JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – In a letter to Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry, council members requested the mayor direct his deputy chief administrative officer to testify under oath about her role in negotiating the sale of JEA or remove her from her position.

The formal request comes after Deputy Chief Administrative Officer Stephanie Burch declined to be interviewed unless the interview was not under oath, according to the chair of the Special Investigatory Committee on JEA.

Burch was the lead negotiator in closed meetings between JEA leaders and companies that wanted to buy the utility.

The mayor has said publicly his office would comply with any requests related to investigating JEA, but Burch appears to be the first member of his team who has declined to tell the council what she knows.

“I want this to be clear because I find this incredibly frustrating and disappointing,” said Jacksonville City Councilman Rory Diamond, a former federal prosecutor who is the chair of the Special Investigatory Committee on JEA. “Even though she collects a paycheck from the taxpayers, the people of Jacksonville, she has said no. I personally find that totally unacceptable. I think her role requires her to comply with this council and with our committee.”

In the letter to the mayor’s office, Diamond wrote: “We recognize that Ms. Burch has responsibilities with respect to the COVID-19 emergency, but we are confident that our special counsel can make arrangements to conduct the interview of Ms. Burch that will not interfere with her other duties.”

READ | Special Investigatory Committee on JEA chair’s letter to Mayor Curry

In the letter, the committee requests the mayor respond by close of business on Thursday.