How often do Lexington council members miss meetings? Here’s who has top, bottom records

In our Reality Check stories, Herald Leader journalists dig deeper into questions over facts, consequences and accountability. Read more. Story idea? hlcityregion@herald-leader.com.

If Lexington council member Chuck Ellinger II was still in school, he likely would have been awarded a certificate at the end of 2023.

The Lexington-Fayette Urban County councilman, who serves as an at-large member, had the best attendance record of the 15 members, a Herald-Leader review of attendance records of 90 council committee, work sessions and council meetings shows.

Ellinger missed no meetings in 2023. Ellinger has served multiple terms on the council.

“I have not missed a council meeting, work session or committee meeting I am on, since I was re-elected in 2018. In fact, I’ve only missed two council meetings (2007, 2012) since I was initially elected in 2002. I was elected to represent the residents of Lexington, and do the people’s work. In order to do that, I think it is important for me to show up and be there,” Ellinger said. “Unfortunately, I have been on councils where we did not have a quorum to conduct a meeting or we had to recess to re-obtain a quorum. Like any job, you are expected to be there.”

The Lexington Herald-Leader received the attendance records through a Open Records Act request. In addition, the newspaper also examined minutes of council meetings to verify attendance records.

Another council member with a nearly perfect attendance record is at-large member James Brown.

Brown, a real estate agent who previously served as the First District Councilman before successfully running for the at-large position in 2022, only missed one committee meeting in 2023. His absenteeism rate is less than 1%.

“I take my attendance very seriously,” Brown said. “As an elected representative, I’m committed to staying informed and using my voice and my vote in the spaces where decisions are made.”

Those sterling attendance records are all the more startling given council members also serve on various other council work groups and city commissions that were not included in the analysis. Brown, for example, was also a member of the Urban County Growth Task Force, which met in 2023 to determine what areas should be added to the city’s expansion area.

Council is a part-time job. Council members make $39,963 a year. Vice Mayor Dan Wu makes $43,737. Many representatives have other jobs.

Other council members who rarely miss meetings include Liz Sheehan, Denise Gray, Shayla Lynch and David Sevigny. All missed fewer than four meetings in 2023.

Others with 10 or fewer missed meetings include:

• Hannah LeGris, 6

• Jennifer Reynolds, 6

• Dan Wu, 7

• Whitney Elliott Baxter, 7

• Fred Brown, 8

What was counted and what was not

On Tuesdays the council typically has two meetings — a council committee meeting and the council work session. If a council member misses a Tuesday, they are absent for two meetings, upping their number of absences.

For example, many council members were absent on May 30, 2023, which the day multiple Fayette County High Schools held graduation ceremonies. Many missed a council committee or work session on that day due to those events.

Also included in the tally are six “council of the whole” meetings. Council of the whole meetings are typically meetings where council discusses administrative issues, such as hiring and firing of council staff or schedules. Those meetings are not mandatory, per se, because council can’t vote during council of the whole meetings.

Also included in those council meetings that council members may have missed were six zone change hearings. Council committee, work sessions and council meetings are typically set more than a year in advance. Zone change hearings, an appeal of a decision of the Urban County Planning Commission, are typically set weeks before the hearing, making it more difficult for council members who have work or other obligations to attend. It is rare for all 15 members of the council to attend a zone change hearing, council records show.

Who missed the most meetings

Several council members missed more than 10 meetings in 2023.

Brenda Monarrez, who represents the Fourth District, missed 18 meetings and had an absenteeism rate of 20%.

Monarrez, like many council members who missed more than 10 meetings, had health issues that required surgery and recovery.

“I had an injury accident prior to taking office where I was not at fault. It resulted in a need to have an SI joint fusion on my left side,“ Monarrez said. “I had to navigate jumping through the hoops of health insurance and getting physical therapy and cortisone shots before my surgery was finally approved.”

Monarrez missed several meetings in September due to her surgery.

“Since then, I have had perfect attendance for every work session, council meeting and committee of the whole. I continue to go to physical therapy to gain flexibility and strength. Luckily, it seems I will not need a second surgery. While I am not saying attendance does not matter at all, a council member could have perfect attendance and do nothing for the benefit of their district,” Monarrez said.

Monarrez said she has fought hard for the Fourth District, including advocating for the Wilson Downing sidewalk project, better and safer turns and traffic flow on Nicholasville Road, reporting and escalating concerns about sewer odors along West Hickman Sewer Treatment plant, as well as dozens of other parks and street improvements. Monarrez was elected in 2022 and faces two opponents in the May primary.

Councilman Preston Worley, a lawyer who represents the Seventh District, missed 17 meetings and had an absenteeism rate of 19%. Worley, who has held the seat that represents neighborhoods in the Richmond Road corridor since 2017, is not running for re-election.

Worley did not return emails and phone calls asking for comment. Worley has previously said he has had to miss some meetings due to his law practice. Worley, who works for McBrayer, has also abstained from some zone change hearings because lawyers for his firm represented a client in those hearings.

Other members who are also not running for re-election had spotty attendance records in 2023.

Councilwoman Kathy Plomin, who is not running for re-election in the 12th District,which includes Lexington’s rural area, missed 15 meetings and had an absenteeism rate of 16%. Plomin missed multiple meetings due to some health issues that required a long recovery, she said.

Most of Plomin’s absences were in the spring and early summer due to her health problems, records show.

Tayna Fogle, who represents the First District, missed 15 meetings and had an absenteeism rate of 16%.

Fogle, who also works as a community organizer for Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, said some of those absences were due to work. Fogle is also a grandmother and great grandmother who has had to step up and help out when her grandchildren and great grandchildren were sick, she said. Fogle was first elected in 2022 and represents areas that include parts of downtown and the city’s east side. She faces two opponents in the May primary.

“You have to take care of your family,” Fogle said. Fogle said she also had some health issues in 2023, necessitating time off. She also had previously scheduled speaking engagements that were made prior to her getting the council calendar.

“I’m not trying to make excuses,” Fogle said.

Fogle said like many people in Lexington, she has to work two jobs to make ends meet. Fogle said she has been active in her district, advocating for better parks and pushed for a new pool at Douglass Park. She is hosting a spring break feeding program for Fayette County Public School kids and she is also an advocate for the homeless community, pushing for more services.

“Not everything gets done around that horseshoe (the council dais) or in that room,” Fogle said.