Board Approves Annual ADP Budget for Submission
to County Commissioners After Contentious Debate
ADP Board Meeting - May 4, 2026
Meeting Details: The Automatic Data Processing Board (ADP) held a Special Meeting beginning at 11:00 am on May 4, 2026 in the Geauga County Auditor’s Office Appraisal Conference Room at 231 Main St., Chardon, OH 44024. Virtual access was available via MS Teams, and the agenda was provided in advance. Members of the public may attend ADP meetings virtually via MS Teams by emailing an invitation request to Auditor’s Office Chief Operations Officer Pam McMahan at McMahan@geauga.oh.gov. This Observer attended via MS Teams.
Public Comment: ADP does not have a written public comment policy. In practice, public comment is solicited at the end of the meeting.
Board Attendance:
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Auditor/Chief Administrator – Charles Walder
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Clerk of Courts – Sheila Bevington
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County Commissioner – Ralph Spidalieri
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County Engineer – Andy Haupt
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Board of Elections – Tyler Plants and Nora McGinnis
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County Prosecutor – Jim Flaiz (arrived at 11:27)
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Recorder – Celesta Mullins
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Sheriff – Chief Deputy Tom Rowan for Scott Hildenbrand
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Treasurer – Chris Hitchcock
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Coroner – John Urbancic (absent)
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Common Pleas Court Judge - Vacant
ADP Staff Attendance:
Reviewer Note: ADP restructured into three groups in 2025: Department of Advanced Technology and Applications (DATA), Department of Advanced Research & Cybersecurity (DARC) and Department of County Archives and Records Enterprise (CARE). More information on this restructuring is available in the March 4, 2025 ADP Observer Report.
Other Government Representatives:
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Carolyn Brakey - County Commissioner (virtual)
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Adrian Gorton - County Finance Manager (virtual)
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Katie Taylor - Finance Director, Geauga County Public Health (virtual)
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Pam McMahan - Chief Operations Officer, Auditor’s Office
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Sarah Perry - Geographic Information Systems (GIS) (virtual)
Others Present:
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Kathy Johnson - Mental Health & Recovery Services Board member (virtual)
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Anastasia Nicholas - Reporter with Geauga Times Courier (virtual)
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John Smith (virtual)
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This LWV Geauga Observer (virtual)
The meeting was called to order at 11:00 am by Mr. Antenucci.
Minutes: No minutes were presented for approval.
The Board took the following actions:
APPROVED - Sheriff’s Reassurance Solutions, LLC ($51,000) - Mr. Rowan explained that this technology involves sensors and utilizes cameras to monitor inmates’ health and potential first aid needs, noting it was paid for by a grant. The annual subscription service costs will be $6,000/year. He noted that the Geauga County correctional facility would be the first in Ohio to utilize this technology. Observer Note: Learn more about Reassurance Solutions here.
Executive Session - At approximately 11:02 am, the ADP Board went into Executive Session per Ohio Revised Code 121.22 (G)(1): “To consider the appointment, employment, dismissal, discipline, promotion, demotion, or compensation of a public employee or official, or the investigation of charges or complaints against a public employee, official, licensee, or regulated individual, unless the public employee, official, licensee, or regulated individual requests a public hearing.” The Board was joined by Mr. Antenucci and Ms. McMahon.
The Board returned from Executive Session at 11:09 am and reported the following action: The Board approved the hiring of Anthony DeSalvo as Service Desk Technician. Mr. Antenucci said he would make the official offer to Mr. DeSalvo.
DISCUSSED - Cybersecurity Insurance Update - Mr. Antenucci informed the Board that the recent county insurance renewal with CORSA (County Risk Sharing Authority) included an increase in cybersecurity coverage to $2 million, the highest level available. Mr. Antenucci invited Geauga County Benefits Specialist Kathy Hostutler to the meeting to explain the increase but she was unavailable. There was uncertainty about exactly why the county qualified for the top tier level. The tentative explanation was that the county’s cybersecurity controls and safeguards were strong enough to justify the higher coverage level. Board members emphasized wanting more detailed information from CORSA about the specific criteria or parameters used for determining coverage tiers, how the county compares to other Ohio counties in cybersecurity readiness and IT infrastructure, and whether premium increases were related to the enhanced coverage. The Board emphasized that whatever cybersecurity practices are currently in place should continue, since the enhanced coverage was viewed as evidence that the county’s IT and security efforts are performing well.
Regular Business - The Board held an extensive and often contentious discussion regarding the annual ADP draft budget before voting to submit it to the County Commissioners for approval. Mr. Antenucci explained that the proposed budget largely mirrored the prior year’s structure, including a planned 3% salary increase for 2026 and adjustments tied to prior contractual obligations. Ms. McMahon noted that the budget had been carefully reviewed and refined, with reductions in some service areas, and updated equipment and contract forecasting based on purchasing patterns dating back to 2022. She explained, “These are all actual hard numbers of all the equipment requests. This is what we buy every year.”
Mr. Spidalieri expressed concerns about the overall size of the ADP budget and staffing levels compared to other Ohio counties. He questioned whether the county’s technology operations had expanded beyond what was necessary, pointing specifically to projects such as cemetery mapping and the number of personnel involved in routine technical support. “The manpower in Geauga County, compared to everybody that is in a very comparable sized county is astronomical,” he argued, adding that many people had questioned “the amount of dollars at ADP comparable to everywhere else.” He also referenced a recent password reset incident in which “seven people” were present to reset his password, remarking, “Our Sheriff’s department doesn’t go to domestics and have seven people.” Mr. Antenucci clarified that all other password resets are handled digitally (additional clarification on this is provided below), and he and Mr. Walder explained that the cemetery project is under GIS and included in the Auditor’s budget.
Mr. Antenucci and Mr. Walder strongly pushed back on the criticisms, defending both the department’s staffing and the county’s cybersecurity posture. Mr. Walder responded that the large response to Mr. Spidalieri’s password issue was intentional because staff feared being criticized if anything went wrong, saying, “We sent everybody and his brother there… because if there was a problem, we wanted to fix it immediately because it was you.” Mr. Walder accused Spidalieri of consistently targeting ADP employees unfairly, stating, “You have been anti-ADP since I took office,” and arguing that criticisms of the department were personal rather than operational. Tensions escalated as officials referenced prior disputes over past claims that ADP was looking at Mr. Spidalieri’s email, the cost of live-streaming Commissioners meetings, accusations against ADP staff, and union-related concerns.
A major portion of the discussion focused on cybersecurity, IT infrastructure, and the costs associated with maintaining modern county systems. Mr. Antenucci emphasized that the county’s strong cybersecurity standing—including recently receiving the highest level of cyber insurance coverage through CORSA—was directly related to the county’s investments in technology and staffing. Mr. Walder stated plainly, “The problem is, we have never been breached. I think that’s positive.” He added that reducing staffing or cutting services would be reckless. He said, “The only way we can prove that this is the right way of doing it is to slide back the scale, lay off half the employees, cut the services, and then just pray we don’t get breached.” Board members repeatedly stressed that maintaining strong cybersecurity protections came with unavoidable costs, especially given Board of Elections security requirements and countywide IT responsibilities.
The conversation also addressed major technology expenditures, including Microsoft 365, the New World ERP system, internet infrastructure, and countywide software licensing. Mr. Spidalieri questioned whether alternatives existed that could reduce expenses, particularly with Microsoft licensing costs. Mr. Antenucci noted the licensing costs were roughly $420 per user annually and included Microsoft’s email service and the entire Office suite including Word, Powerpoint, etc. Microsoft 365 remained the only viable enterprise solution that met government operational and security standards. Mr. Antenucci explained, “We have not found a better alternative. Not even close.” Mr. Walder defended the expense by emphasizing how dependent county operations are on digital tools, saying, “You shut down that system one day at this time, your output goes to pieces.” Mr. Antenucci further noted that many counties distribute IT functions across departments or outsource cybersecurity entirely, making direct county-to-county staffing comparisons difficult and often misleading.
Board members also discussed the Archives and Records operation, which had been transferred under ADP oversight at the beginning of 2024. Mr. Antenucci explained that the archives program had inherited outdated equipment, understaffing, and operational problems that required significant reinvestment. Mr. Flaiz bluntly described the former operation as “a dumpster fire.” Mr. Antenucci estimated that restructuring and modernizing archives added roughly $100,000 annually to the ADP budget beyond the original transfer of funds, but argued the turnaround had been successful and widely recognized. He noted that the Archives and Records operation was now doing “significantly more work than it had ever done before.”
Despite the disagreements, Mr. Spidalieri emphasized that questioning expenditures was part of responsible governance. Mr. Spidalieri repeatedly stated that he was “simply asking a question” and trying to determine whether efficiencies or cost-saving alternatives existed. He acknowledged that technology costs are increasingly unavoidable but maintained that reviewing expenditures was necessary. Mr. Flaiz countered that the questioning disproportionately targeted ADP while ignoring IT costs elsewhere in county government. He said to Mr. Spidalieri that “you funded the Probate/Juvenile outside IT no questions asked. They didn’t even show up for the budget hearing. You rubber-stamped their IT budget.” Mr. Flaiz accused the Commissioners of playing “a shell game” by criticizing centralized IT costs while overlooking duplicate technology operations in other departments.
Ultimately, after extensive debate, the Board voted to approve the proposed ADP budget for submission to the County Commissioners. Mr. Antenucci expressed confidence in the county’s IT direction, cybersecurity readiness, and infrastructure investments and summarized the department’s position by stating, “We have full IT coverage in this county, and we’re one of the best in the state, if not the best.” The motion to approve the budget passed by roll call vote with all Board members approving it. Mr. Spidalieri abstained. Mr. Walder left the meeting at approximately 11:50 am and was not present for the vote.
Public Comment - This Observer asked why a Service Desk Technician role, a relatively low level role without managerial responsibilities, was brought to the Board for approval. Mr. Antenucci replied “...even though the revised code in 307-847 is pretty clear in terms of the Chief Administrator being able to make that decision… we just thought with the ongoing union discussions right now, that it seemed appropriate to have the Board make that decision outright.” Mr. Flaiz added, “I understand why you wanted to have the Board approve this hire, but I will reiterate. You do not need our permission to make those hires.”
The meeting was adjourned at 11:59 am.
Next Meeting - The next scheduled meeting of the ADP Board is a Regular Meeting on June 11, 2026 at 1:00 pm.
Minutes when posted are available here: Meeting Minutes | Geauga County Automatic Data Processing
Virtual Meeting Information - Contact Pamela McMahan at PMcMahan@geauga.oh.gov.
Observer: Carol Benton
Editor: Rooney Moy
Reviewer: Sarah McGlone
Submitted: May 19, 2026
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