New finance director takes over at Gila County

Gila County welcomed its new Finance Director James Menlove on Oct. 31. District One Supervisor Tommie Martin says she was aware of Menlove’s stellar reputation statewide long before he arrived at Gila County. “I’m just so pleased we were able to bring him on board,” says Martin.

Menlove comes to Gila County with over twelve years of experience as finance director at neighboring Navajo County. When he took the reins at Navajo County, it was widely considered to be “unauditable.” Under his leadership it became an award-winning model for government finance.

For seven consecutive years Menlove received the Government Finance Officers Association’s (GFOA) Distinguished Budget Presentation Award. He took home the GFOA’s Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting for five consecutive years. He also has valuable experience on the Public Safety Personnel Retirement System (PSPRS) Reform Task Force that developed the “yardstick” tool, which was used by the state legislature to develop PSPRS reforms that were approved statewide in May 2016. Menlove served two terms as president of the Government Finance Officers Association of Arizona.

Before his time at Navajo County, Menlove served as the comptroller for Mohave County Community College District, an accountant for the City of Phoenix, and a Senior Auditor at the Arizona Office of the Auditor General. Menlove holds a BS in Accounting and a Certificate of Public Management, both from ASU.

“I’m just so thrilled to be here,” says Menlove. “There are so many good people at Gila County.”

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