During a recent city council meeting, Pam Dotson raised significant concerns regarding the use of city resources and transparency in governance. Dotson highlighted that only one council member had their city phone number listed in the newsletter, despite all members being provided with city phones and computers for official business. She expressed frustration over the lack of response to her previous email requesting updates to the personnel manual concerning social media use by city employees, particularly in light of defamatory comments made about her.

Dotson also addressed the status of her complaints, noting that she had received no communication from the city following an ethical review initiated by her complaints. She mentioned an upcoming meeting scheduled for September 6 to discuss these issues further.

Additionally, Dotson inquired about the contractor agreement for the city attorney, Ryan Henry, questioning the absence of a written retainer agreement. She pointed out that the city should have a documented agreement outlining the terms of employment, especially since Henry was appointed in October 2018 with a specified monthly compensation.

In her remarks, Dotson emphasized the need for an updated personnel manual, which has not been revised since 2015. She criticized the current policy that requires taxpayers to submit open records requests to access this document, arguing that it should be readily available online for public scrutiny.

Dotson concluded her address by recalling a past incident where the city council had sued taxpayers over a proposed town hall project, which ultimately resulted in a ruling in favor of the taxpayers. She urged the council to consider the implications of their governance decisions on the community they serve.