adjourning. She affirmed that DMC meetings typically lasted approximately one hour but would occasionally exceed or reach an hour and a half when there were multiple items to address. She urged new Members not to expect such brief meetings in the future and reiterated that DMC meetings, on average, lasted approximately one hour.
D AGENDA ITEM 4 Election of Chair and Vice Chair from Commission membership.
Chair Duerr introduced herself again to the Debt Management Commission (DMC) membership and noted that she had served as the Chair of the DMC for several years. She stated that she was a Reno City Councilwoman and had initially been appointed to the DMC as a Member before she was elected Chair. She acknowledged the previous Vice Chair of the DMC, Ms. Michelle Salazar, noting that she had transitioned off the Commission. She outlined that the DMC held elections annually, with quarterly meetings occurring four to five times a year, depending on what was needed. Chair Duerr asked Members Severt and Bonnenfant if they desired to serve as Chair or Vice Chair of the Commission.
Member Severt nominated Member Bonnenfant for the position of Chair. Chair Duerr asked if there was any interest from the Commission membership in serving as Vice Chair. Chair Duerr noted that she was willing to continue serving the DMC as Vice Chair, given the nomination of Member Bonnenfant as Chair. She asked Member Severt if she was also interested in serving as Vice Chair. Member Severt indicated that she was not interested at that time due to her many other responsibilities but was grateful to have been asked. She proceeded to nominate Chair Duerr to serve as Vice Chair.
Chair Duerr asked Member Bonnenfant if she would be willing to accept the nomination as Chair or if she would like to reverse the nomination. Member Bonnenfant declined the nomination and stated that she would prefer another year of experience on the Commission before accepting the role of Chair but expressed her appreciation for the nomination. Member Bonnenfant reiterated her interest in serving instead as Vice Chair for a year before accepting the nomination as Chair and indicated that she would like to reverse the nomination.
Chair Duerr asked Member Severt if she would be interested in modifying her motion, which Member Severt confirmed.
* * * * * * * * * * * * Agenda Item 4 was reopened during the discussion on Agenda Item
5, Minute Item Number 25-018D. For additional discussion on this item, please see Agenda Item 5, Minute Item Number 25-018D.
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On motion by Member Severt, seconded by Member Erbis, which motion duly carried on a 6-0 vote, with Member Herman absent, it was ordered that Chair Duerr be re-elected as Chair of the Debt Management Commission and Member Bonnenfant be elected as Vice Chair of the Debt Management Commission.
Chair Duerr expressed her gratitude for the Commission membership’s confidence in herself and Member Bonnenfant.
Chair Duerr recognized that it had been beneficial for new Commission Members to introduce themselves but noted that re-introducing pre-existing Commission Members could also be valuable.
Member Severt introduced herself as the Chairwoman of the Sun Valley General Improvement District (GID) and noted that she had been an activist in Sun Valley for approximately 45 years.
Member Bonnenfant introduced herself as the second At-Large Member of the Commission and stated that she provided economic services. Chair Duerr asked Member Bonnenfant to explain her job. Member Bonnenfant announced her position as President of Ekay Economic Consultants and explained that the company conducted feasibility market studies, among other economics-related tasks.
Chair Duerr acknowledged that Member Herman was absent during the meeting but introduced her as a Washoe County Commissioner. Chair Duerr stated that the DMC included three elected officials, with one Member appointed from the City of Reno, the City of Sparks, and Washoe County. She noted that she had been appointed to the Commission by the Reno City Council, the Sparks City Council had appointed Member Rodriguez, and Washoe County had appointed Member Herman.
Chair Duerr referred to Member Hull when acknowledging that the Commission also consisted of a Member appointed from the Washoe County School District (WCSD) Board of Trustees. She stated that the five GIDs could nominate someone to be a Member, and then the GIDs voted on all the nominees to determine the appointed DMC Member. She stated that Member Severt had been nominated and appointed to the Commission in this process several times. Member Severt clarified that she was in her second year of serving on the DMC. Chair Duerr noted
that the GID Representative who served on the Commission prior to the appointment of Member Severt had also been nominated and appointed from the Sun Valley GID. Member Severt identified Ms. Sandra Ainsworth as the individual Chair Duerr had referred to and noted that Ms. Ainsworth was formerly the Chair of the DMC. Chair Duerr attested that it was unusual for five GIDs to vote amongst themselves to select a nominee.
Chair Duerr stated that Commission membership was also comprised of two At- Large Members with background and experience in financial matters, especially those related to governments, referring to Members Erbis and Bonnenfant.
Chair Duerr acknowledged that the City of Sparks had nominated an alternate, which she noted was the first occasion she had seen an alternate in quite some time. County Clerk Jan Galassini stated that the DMC has had an Alternate in the past but agreed that having an Alternate on the Commission was not typical. She noted that the nomination likely guaranteed they would not have the need for an alternate.
D AGENDA ITEM 5 Approval of the minutes for the DMC meeting of January 17, 2025.
Chair Duerr asked Members of the Debt Management Commission (DMC) who had been present at the previous DMC meeting if they had any corrections or additions to recommend for the draft minutes. Receiving no recommendations, Chair Duerr noted for those who had not been present at the previous meeting that the Commission had been informed by the Washoe County District Attorney’s (DA) Office that Members could vote on the approval of minutes regardless of whether they had attended that meeting or not. Chair Duerr asked if Deputy District Attorney (DDA) Trenton Ross would like to speak on the topic. He confirmed that he would and stated that they could take representations made by other Members present for that meeting and vote accordingly.
Chair Duerr stated that during the previous meeting, the attorney who served the Commission as the predecessor to DDA Ross had informed the DMC that there was an expected duty of meeting participation for Commission Members and that unnecessary abstention should be avoided. Chair Duerr attested that if Members who were not present at the meeting felt confident in those who had reviewed the minutes, they could participate in the vote. She stated that the attorney who preceded DDA Ross had emphasized her encouragement for Member participation in voting. Chair Duerr asked if DDA Ross held a similar position on the matter, and he agreed that he did.
Chair Duerr reiterated that she had not heard any recommendations for changes to the draft minutes and called for a motion and vote on their approval.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
County Clerk Jan Galassini noted for the public record that there had been no public comment for Items 4 or 5.
Chair Duerr reopened Item 4, Minute Item Number 25-017D, for public comment. There was no response to the call for public comment on Item 4. Chair Duerr subsequently closed Item 4.
* * * * * * * * * * * * There was no response to the call for public comment.
On motion by Member Bonnenfant, seconded by Member Severt, which motion duly carried on a 6-0 vote, with Member Herman absent, it was ordered that Agenda Item 7 be approved.
D AGENDA ITEM 6 Board Member Comments.
Chair Duerr asked if any Board Members had comments to provide and noted that Members could now ask for items to be placed on the agenda. She reflected that the Commission often requested items be placed on the agenda, particularly educational items that elaborated on the functioning of the Board. She listed examples of past items that elaborated on how Commission decisions were made, the history of controversies on the Board, and the resolution of any Board controversies. She noted that those topics had been discussed previously but that revisiting similar processes might be worth reviewing for the three new Members. She noted that in the past, the Vice Chair of the Debt Management Commission (DMC), who was both an attorney and a financial expert, made a presentation. She suggested that was one idea for a presentation.
Chair Duerr noted that two of the Members recently appointed to the DMC were elected officials and assumed they would already have received public Open Meeting Law (OML) training. She suggested that, as a result, they would likely not need to conduct that training again as a Board, to which Deputy District Attorney (DDA) Trenton Ross agreed. She noted that many of the boards in Reno conducted that training annually. She stated that she was on 11 boards and had completed that training many times. She reiterated that as the Commission membership had already received the relevant training or had previously indicated that they planned to receive it, the Commission would not need to add that as an agenda item.
Chair Duerr attested that the DMC oversaw and decided on matters regarding the debt of approximately 20 groups, which were often invited to present their general financial and debt pictures to the Commission. She stated that five groups had been suggested during the previous meeting to conduct future presentations. She requested an update on including those presentations in subsequent agendas. Chair Duerr was informed about the upcoming schedule of presentations, which included a presentation from the City of Sparks scheduled for May 16, 2025, a presentation from the City of Reno scheduled for August 15, 2025, and a presentation from the Incline Village General Improvement District (GID) scheduled for November. Chair Duerr noted
that those presentations would span the rest of the meetings for the year. She stated that Members should expect future meetings to include presentations.
Chair Duerr requested that the preferred format for presentations be sent to the relevant entities in advance so presentations could be prepared within that format. She noted that while the Commission enjoyed the format presenters had used for their presentations in the past, they had been asked to prepare a concise document summarizing essential information consistent between every jurisdiction so that comparisons could be distinguished between the jurisdictions. Chair Duerr acknowledged that the Washoe County Clerk’s Office had attempted to fulfill the Commission’s request.
County Clerk Jan Galassini stated that the Clerk’s Office's practice was to send and encourage the use of the requested formatting to the relevant entities. She clarified that despite requests being made, the Clerk’s Office could not guarantee that the entities would fulfill those requests.
Chair Duerr noted that the entities were also encouraged to provide the relevant presentation materials in advance to ensure they could be included in the Board materials for the meeting. She asked to be informed in the future if presenters were not responsive to submitting presentation materials as requested by the Clerk’s Office so she could directly encourage them to adhere to the format.
Chair Duerr asked the Commission membership if they had any suggestions for including items on the agenda for future meetings. She noted that meetings that hosted presentations typically adhered to the standard meeting duration of approximately one hour. She described the presentations as educational and opined that they allowed the Commission to have more information to assist in making relevant decisions.
Chair Duerr remarked that she had heard no suggestions and requested that any Commission Members with general questions or comments make them known.
Ms. Galassini mentioned that she had supplied Chair Duerr with several certificates and inquired if she wanted to distribute them.
Chair Duerr expressed that she had hoped to have other attendees at the meeting and announced that she had asked the Washoe County Clerk’s Office to prepare Certificates of Recognition for the acknowledgment of former Members of the Commission.
Chair Duerr awarded a certificate to Ms. Michelle Salazar and introduced her as the former Vice Chair of the DMC, noting that she had over 15 years of service on the Commission. She attested that the Commission was lucky to have her level of continuity and service on the Board and noted that Ms. Salazar had served the DMC as a Member, a Vice Chair, and a Chair. She commended Ms. Salazar for her work, consistent attendance, and preparedness with phenomenal questions.
Chair Duerr encouraged the Commission membership, particularly the newly appointed Members, to be willing to ask questions. She reiterated the DMC's uniqueness and stated that the Commission relied on obtaining a deeper understanding of financial matters. She further encouraged the Members' involvement by noting that their predecessors had done a great job and asserting that they would as well.
Chair Duerr awarded the second certificate to Mr. Adam Mayberry, the former Washoe County School District (WCSD) Board of Trustees representative, for his two years of service on the DMC. She indicated that the certificate would be sent to him.
Chair Duerr awarded the final certificate to Councilmember Dian VanderWell, a former Member appointed by the City of Sparks, for serving on the DMC for four years.
Chair Duerr recognized the certificate recipients and reiterated her appreciation for their service. She suggested that the meeting offered a good opportunity to present the certificates and acknowledge the service of those former Commission Members. She further encouraged Members to continue their service to the DMC and become more familiar with the board.
D AGENDA ITEM 7 Public Comment.
There was no response to the call for public comment.
* * * * * * * * * * *
1:21 p.m. There being no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned without objection.
ATTEST:
NAOMI DUERR, Chair
Debt Management Commission
JANIS GALASSINI, County Clerk and Ex Officio Secretary,
Debt Management Commission
Minutes Prepared by
Brooke Koerner, Deputy County Clerk