PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WVEC) -- The city council meeting on Tuesday found people talking about disciplinary action taken against a firefighter as well as an attempt to eliminate the position of city auditor.
Councilwoman Elizabeth Psimas wanted to add a vote to the agenda on whether Portsmouth should eliminate the position of auditor currently held by Jesse Andre Thomas.
Thomas became the city's first auditor in 2013. He had the task of helping to find inefficiencies in government.
By the following year, council members became aware he had not conducted any audits.
At the time, Thomas told 13News Now he spent his first year on the job helping with other city projects. He added that in 2014, he was moving forward with a new audit plan, including monitoring a hotline where people could report wasteful spending of tax dollars.
Since then, some people with the city have pointed to a lack of productivity on Thomas's part.
Although Psimas hoped to address the issue through a vote, her motion failed to get the support necessary to be added to the formal agenda.
Another failed motion came from Councilman Bill Moody who wanted council members to vote on whether they should be able to fine each other for talking about topics discussed in closed meetings.
By majority vote in September, council members approved a measure that allowed them to fine any member who revealed issues brought up in closed meetings.
Moody was fined $1,500 in January after he mentioned what council would be discussing in a closed session.
Councilman Danny Meeks also has been fined.
Moody's motion Tuesday night met the same fate as Psimas' with a 3-3 vote. Councilman Paige Cherry was not there and the tied votes automatically defeated the motions.
Another issue raised at the meeting was the recent suspension of a firefighter who many contend was suspended because he told the media about the shortage of firefighters in the city.
"Basically, it infringes on his First Amendment rights," said former firefighter and city council candidate Nathan Clark. "We're with the International Association of Firefighters. We're taking it to the state level and the international level, and this has already drawn attention as far as the Governor's Office here in Virginia, so this is not something that's going away."
Although the suspended firefighter's name was not mentioned, people familiar with the situation told 13News Now it was Rusty Quillin who serves as president of the firefighters' union.
Clark told council members the firefighter acted in off-duty capacity, sharing information that the public needed to know.
"We're about 40 firefighters short from where we need to staff," said Clark. "Citizens pay their taxes. They expect when they dial 911 to get the services that they're paying their taxes for. All they know is that if they need a police officer or firefighter and all the equipment necessary, they need it when they call for help."
City Manager L. Pettis Patton addressed the issue prior to Clark's comments.
"Disciplinary disposition of all employees under the city manager's purview is a personnel matter, and I cannot discuss further," she explained. "Employees are entitled to speak about issues of public concern as it relates to issues in the public domain; however, all city employees are required to follow the City of Portsmouth's administrative policy directives."