Jefferson County Hires Its First Chief Financial Officer

BRADENTON, Fla. — After a more than two-year search, Jefferson County, Ala., has hired its first chief financial ­officer.

County Commission President Bettye Fine Collins announced yesterday that the new $180,000-a-year position has been filled by Jeff T. Hager. He is a resident of Hoover, which lies in Jefferson and Shelby counties. Hager, who started on Monday, could not be reached for comment.

Until last week, he was CFO for Montgomery, Ala.-based Kelly Aerospace Inc., an operator at the firm said. Kelly sells new and refurbished aircraft parts, according to its website. Hager worked there for nearly six years.

According to information provided by Collins office, Hager has a bachelor’s degree as a master of accountancy and a certified public accountant merit award from the University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa.

Prior to working at Kelly, Hager was at Southern Comfort Conversions Inc. from 1998 until 2004, a Trussville, Ala., company specializing in customized vehicles. From 1991 until 1998, he worked at Till, Hester, Eyer & Brown PC, a CPA firm in Birmingham.

Hagar’s experience includes managing complex financial systems, long-range financial planning, work with industrial development bonds, developing financial management goals and objectives of a company or government organization, audit oversight, and analyzing derivatives.

Hagar begins as CFO as the county’s financial crisis remains unresolved, including nearly $3.2 billion of failed variable-and auction-rate sewer debt that has not been restructured for nearly three years and could bankrupt the county.

“There is a lot of debt and a need to service that debt and make sure the revenues are there to support the operations of the county,” Hager told the local ABC affiliate yesterday.

The county personnel board in September 2008 approved creating the CFO post. Collins said then that with a $600 million budget and about $4 billion in debt “it’s high time we do like the corporate sector and get a chief financial officer.”

Since June 2008, the interim finance director has been Travis Hulsey, who also is the county’s revenue director. Hulsey took over the position after Danny Panos was demoted to assistant finance director. Panos had been hired as finance director in October 2007 after long time finance director Steve Sayler resigned.

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Alabama
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