09-25-2000 - Laserfiche WebLink

Commission Minutes-September 25, 2000 2200 Information Services An amount of $6,500 was added to the budget for the commission automation project. State's Attorney An amount of $400 was deducted in office equipment. Sheriffs Department Staff changes were discussed with Sheriff Don Rudnick, Chief Deputy Jim Thoreson and Captain Glenn Ellingsberg. A new position, Case Aide B23, was added in the support division, and Mr. Thoreson said this position will do the background work of trying to locate people who have outstanding arrest warrants against them. He said there are 3,500 active arrest warrants at this time, and that number keeps increasing by about 150 each year. Another new position is budgeted for a Sergeant in the warrants division, and Mr. Thoreson said the department could promote a current employee to supervise and still serve warrants, at a cost of $7,000 more, instead of hiring a new Sergeant position. It was agreeable to deduct $39,000 from the budget for this item. The next items discussed were vehicle purchases in the Sheriff's Department, and Commissioners were in agreement to leave five vehicles in the budget rather than reducing the budget in this area and being forced to replace a higher number in a future year. Mr. Thoreson said he is unable to obtain a donated vehicle instead of the used ambulance for the bomb squad. The topic of changing overtime rules for law enforcement was discussed at great length. The deputies are requesting overtime pay after 160 hours instead of the current policy of overtime after 171 hours, which is allowed for peace officers under the Fair Labor Standards Act. Other county employees who work overtime receive payment at the rate of time and one-half after working 40 hours in one week, however, law enforcement is paid on a 28-day cycle. Mr. Thoreson said the Cass County Sheriff's Department is the only law enforcement agency in the area that requires deputies to work 171 hours before getting paid overtime, and he said the deputies want to be treated the same as other county employees. Mrs. Schneider said she could not support the request at this time and requested additional information from the deputies in order to become better educated on this topic. Mr. Thoreson was in agreement to delay this until the following budget year, however, Mrs. Quick suggested budgeting an additional $15,000 for overtime to allow some flexibility in next year's budget. It was then suggested that the overtime issue be presented to the Personnel Overview Committee. Bonnie Johnson will survey area law enforcement agencies to ask about their policies on paying overtime. Mr. Meyer suggested that the budget item for creating a Senior Deputy pay grade also be presented to the Personnel Overview Committee. The Board took a 10-minute recess at 5:00 PM and then reconvened with all members present. Jail The contract estimate for jail nursing services was decreased by $35,532, and computer replacement was deleted in the amount of $2,000. Emergency Services Upon reconvening, the Board reviewed the request of Glenn Ellingsberg, Emergency Manager, to hire a new Emergency Manager in the B32 pay grade because he is not able to continue