City Council member Matt Carlucci sent a statement to media Dec. 21 calling on the JEA board to stop negotiations with bidders for the public utility and prevent what could be the city’s most “embarrassing” mistake.
JEA meets Jan. 28.
“It is hugely important that the JEA board end the ITN process at their next meeting,” Carlucci wrote in the email sent at 10:09 p.m. and headlined “The biggest JEA issue that must not be overlooked.”
“If (the) JEA board ends this process to privatization and or recapitalization they are immune to lawsuits from the bidders per the ITN contractural agreement!”
Carlucci wrote that if the JEA board passes the invitation to negotiate the process to Council, it puts the city at risk.
“If we the Council stop the process we are opening our city to serious lawsuits as the ITN cont(r)act does not exempt the council,” he wrote.
“The JEA board at their next meeting is at a serious crossroads. They can take the road of making one of the biggest and most embarrassing mistakes in our consolidated Government if they pass this to the council.”
Carlucci wrote that if the board takes “the road to pulling the plug, stopping the process, this will be an important step in protecting our city and citizens and a breath of fresh air towards good government will sweep across our hometown.”
In a Twitter post on Dec. 22, Carlucci wrote that according to page 41, part 2 of the invitation to negotiate contract: "JEA reserves the right to cancel, postpone, modify, reissue, and/or amend this ITN at its discretion."
"So just to be clear, the JEA has the sole discretion to stop this. The Council does not," he wrote.
On Dec. 12, Mayor Lenny Curry called on the JEA board to speed up negotiations with bidders and send options to Council by the end of January.
The Florida Times-Union reported Dec. 19 that Council President Scott Wilson said he will tell the JEA board it should end negotiations, which made him the highest-ranking official at City Hall to say it’s time to stop talk about selling the utility.
Carlucci is the At-Large Group 4 representative.
In July, the board voted to allow Aaron Zahn, which it hired as CEO and managing director in November 2018, to initiate an invitation to negotiate a sale of JEA with private companies.
On Oct. 14, JEA announced nine companies would proceed to negotiations.
Along with other people and groups seeking a similar outcome, Carlucci called on the JEA board in November to fire Zahn, which it voted to do Dec. 17 without cause.
Zahn is on paid administrative leave as the city Office of General Counsel and Zahn’s lawyer negotiate terms of his termination.
The board seeks to cut back on the terms, which now comprise a $842,925 severance payout that could rise in the event JEA is sold.
In a Dec. 15 letter, Carlucci called for a grand jury investigation into the sale process, joining other groups recommending the same.
On Dec. 18, State Attorney Melissa Nelson’s office said it is “looking into matters involving JEA” after multiple calls from Jacksonville officials and organizations since Nov. 30 for an investigation into the public utility’s push to privatize.
“We have heard the concerns of the community over the past several months. This office is — and has been — looking into matters involving JEA. We will not be commenting further,” Nelson said in a written statement.
The board is scheduled to meet at 9 a.m. Jan. 28 at JEA Tower at 21 W. Church St. The board comprises seven members appointed by Curry and confirmed by Council.
It is down to six members after Andy Allen resigned Dec. 2 after serving less than six months of a four-year term.