Brentwood City Manager Placed on Paid Administrative Leave

by CC News 06/09/2026

written by CC News 06/09/2026

On Tuesday, the Brentwood City Council voted 4-0 to place City Manager G. Harold Duffey on paid administrative leave.

The move comes weeks after text messages were released out of the city of Oakland involving Duffey and then Oakland City Administrator Jestin Johnson who has since resigned. During public comments, at the last council meeting, staff expressed issues with Duffey, including gender-based discrimination.

Mayor Susannah Meyer read the following statement:

“Tonight, the City Council voted 4-0 to place the city manager on paid administrative leave effective immediately. On motion by councilmember Maloney and seconded by councilman Oerlemans. The vote was as follows:

- Mayor Meyer – Yes
- Vice Mayor Pierson – Abstained
- Councilperson Maloney – Yes
- Councilmember Mendoza – Yes
- Councilmember Oerlemans – Yes.

I want to be clear that administrative leave is not a final determination of any matter. I know residents may have questions and I understand the desire for transparency. This is a personnel matter and there are legal, privacy and due process limits on what the city can publicly discuss at this time. Our responsibility now is to preserve the integrity of the process, ensure continuity in city operations and continue delivering the services that residents rely on everyday. In the interim, city operations will continue under the leadership of the city’s executive team and department heads. The council has confidence in our city staff. We appreciate the city’s engagements and patience. We will share additional information when it is appropriate and legally permissible.”

Back in October, the council voted to hire Duffey, even with concerns raised by the public and reports out of the City of Oakland.

At the press conference, Meyer stated they had 60+ applicants for the city manager position which resulted in “12 strong candidates” which then turned into a supplemental questionnaire and phone interviews. Of those, 9 candidates were recommended for closed session review which resulted in 6 candidates in the first round of interviews, followed by 3 candidates brought back for a second interview. The council ultimately selected Duffey as the candidate.

With the approval, Duffey is hired with a salary of $289,900. With salary and benefits, his packages is $417,175. This includes:

Base salary of $304,515 annually
Annual performance evaluations, as well as an initial six month performance evaluation
Paid Time Off and Sick Leave in amounts equivalent to those accrued by Department Directors
Vacation Leave to accrue at a rate of 192 hours per year (16 hours/month)
Eligibility to participate in the City’s 457 deferred compensation plan
Provisions governing termination with or without cause
City Manager Agreement — click here

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