The contract headed to the Tallahassee City Commission for approval Wednesday would give incoming City Manager Karen Jumonville a five-year term, a $317,000 annual salary and an unusual layer of election-year job protection: she could only be removed by a two-thirds vote of the City Commission.
The proposed employment agreement comes one week after commissioners selected Jumonville, the current deputy city manager, to succeed retiring City Manager Reese Goad following a controversial search process that ended in a 3-2 vote. The proposed contract was posted less than 24 hours before the city takes up the measure at its Sept. 9 meeting at City Hall.
The commission directed Mayor John Dailey to negotiate a contract with Jumonville after choosing her in the typical split decision: Dailey joined Commissioners Curtis Richardson and Dianne Williams-Cox in support, while Jack Porter and Jeremy Matlow voted against.
The majority said the search made it clear Jumonville was the best candidate, while Porter and Matlow maintained the decision was being made by a lame duck commission before new commissioners could weigh in.
If approved, the contract would begin Oct. 1 and run through Sept. 30, 2031, with automatic two-year renewals unless either side provides six months’ notice. The agreement also includes a $1,000 monthly vehicle allowance, city contributions to a 457 retirement account.
It also would change the threshold so that the city manager “may only be removed upon the affirmative vote of a two-thirds majority of the City Commission.” With five commissioners serving on the board, that means at least four commissioners would have to vote in favor of terminating the city manager.
New City Manager Karen Jumonville in photos
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City Commissioner Dianne Williams-Cox, left, poses for a photos with Karen Jumonville, Tallahassee’s current deputy city manager, who is also one of three finalists for the Tallahassee City Manager position. (Alicia Devine/Tallahassee Democrat)
The language differs from the traditional simple-majority threshold that governs most votes before the commission and would make it significantly harder for a future commission majority to remove the city’s chief executive.
City staff noted in the agenda item that the provision mirrors employment terms provided to the city’s inspector general. The city manager agreement further provides that if Jumonville is terminated without cause during the contract term, she would be entitled to 20 weeks of salary and benefits and two months’ notice, or pay in lieu of notice.
Contract clause comes amid bitter election cycle
The proposal arrives at a politically consequential moment for City Hall.
Three City Commission seats are on the ballot in 2026, and two progressive candidates aligned with Matlow, who is running for mayor after Dailey announced he wouldn’t run for re-election, could take control of City Hall. While the commission is made up of all Democrats, a deep, toxic divide has developed between the moderates and progressives on the dais.
A shift in the commission’s ideological balance could bring renewed debates over growth, policing, development, utilities, environmental policy and the direction of city government. The progressive candidates have previously made ousting Goad from the city manager post a top election issue.
Under the proposed contract, however, even if a new majority emerged after the election, commissioners would still need a four-vote supermajority to remove the city manager before the end of her term.
“After rushing this appointment just weeks before an election that will give Tallahassee voters a voice in how City Hall is run and who runs it — it is deeply concerning to see a proposal that would make it harder for elected officials to hold city management accountable to the people they serve,” Porter wrote on Facebook. “Regardless of who the City Manager is, accountability to the people of Tallahassee should never be made harder.”
Jumonville has spent years in City Hall leadership, serving as growth management director, assistant city manager and deputy city manager before being selected to replace Goad. Commissioners cited her institutional knowledge and experience overseeing major city operations during last week’s public interviews before choosing her to become Tallahassee’s next city manager.
The agenda item describes the city manager as the administrative head of municipal government, responsible for supervising city operations, overseeing public safety services, preparing and administering budgets, making policy recommendations and carrying out the directives of the City Commission.
Commissioners are scheduled to vote on the contract at their Sept. 9 meeting. If approved, Jumonville will officially assume the city’s top administrative post on Oct. 1 as Goad concludes an eight-year tenure as city manager.
What other cities require a supermajority vote?
The supermajority requirement appears not to be the norm in cities in Florida or the United States.
According to the National Civic League and its model charter that guides cities setting up “inclusive, effective, and equitable communities,” the city manager should be “directly accountable to and can be removed by a majority vote of the council at any time.”
But it’s not without precedent.
The city of Mulberry, Florida has a supermajority requirement. And Panama City is pursuing voter permission for that threshold on the November ballot.
Tamarac voters rejected a November 2022 ballot measure that would have required a supermajority vote by the City Commission to remove the city manager.
In 2025, the Delray Beach City Commission considered adding a supermajority requirement to their charter for increased stability but ultimately declined to advance the proposal to a voter referendum.
Key contract terms
Salary — $317,000 annually.
Term — Five years, from Oct. 1, 2026, through Sept. 30, 2031, with automatic two-year renewals.
Vehicle allowance — $1,000 per month, increasing by $50 annually.
Retirement benefit — City contribution to a 457 deferred compensation account up to the maximum amount allowed by federal law.
Severance — Up to 20 weeks of salary and benefits if terminated without cause.
Removal provision — City manager may only be removed by a two-thirds vote of the City Commission.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Tallahassee city manager contract pays $317K, adds firing protection