Monthly Meetings Minutes

PDF Download | January 20, 2023 Meeting Minutes

MINUTES OF THE ABLE COMMISSION MEETING

The filing of the meeting and posting of the agenda were in accordance with the Oklahoma Open Meeting Act. The notice of the meeting was filed with the Secretary of State on October 5, 2022. The agenda was posted on January 18, 2023, on the front and back doors of the 50 Northeast 23^rd Street building in Oklahoma City, the door of the ABLE Commission’s Office Reception area, and the ABLE Commission website.

Vice Chairman Brooks called the meeting to order at 10:00 a.m. at the office of the Alcoholic Beverage Laws Enforcement (ABLE) Commission at 50 Northeast 23^rd Street, Oklahoma City, OK 73105. A quorum was met with the presence of the following Commission members: Jonathan Brooks; Andrew Revelis; Keith Mitchell and A. Ainslie Stanford II.

The visitors that were in attendance were: J.B Jarboe, Southern Glazers Wine and Spirits; Jose Almanza, Homeland; Edward Tuya and Emily Morrow, Oklahoma Department of Mental Health & Substance Abuse Services; Patrick Gaines, Craft Brewers Association; Justin Naifeh, Republic National Distributing Company; Collin Graham, Oklahoma Restaurant Association; Robert Jernigan and Dirk Van Veen, Retail Liquor Association of Oklahoma; Attorney Randy Malone, Oklahoma Beverage Law; Samantha Guinn, Institute for Responsible Alcohol Policy; Spencer Guinn, Quinn Strategies/ Beer Distributors of Oklahoma; Lauren Kidwell, Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services; Tim Zaloudek, Pope Distributing; April Jolley and Alex Adkins, Beer Distributors of Oklahoma; Todd Gayer, Armanda Distributing; Ellen Spiropoulous, Phillips Murrah; Gordon Green, Capital Distributing/ Beer Distributors of Oklahoma; Matt Jett, Jett Distributing/ Beer Distributors of Oklahoma.

The following ABLE Commission employees in attendance were: Director Brandon Clabes; Deputy Director/General Counsel Lori Carter; Assistant Director Brent Fairchild; Attorney Andrew Koester; Captain Erik Smoot; Captain Greg Bynum; Captain Kent James; Captain Michael Randol; Captain Scott Smith; Lieutenant Pedro Zardeneta; Lieutenant Ray Fells; Lieutenant TJ Green, Senior Agent Todd Anthony; Senior Agent Vanessa Blain; Senior Agent Kristen Wilson; Agent Tania Rembert; Agent Steve Lanier; Agent Doug Kimberlin; Chief Financial Officer Jennifer Treadwell; Chief Purchasing Officer Terry James; Licensing Supervisor Carla Clanton; Enforcement Liaison Kenna Nevez; Executive Secretary Shae Isaacs; Office Assistant Kimberly Yates; and Legal Intern Shayla Powers.

A roll call of the following ABLE Commissioners was announced: Vice Chairman Jonathan Brooks, Commissioner Andrew Revelis, Commissioner Keith Mitchell and Commissioner A. Ainslie Stanford II. A quorum was then established for the ABLE Commission meeting January 20, 2023.

Deputy Director Lori Carted acknowledged that the ABLE Commission is within compliance of the Open Meetings Act. A notice of the meeting was posted pursuant to the Oklahoma statute 25 O.S. §301-314 48 hours prior to the meeting.

Commissioner Mitchell made a motion to approve the minutes from the December 16, 2022, Commission meeting. Commissioner Revelis seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and recorded as follows:

Vice Chairman Jonathan Brooks – Yes
Commissioner Andrew Revelis – Yes
Commissioner Keith Mitchell – Yes
Commissioner A. Ainslie Stanford II – Yes

Executive Director Brandon Clabes recognized Senior Agents Todd Anthony and Pedro Zardeneta in recognition of their 10 years of service to the ABLE Commission and the State of Oklahoma.

Executive Director Clabes also recognized former ABLE Commissioner James Willyard for 4 years of service to the ABLE Commission and the State of Oklahoma.

Vice Chairman Jonathan Brooks moved to agenda Item #8, election of a Chairman. Commissioner Revelis made a motion to nominate Commissioner Brooks for Chairman. Commissioner Mitchell seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and recorded as follows:

Vice Chairman Jonathan Brooks – Yes
Commissioner Andrew Revelis – Yes
Commissioner Keith Mitchell – Yes
Commissioner A. Ainslie Stanford II – Yes

Vice Chairman Jonathan Brooks has been elected to Chairman.

Chairman Graves moved to Item #9, election of a Vice Chairman. Commissioner Mitchell made a motion to nominate Commissioner Revelis for Vice Chairman. Commissioner Stanford seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and recorded as follows:

Vice Chairman Jonathan Brooks – Yes
Commissioner Andrew Revelis – Yes
Commissioner Keith Mitchell – Yes
Commissioner A. Ainslie Stanford II – Yes

Commissioner Andrew Revelis has been elected to Vice Chairman.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORT FOR DECEMBER 2022:
Director Brandon Clabes provided the following information to the ABLE Commission:

· Director Clabes met with many different entities, committees and agencies including: Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigations (OSBI) Oklahoma Office of Management and Enterprise Services - Agency Business Services Director Melody Kellogg and Dana West; Oklahoma Sheriff’s Association Lobbyist Mike Maxwell; Senator Chuck Hall; Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater; former Lieutenant Governor and Chief Administrator for State Courts Jeri Askins; Council on Law Enforcement Education and Training Interim Director Preston Draper; former House Representative Lisa Billy; Tecumseh Police Chief J.R. Kidney; Oklahoma County District Judge Greg Ryan; Oklahoma Department of Health Representative Jesse Bridgeman; Senator Paul Rosino; Jeff and Kristy Murrow; Cabinet Secretary of Public Safety for the State of Oklahoma Tricia Everest; Oklahoma County District Judge Natalie Mai; Senator Roger Thompson; Senator Brent Howard; along with several constituents and concerned citizens of the public.
· The ABLE Commission agents will be ordering new uniforms to be recognized in the field. Chairman Brooks stated that he would like the uniforms to be presented to the Commission to ensure professional standards for officers.
· Director Clabes stated that the ABLE Commission Assistant Director and Captains will continue to meet and formulate on how to delegate, distribute and deploy manpower across the State of Oklahoma. Also, policy and procedures for the agency will be discussed. More information to come with both of those topics.
· Oklahoma Law Enforcement Telecommunications System capabilities is being expanded to every ABLE Commission Captain and the legal department. Previously, there were only 2 support staff representatives with the agency that had the clearance for criminal and background checks.
· The ABLE Commission is collaborating with Oklahoma Sheriffs Association lobbyist Mike Maxwell and Senator Chuck Hall on legislation to eliminate the requirement that Sheriffs must store property seized by ABLE during investigations.
· In an effort for the ABLE agents to have a more centralized law enforcement software, there has been discussion with OSBI to share their existing law enforcement report writing software called ACCIS (Association for County and City Information System).
· Director Clabes discussed the shared human resources and financial services with the ABLE Commission and OSBI.
· Executive Secretary Shae Isaacs recognized new hire employees to the ABLE Commission: Agents Steven Lanier (OKC District), Douglas Kimberlain (McAlester District), Destinee Lanier (Customer Service – Licensing Department), Shayla Long (Legal Department Intern) and 2 employees that have transitioned from temporary to permanent State employee positions, Rosemary Long (Legal Department) and Catherine Otey (Brand Registration).
· The next ABLE Commission meeting will be in 4 weeks on February 17, 2023.

- The Licensing Supervisor and Project Manager, Carla Clanton, presented the Accela IT update. Ms. Clanton stated that that the ABLE Commission met with the Accela MAS team on January 3, 2023. Ms. Clanton has presented to them the highest priority items to resolve and has closed one of those items thus far. Ms. Clanton has expressed concerns to the MAS team leader, David Evans, about upgrades requested for ABLE and asked to be more involved with the updates before it is implemented. She also requested for a Spanish option be added to the program. She will update the Commission with the future progress and when on-site training will take place. The latest count of registered ABLE licensed users that have registered in the new online system is 92,616.

The Enforcement Report was presented to the Commissioners:
- Assistant Director Fairchild’s report was previously supplied to the Commissioners with documentation regarding the entire ABLE Enforcement Division’s duties, completed inspections, compliance checks, citations, meetings, trainings and police assistance to other state agencies and businesses.
- Chairman Brooks inquired about his previous request for information regarding the distribution of agents across the state and how accessible they are to the ABLE licensed businesses. Captain Fairchild stated that he and the Captains are in the process of configuring the workload assessment and will provide an update as soon as possible.

Captain Erik Smoot also gave an update on the upcoming National Conference of State Liquor Administrators conference scheduled for June 11-14, 2023. The conference will be held at the Omni Oklahoma City Hotel.

Deputy Director/General Counsel Lori Carter presented the following legal report to the Commission:
Deputy Director Carter stated that she and the legal team are currently working on office policy and procedures for the agency and making sure that legal questions are answered consistently across the departments. She will also be interacting with the legislature on behalf of the ABLE Commission and will provide future reports. She will also be providing updates on House and Senate bills that may affect the agency when the legislative session starts on February 6, 2023.
ABLE Attorney Andrew Koester gave a brief synopsis of the civil and criminal prosecutions that the ABLE legal department is currently working on.

The ABLE Commission/OSBI Chief Financial Officer, Jennifer Treadwell, presented a PowerPoint presentation and covered the following topics: agency goals and key performance metrics, projects for fiscal year 2023-2024, savings & efficiencies, total historic actual expenditures, financial resource analysis, budget and supplemental request.

Chairman Brooks moved to Item #15, comments from the public.
- Matt Jett with Jett Distributing stated that he supports the budget request for ABLE in an effort to improve on customer service.
- Lauren Kidwell with Oklahoma Department of Mental Health stated that she also supports budget increase request and works directly with Captain Erik Smoot regarding tobacco Synar inspections and understands that more agents are needed.
- Colin Graham with Oklahoma Restaurant Association thanked the ABLE Commission for the meeting with industry members and the hard work of the agency.
- Dirk Van Deen with the Retail Liquor Association thanked Licensing Supervisor Carla Clanton and the licensing department for the posting of reports and encouraged lobbyists to support the ABLE Commission’s budget increase.

Chairman Brooks moved on to Item #16, Executive Session to discuss ABLE Personnel Action pursuant to 25 O.S. § 307 (B)(1). Commissioner Revelis made a motion to move into Executive Session. Commissioner Stanford seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and recorded as follows:

Chairman Jonathan Brooks – Yes
Vice Chairman Andrew Revelis – Yes
Commissioner Keith Mitchell – Yes
Commissioner A. Ainslie Stanford II – Yes

Chairman Brooks called the meeting to order and called for a motion to return from Executive Session. Commissioner Mitchell made the motion to return from Executive Session. Commissioner Revelis seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and recorded as follows:

Chairman Jonathan Brooks – Yes
Vice Chairman Andrew Revelis – Yes
Commissioner Keith Mitchell – Yes
Commissioner A. Ainslie Stanford II – Yes

No action was taken after Executive Session.

Commissioner Stanford made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Commissioner Revelis seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and recorded as follows:

Chairman Jonathan Brooks – Yes
Vice Chairman Andrew Revelis – Yes
Commissioner Keith Mitchell – Yes
Commissioner A. Ainslie Stanford II – Yes

The meeting was then adjourned.

Meeting minutes were signed by Jonathan Brooks, Chairman.

PDF Download | December 16, 2022 Meeting Minutes

MINUTES OF THE ABLE COMMISSION MEETING

The filing of the meeting and posting of the agenda were in accordance with the Oklahoma Open Meeting Act. Notice of the meeting was filed with the Secretary of State on October 20, 2021. The agenda was posted on December 14, 2022, on the front and back doors of the 50 Northeast 23^rd Street building in Oklahoma City, the door of the ABLE Commission’s Office Reception area, and the ABLE Commission website.
Chairman Willyard called the meeting to order at 10:00 a.m. at the office of the Alcoholic Beverage Laws Enforcement (ABLE) Commission at 50 Northeast 23^rd Street, Oklahoma City, OK 73105. A quorum was met with the presence of the following Commission members: James Willyard; Matthew Crook; Andrew Revelis; Keith Mitchell and A. Ainslie Stanford II. The others present were: Tricia Everest, Cabinet Secretary for the Department of Public Safety for the State of Oklahoma; J.B Jarboe, Southern Glazers Wine and Spirits; Jose Almanzar, Homeland; Edward Tuya, Oklahoma Department of Mental Health & Substance Abuse Services; Sidney Lee, Quorum Call; Justin Naifeh, Republic National Distributing Company; Collin Graham, Oklahoma Restaurant Association; Robert Jernigan and Dirk Van Veen, Retail Liquor Association of Oklahoma; Heidi Shadid and James Wilkins, LDF Sales and Distributing/Beer Distributors of Oklahoma; Randy Malone, Attorney; Terrin Tillman, ROCMND Youth Services; Samantha Guinn, Institute for Responsible Alcohol Policy; Spencer Guinn, Quinn Strategies; Lauren Kidwell, Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services; Brett Robinson and April Jolley, Beer Distributors of Oklahoma; Donald Brain; Handcrafted Wines; Todd Dayer, Armanda Distributing; Ellen Spiropoulous, Phillips Murrah; Nathan Huddleston, Pope Distributing/ Beer Distributors of Oklahoma; Gordon Green, Capital Distributing/ Beer Distributors of Oklahoma; Mike Headding, Fisher59/ Beer Distributors of Oklahoma; Matt Jett, Jett Distributing/ Beer Distributors of Oklahoma; Kevin Hitchcock, Hitchcock Distributing; Lori Carter, First Assistant for the Attorney General of the State of Oklahoma; and Eddie Carter, Dillard’s. The following ABLE Commission employees attended the meeting: Director Brandon Clabes; Attorney Andrew Koester; Captain Erik Smoot; Captain Greg Bynum; Captain Kent James; Captain Michael Randol; Lieutenant Ray Fells; Senior Agent Vanessa Blain; Enforcement Liaison Kenna Nevez; Executive Secretary Shae Isaacs; and Office Assistant Kimberly Yates.

Director Brandon Clabes introduced Assistant Attorney General for the State of Oklahoma, Thomas Schneider. Mr. Schneider presented to the Commission an informational PowerPoint presentation on the rules and regulations of the Open Meetings Act for the State of Oklahoma.

Commissioner Revelis made a motion to approve the minutes from the November 18, 2022, Commission meeting. Commissioner Stanford seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and recorded as follows:

Chairman James Willyard – Yes
Commissioner Matthew Crook – Yes
Commissioner Andrew Revelis – Yes
Commissioner Keith Mitchell – Yes
Commissioner A. Ainslie Stanford II – Yes

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORT:
Director Brandon Clabes provided the following information to the ABLE Commission:

· This month, Director Clabes featured ABLE Commission employee Kimberly Yates for her exceptional work with the agency. Ms. Yates is an administrative assistant in the legal department for ABLE and her biography was read. She was acknowledged for her extraordinary work ethic and assistance with her legal duties.
· Director Clabes met with many different entities, committees and agencies including: Senator Roger Thompson, Cabinet Secretary of Public Safety for the State of Oklahoma Tricia Everest, Department of Public Safety, Oklahoma State Senate, Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control, Oklahoma City YWCA, Oklahoma Office of Management and Enterprise Services, Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Association, Healthy Minds Policy Initiative, Council on Law Enforcement Education and Training, International Refugee Assistance Program, Texas Alcohol Beverage Commission, Rose State College Regents meeting, and executives with Accela.
· Commissioner Brooks previously recommended that that the ABLE Commission may need to educate the Oklahoma Sheriff’s Association and Oklahoma Association of Chief of Police on documenting and/or forwarding the information to ABLE on any kind of alcohol replated violations. Legal counsel Andrew Koester is drafting a fact sheet to supply to those entities and more information will be supplied at a later time.
· Director Clabes started discussed the shared services with the ABLE Commission and Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigations.
· A conditional letter of employment was offered to the First Assistant for the Attorney General, Lori Carter, for the ABLE Commission Deputy Director/General Counsel position. If accepted, she will start on January 9, 2023.
· Director Clabes met with the ABLE Commission Chief Financial Officer, Jennifer Treadwell, and ABLE Legal Counsel, Andrew Koester, to discuss and resolve the issues for enabling the ordinance cities in Oklahoma who have not been reimbursed by the ABLE Commission.
· Director Clabes states that with the next calendar year, he will be focusing on training for ABLE staff and making sure that they have the most up-to-date information.
· Director Clabes continued to attend meetings with alcohol industry leaders, heads of state agencies, ABLE Commission staff and members of the public.
· The next meeting of the ABLE Commission will be in 4 weeks on Friday, January 20, 2023 at 10:00am.

- The Licensing Supervisor and Project Manager, Carla Clanton, presented the Accela IT update. Ms. Clanton stated that that the ABLE Commission has come to an agreement with Accela for managed services in the amount of $200,00. This agreement will contribute to resolving the issues with the new licensing system. Ms. Clanton also stated that Director Clabes’ name and signature has been updated on the report for all of the new licenses that are issued, and renewal notices are being sent out to businesses to renew online. The latest count of registered ABLE licensed users that has registered in the new online system is 86,613.

- The following ABLE Commission Captains presented an update of their respective departments and tasks that have been completed since the last Commission meeting: Captain Kent James, Tulsa district; Captain Michael Randol, McAlester district; Captain Scott Smith, Oklahoma City district; Captain Erik Smoot, Alcohol and Tobacco Training Unit; and Captain Greg Bynum, Trade Practices Unit.
Captain Erik Smoot gave an update on the upcoming National Conference of State Liquor Administrators conference scheduled for June 11-14, 2023. The conference will be held at the Omni Oklahoma City Hotel.

ABLE Attorney Andrew Koester presented the following legal report to the Commission:
Mr. Koester provided more insight into the agreement between ABLE and Accela with the Managed Application Services contract. The legal department continues to work with ABLE enforcement in an effort to resolve the issues with complaints about businesses selling product below the 6% markup price and inducements. He also gave an overview of the general practices of the legal department regarding violations & citations that have been issued.

The ABLE Commission Chief Financial Officer, Jennifer Treadwell, presented a PowerPoint presentation and covered the following topics: payroll expenditures as of 11/30/2022, online refunds issued for November 2022 and the distribution of administrative fines to municipalities.

Chairman Willyard moved to Item #11, comments from the public.
- Ellen Spiropoulous with Phillips Murrah made a comment regarding the noticed improvement to the Accela licensing system.
- Dirk Van Veen with the Retail Liquor Association of Oklahoma commented regarding the positive assistance with issues that are being addressed by the ABLE Commission.

Chairman Willyard moved on to Item #12, Executive Session to discuss ABLE Personnel Action pursuant to 25 O.S. § 307 (B)(1). Commissioner Revelis made a motion to move into Executive Session. Commissioner Stanford seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and recorded as follows:

Chairman James Willyard – Yes
Commissioner Matthew Crook – Yes
Commissioner Andrew Revelis – Yes
Commissioner Keith Mitchell – Yes
Commissioner A. Ainslie Stanford II – Yes

Chairman Willyard called the meeting to order and called for a motion to return from Executive Session. Commissioner Mitchell made the motion to return from Executive Session. Commissioner Crook seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and recorded as follows:

Chairman James Willyard – Yes
Commissioner Matthew Crook – Yes
Commissioner Andrew Revelis – Yes
Commissioner Keith Mitchell – Yes
Commissioner A. Ainslie Stanford II – Yes

No action was taken during Executive Session.

Commissioner Revelis made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Commissioner Stanford seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and recorded as follows:

Chairman James Willyard – Yes
Commissioner Matthew Crook – Yes
Commissioner Andrew Revelis – Yes
Commissioner Keith Mitchell – Yes
Commissioner A. Ainslie Stanford II – Yes

The meeting was then adjourned.

Meeting minutes were signed by Jonathan Brooks, Vice Chairman.

PDF Download | November 18, 2022 Meeting Minutes

MINUTES OF THE ABLE COMMISSION MEETING

The filing of the meeting and posting of the agenda were in accordance with the Oklahoma Open Meeting Act. Notice of the meeting was filed with the Secretary of State on October 20, 2021. The agenda was posted on November 16, 2022, on the front and back doors of the 50 Northeast 23^rd Street building in Oklahoma City, the door of the ABLE Commission’s Office Reception area, and the ABLE Commission website.
Vice Chairman Brooks called the meeting to order at 10:00 a.m. at the office of the Alcoholic Beverage Laws Enforcement (ABLE) Commission at 50 Northeast 23^rd Street, Oklahoma City, OK 73105. A quorum was met with the presence of the following Commission members: Jonathan Brooks; Robert “Bob” Usry; Andrew Revelis; and A. Ainslie Stanford II. The others present were: Tricia Everest, Cabinet Secretary for the Department of Public Safety for the State of Oklahoma; J.B Jarboe, Southern Glazers Wine and Spirits; Jose Almanzar, Homeland; Edward Tuya, Oklahoma Department of Mental Health & Substance Abuse Services; Sidney Lee, Quorum Call; Justin Naifeh, Republic National Distributing Company; Collin Graham, Oklahoma Restaurant Association; Robert Jernigan and Dirk Van Veen, Retail Liquor Association of Oklahoma; Heidi Shadid, LDF Sales and Distributing; Randy Malone, Attorney; Terrin Tillman, ROCMND Youth Services; Samantha Guinn, Institute for Responsible Alcohol Policy; and Spencer Guinn, Quinn Strategies. The following ABLE Commission employees attended the meeting: Director Brandon Clabes; Assistant Director Brent Fairchild; Attorney Andrew Koester; Captain Erik Smoot; Captain Greg Bynum; Captain Kent James; Captain Michael Randol; Senior Agent Kristen Wilson; Enforcement Liaison Kenna Nevez; Accountant Terry James; Executive Secretary Shae Isaacs; and Office Assistant Kimberly Yates.

Commissioner Revelis made a motion to approve the minutes from the October 21, 2022, Commission meeting. Commissioner Usry seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and recorded as follows:

Vice Chairman Jonathan Brooks – Yes
Commissioner Robert “Bob” Usry – Yes
Commissioner Andrew Revelis – Yes
Commissioner A. Ainslie Stanford II – Yes

The Commission viewed a media video from KFOR News Channel 4 regarding the recent ABLE investigation and confiscation of over 11,000 alcoholic beverages from a Guthrie business. The business was not properly licensed and has obtained a new business owner without notifying the ABLE Commission.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORT:
- Director Brandon Clabes provided the following information to the ABLE Commission:

· This month, Director Clabes featured ABLE Commission employee Terry James for his exceptional work with the agency. Mr. James is an accountant with ABLE and his biography was read. He was acknowledged for his pivotal part in the finance department.
· Director Clabes met with many different entities, committees and agencies including: Oklahoma State Senate, Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control, Oklahoma Office of Management and Enterprise Services, Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, Oklahoma Sheriff’s Association, LDF Wholesale Beverage Distributer, Rose State College Regents meeting and Regents Education Program, Capital Distributers, and executives with Accela.
· There have been 2 ABLE agent positions that have been filled. Lieutenant Doug Kimberlain, from Oklahoma City Police Department will start January 3, 2023 and Steve Lanier from Council on Law Enforcement Education and Training (CLEET) will start December 1, 2022.
· The ABLE Commission Deputy Director position that was previously announced as being filled, is now vacant again and accepting applications. Gayland Geiger has declined the offer to be the latest ABLE Deputy Director/General Counsel.
· House bill 3315 went into effect on November 1 to modify the penalties for underage tobacco use. Director Clabes met with Captain Smoot on the education programs that are associated with the statue.
· Director Clabes has requested an unclassified position description questionnaire to be completed by ABLE personnel staff. The information will be sent back to Human Capital Management/OMES to create up-to-date job descriptions and pay bands for future reference for ABLE employees. Also, the Performance Management Process (PMP) evaluations are going to be process soon for every ABLE employee. Ms. Kenna Nevez will be taking the lead on both of those projects.
· Director Clabes states that he is in conversation with Captain Erik Smoot & Captain Greg Bynum regarding educating large retail stores, wholesalers, distributers, retailers and licensees on trade practice information.
· Director Clabes continued to attend meetings with alcohol industry leaders, heads of state agencies, and members of the public.
· The next meeting of the ABLE Commission will be in 4 weeks on Friday, December 16, 2022, at 10:00am.

- The Licensing Supervisor and Project Manager, Carla Clanton, presented the Accela IT update. Ms. Clanton stated that she has been in communication with Accela account executive, Phil Velardi, regarding the MAS contract and updating the online ABLE licenses to reflect the new Director’s name and signature, Brandon Clabes. The correct information in expected to be updated by December 2022. The Accela MAS contract has been accepted with stipulations of additional training for ABLE employees and other needs. The latest count of registered ABLE licensed users that has registered in the new online system is 80,668.

Assistant Director Brent Fairchild presented the following Enforcement Report to the Commissioners:
- Assistant Director Fairchild supplied the Commissioners with documentation regarding the entire ABLE Enforcement Division’s duties, completed inspections, compliance checks, citations, meetings, trainings and police assistance to other state agencies and businesses.
- The following ABLE Commission Captains and Senior Agent presented an update of their respective departments and tasks that have been completed since the last Commission meeting: Captain Kent James, Tulsa district; Captain Michael Randol, McAlester district; Captain Scott Smith, Oklahoma City district; Captain Erik Smoot, Alcohol and Tobacco Training Unit; and Captain Greg Bynum, Trade Practices Unit.

Captain Erik Smoot gave an update on the upcoming National Conference of State Liquor Administrators conference scheduled for June 11-14, 2023. The conference will be held at the Onmi Oklahoma City Hotel.

The new ABLE Commission Chief Financial Officer, Jennifer Treadwell, stated that the budget for the ABLE Commission has been completed and submitted. The PowerPoint presentation covered the following topics: payroll expenditures by fund, surcharges and governance funds history, income from surcharges, FY2023 to FY2024 budget comparison and online refunds issued for October 2022.

ABLE Attorney Andrew Koester presented the following legal report to the Commission:
Mr. Koester provided more insight into the negotiations between ABLE and Accela with the MAS contract. Accela executives have denied the counteroffer that the ABLE Commission previously submitted. A follow-up counteroffer has been submitted and accepted by Accela. The details of the offer will be presented at a later time. He also gave an overview of the general practices of the legal department regarding violations & citations that have been issued.

Vice Chairman Brooks moved to Item #12, comments from the public.
- Dirk Van Veen, Retail Liquor Association of Oklahoma inquired about price postings possibly being added to the ABLE website, three-tier alcohol system and thanked Carla Clanton for her help with the Accela licensing system.

Vice Chairman Brooks moved on to Item #11, Executive Session to discuss ABLE Personnel Action pursuant to 25 O.S. § 307 (B)(1). Commissioner Revelis made a motion to move into Executive Session. Commissioner Usry seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and recorded as follows:

Vice Chairman Jonathan Brooks – Yes
Commissioner Robert “Bob” Usry – Yes
Commissioner Andrew Revelis – Yes
Commissioner A. Ainslie Stanford II – Yes

Vice Chairman Brooks called the meeting to order and called for a motion to return from Executive Session. Commissioner Revelis made the motion to return from Executive Session. Commissioner Stanford seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and recorded as follows:

Vice Chairman Jonathan Brooks – Yes
Commissioner Robert “Bob” Usry – Yes
Commissioner Andrew Revelis – Yes
Commissioner A. Ainslie Stanford II – Yes

No action was taken during Executive Session.

Commissioner Revelis made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Commissioner Stanford seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and recorded as follows:

Vice Chairman Jonathan Brooks – Yes
Commissioner Robert “Bob” Usry – Yes
Commissioner Andrew Revelis – Yes
Commissioner A. Ainslie Stanford II – Yes

The meeting was then adjourned.

Meeting minutes were signed by James Willyard, Chairman.

PDF Download | October 21, 2022 Meeting Minutes

MINUTES OF THE ABLE COMMISSION MEETING

The filing of the meeting and posting of the agenda were in accordance with the Oklahoma Open Meeting Act. Notice of the meeting was filed with the Secretary of State on October 20, 2021. The agenda was posted on October 19, 2022, on the front and back doors of the 50 Northeast 23rd Street building in Oklahoma City, the door of the ABLE Commission’s Office Reception area, and the ABLE Commission website.
Chairman Willyard called the meeting to order at 10:00 a.m. at the office of the Alcoholic Beverage Laws Enforcement (ABLE) Commission at 50 Northeast 23rd Street, Oklahoma City, OK 73105. A quorum was met with the presence of the following Commission members: James Willyard; Jonathan Brooks; Robert “Bob” Usry; Keith Mitchell; and A. Ainslie Stanford II. The others present were: Tricia Everest, Cabinet Secretary for the Department of Public Safety for the State of Oklahoma; J.B Jarboe, Southern Glazers Wine and Spirits; Jose Almanzar, Homeland; Edward Tuya, Oklahoma Department of Mental Health & Substance Abuse Services; Sidney Lee, Quorum Call; Justin Naifeh, Republic National Distributing Company; Ellen Spiropoulos, Philips Murrah P.C.; Robert Jernigan and Dirk Van Veen, Retail Liquor Association of Oklahoma; Cody Smith, LegisOK; Heidi Shadid, LDF Sales and Distributing; Samantha Guinn, Institute for Responsible Alcohol Policy; Randy Malone, Attorney; and Jennifer Treadwell, TSET. The following ABLE Commission employees attended the meeting: Director Brandon Clabes; Assistant Director Brent Fairchild; Attorney Andrew Koester; Captain Erik Smoot; Captain Greg Bynum; Captain Kent James; Captain Michael Randol; Senior Agent Kristen Wilson; Enforcement Liaison Kenna Nevez; Accountant Terry James; Executive Secretary Shae Isaacs; and Office Assistant Kimberly Yates.

Commissioner Usry made a motion to approve the minutes from the September 16, 2022, Commission meeting. Commissioner Revelis seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and recorded as follows:

Chairman James Willyard – Yes
Commissioner Jonathan Brooks – Yes
Commissioner Robert “Bob” Usry – Yes
Commissioner Keith Mitchell – Yes
Commissioner A. Ainslie Stanford II – Yes

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORT:
- Director Clabes greeted the Commission in his first meeting as the ABLE Commission’s Executive Director. He presented the following information:

· Director Clabes started off his first meeting with stating that he will feature an ABLE Commission employee every month that has proven to be exceptional at their job and an asset to the agency. The first individual that he recognized is the Director’s Executive Secretary, Shae Isaacs. Her bio was read to Commission and she was acknowledged for her hard work, especially during the transition to the new Director.
· Before his official start date of October 1, 2022, Director Clabes had an informational meeting with Director Keith Burt and ABLE staff. He also met with leaders in the alcohol industry along with other state agency directors and leaders.
· October 3, 2022 was Director Clabes official first day in the ABLE office and he immediately began meeting with ABLE staff to discuss the agency’s organization, budget, job openings, hours of work and operation, policy, procedures, focus on customer service, the responsibilities of each department and relay to the agency about his management style and transition.
· There are 2 major ABLE positions that have been filled: Gayland Geiger – Deputy Director with a start date of 12/01/2022; Jennifer Treadwell – Chief Financial Officer with a start date of 11/01/2022.
· Director Clabes met with representatives from the Oklahoma Retail Liquor Association regarding an ongoing issue with a business that is suspected to be illegally marking-down prices below the allowed amount for alcoholic products. The business in question has been contacted in an effort to start the process to come to a resolution. An update will be supplied at a later time.
· Director Clabes met with Ashlee Coleman, Chief Financial Officer for the Department of Corrections and James Kentopp, Budget Analyst for the State of Oklahoma. They assisted with developing the baseline budget materials for the ABLE Commission. The deadline for the ABLE budget submission to the State of Oklahoma has been extended to November 4, 2022. A later meeting was also held with Jennifer Treadwell, the newly hired ABLE Chief Financial Officer, in an effort to complete ABLE’s budget.
· Director Clabes and ABLE Attorney Andrew Koester attended an interim study with Senator Coleman and Senator Leewright at the Capitol regarding issues with direct shipping of alcoholic beverages.
· The ABLE Commission is working with the Oklahoma Municipal League regarding the best approach in reimbursing eight cities a percentage of their tobacco fines. These cities have municipal ordinances that mirror the state statue regarding minors that are in possession of tobacco.
· Captain Erik Smoot arranged for Laser Training for all commissioned personnel per Governor Stitt’s executive order.
· Director Clabes will be requesting an audit of ABLE’s job descriptions and pay bands to ensure that the ABLE Commission is consistent with other state agencies regarding to duties and compensation.
· Director Clabes continued to attend meetings with alcohol industry leaders, heads of state agencies, and gave media interviews regarding ABLE involvement in a recent investigation of a business selling alcohol without a valid ABLE license.
· The next meeting of the ABLE Commission will be in 4 weeks on Friday, November 18, 2022, at 10:00am.

- Executive Secretary Shae Isaacs presented the Accela IT update on behalf of the Licensing Supervisor, Carla Clanton, in her absence. Ms. Isaacs stated that ABLE Attorney Andrew Koester submitted a counteroffer to Accela on October 6, 2022, in the amount of $100,000 for the MAS contract. The status of that counteroffer with be presented at the next Commission meeting. ABLE is hoping to obtain the MAS contract for less than the asking price of $200,000 to be able to have the outstanding online licensing issues repaired as well as enhancements and reports developed for the ABLE finance and enforcement divisions.

Assistant Director Brent Fairchild presented the following Enforcement Report to the Commissioners:
- The following ABLE Commission Captains and Senior Agent presented an update of their respective departments and tasks that have been completed since the last Commission meeting: Captain Kent James, Tulsa district; Captain Michael Randol, McAlester district; Senior Agent Kristen Wilson, Oklahoma City district; Captain Erik Smoot, Alcohol and Tobacco Training Unit; and Captain Greg Bynum, Trade Practices Unit.
- Assistant Director Fairchild supplied the Commissioners with documentation regarding the entire ABLE Enforcement Division’s duties, completed inspections, compliance checks, citations, meetings, trainings and police assistance to other state agencies and businesses.

Executive Brandon Clabes stated that the budget report will be presented with the next ABLE Commission meeting after the new CFO, Jennifer Treadwell, has started.

ABLE Attorney Andrew Koester presented the following legal report to the Commission:
Mr. Koester provided more insight into the negotiations between ABLE and Accela with the MAS contract and also the retail distributer issue. He also informed the Commission regarding an issue that arose with Brand Registration and presented a resolution. More information with be provided with a later Commission meeting. He gave an overview of the general practices of the legal department regarding violations & citations that have been issued.

Chairman Willyard moved to Item #10, comments from the public.
- Jose Almazar with Homeland welcomed the new Executive Director and offered his expertise and assistance from the grocery store business and to help with any information that may been needed. He also inquired about the `distributers costs as related to the grocery store chains.
- J.B Jarboe with Southern Glazers Wine and Spirits welcomed Director Clabes to the ABLE Commission and also thanked him for his visit to his facility in Tulsa.
- Dirk Van Veen, Retail Liquor Association of Oklahoma welcomed the new Executive Director and thanked him and the entire Commission for all of the information relayed during the meeting.
- Edward Tuya with the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health & Substance Abuse Services also welcomed Director Clabes and inquired about the review of the administrative law penalty schedule.

Commissioner Mitchell made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Commissioner Brooks seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and recorded as follows:

Chairman James Willyard – Yes
Commissioner Jonathan Brooks – Yes
Commissioner Robert “Bob” Usry – Yes
Commissioner Keith Mitchell – Yes
Commissioner A. Ainslie Stanford II – Yes

The meeting was then adjourned.

Meeting minutes were signed by Jonathan Brooks, Vice Chairman.

Last Modified on Feb 22, 2023