To: Board of Supervisors
From: Sheriff
Agenda Section: Consent
Vote Requirement: Majority
SUBJECT:
title
Exception to Hiring Freeze for Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) Legal Office Services Supervisor
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RECOMMENDATION(S):
Recommendation
That the Board of Supervisors:
1. Approve an exception to the hiring freeze for 1.0 FTE Legal Office Services Supervisor (Class 0408) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2024-25.
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STRATEGIC PLAN:
This action supports the following areas of your Board’s Strategic Plan.
Area of Focus: Core Services/Other
Strategic Plan Category: 3003 - Enhance employee recruitment and retention
DISCUSSION:
On June 4, 2024, your Board approved a hiring freeze for FY2024-25 for any budget unit that was granted an Additional Request for General Fund Allocation (ARGFA). HCSO’s budget 1100-221 Sheriff Operations received an ARGFA and therefore is subject to the hiring freeze.
Due to budget concerns, HCSO has deallocated 37 positions department wide over the last 2 budget cycles. HCSO has also reorganized positions to reduce or consolidate where feasible.
As of December 9, 2024, the Legal Office Services (“LOS”) Supervisor in the Records/Civil Division has promoted to Program Coordinator leaving a critical vacancy in the Records/Civil Division. In addition to providing supervisory support to the two divisions, the LOS Supervisor assists with covering the front desk during staff lunches and breaks and has several reporting/auditing responsibilities. This includes CJIS, Stop Data, NIBRS/CIBRS reporting for records and auditing and reconciling the civil accounts.
Although HCSO has reduced its public hours on Fridays, the efficiency gained by that closure is not enough to reduce an FTE in these divisions. HCSO has evaluated its civilian staffing and further reductions to the Records/Civil Division are not possible without further reduction in services to the public. For this reason, HCSO is requesting an exception to the hiring freeze to recruit a Legal Office Services Supervisor to avoid reduction of services to the public and to ensure proper supervision of the divisions.
Should your Board not approve this exception to the hiring freeze for 1.0 FTE Legal Office Services Supervisor, then the divisions would be lacking the necessary supervision needed. In order to maintain day-to-day tasks and reporting, it would be necessary to close the Garberville or McKinleyville Station to the public and move that Administrative Secretary to the Records Division at Main Station at the Courthouse to support that busy location. The Garberville Station is the least busy station in terms of the public coming to the office for assistance, however it is also the only station in Southern Humboldt. Closing the Garberville Station to the public would mean residents would have to travel to Eureka for records services. McKinleyville Station is busier but is closer to the HCSO Main Station. Neither alternative is ideal. Should your Board not approve this exception to the hiring freeze, then staff seek your direction as to which outstation to close to the public in order to support Main Station.
SOURCE OF FUNDING:
General Fund (1100)
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
Should your Board approve the exception to the hiring freeze, there would be no negative financial impact in FY 2024-25 as the position that HCSO is requesting a hiring freeze exception was funded in this fiscal year at a Step A. Should your Board not approve the exception and effectively freeze this 1.0 FTE Legal Office Services Supervisor position, it would result in a cost savings of $88,935 annually.
STAFFING IMPACT:
There is no negative staff impact for approving this action. HCSO is not requesting any additional positions. Should your Board not approve this action, then it would result in 1.0 FTE Administrative Secretary from either Garberville or McKinleyville being relocated to Eureka. There would also be a negative impact for the staff of the two divisions with reduced supervisor support.
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
None
ALTERNATIVES TO STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS:
Your Board could deny this request for an exception to the hiring freeze for the 1.0 FTE Legal Office Services Supervisor position. However, this is not recommended as it would result in closing either the Garberville Station or McKinleyville Station to the public and relocate that Administrative Secretary to the Main Station at the Courthouse in Eureka. It would also result in a reduction of supervisory support to the Records and Civil divisions.
ATTACHMENTS:
None
PREVIOUS ACTION/REFERRAL:
Meeting of: June 4, 2024
File No.: 24-902