To: Board of Supervisors
From: Sheriff
Agenda Section: Consent
Vote Requirement: Majority
SUBJECT:
title
Approval of an Exception to the Hiring Freeze to Hire 1.0 Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) for the Sheriff’s Business Office
end
RECOMMENDATION(S):
Recommendation
That the Board of Supervisors:
1. Approve an exception to the hiring freeze for 1.0 FTE Senior Fiscal Assistant (Class 0124) for fiscal year (FY) 2024-25.
Body
STRATEGIC PLAN:
This action supports the following areas of your Board’s Strategic Plan.
Area of Focus: Core Services/Other
Strategic Plan Category: 9999 - Core Services/Other
DISCUSSION:
The Humboldt County Sheriff’s (HCSO) Business Office is responsible for all accounts payable, accounts receivable, personnel action forms, time & attendance payroll processing, false alarm billing and collection, parking ticket collection, abandoned vehicle abatement tracking and reporting to the state, supply ordering, purchase request processing, journal entry creation, grant application and management, bank account reconciliation of two outside bank accounts for Civil and Inmate Trust, fiduciary duties for the Humboldt County Drug Task Force, and everything fiscal or personnel related for the HCSO.
The HCSO Business Office was approved for 9.0 FTE’s for FY 2024-25 with the adoption of the budget. Due to turnover last year, a recommendation was made to consolidate the duties of two of the positions into 1.0 FTE Fiscal Services Supervisor and supplement with extra-help staffing to keep up with the workload. The extra-help staffing will be in place until such time that county-wide process improvement projects with document management and payroll systems is realized. This reduction in the allocation of 1.0 FTE was approved by your Board on June 11, 2024 in an effort to reduce long-term costs in light of budget challenges. The remaining 8.0 FTE’s are critical to maintain day-to-day fiscal, personnel, and grant operations and no further reduction in staff is feasible at this time. HCSO is requesting an exception to the hiring freeze for 1.0 FTE Senior Fiscal Assistant to fill the position vacated on March 21, 2025.
HCSO recognizes the impending financial struggles of the county. HCSO is at bare minimum staffing and any further reductions to existing FTE allocations would require service closures. This Senior Fiscal Assistant position is vital to the HCSO fiscal team and staff recommend an exception to the hiring freeze be approved for this position. If your board chooses to not fund this Senior Fiscal Assistant, HCSO will have to transfer an Administrative Secretary position from either McKinleyville or Garberville station and re-assign them to the Business Office to assist with the workload. This would result in one of those locations being closed to the public.
SOURCE OF FUNDING:
General Fund Sheriff’s Administrative Budget (1100-221100)
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
|
Expenditures (1100, 221100) |
FY24-25 |
FY25-26 Projected* |
FY26-27 Projected* |
|
Budgeted Expenses |
$94,971 |
$83,055 |
$87,208 |
|
Additional Appropriation Requested |
$0 |
$0 |
$0 |
|
Total Expenditures |
$94,971 |
$83,055 |
$87,208 |
*Projected amounts are estimates and are subject to change.
|
Funding Sources (1100, 221100) |
FY24-25 |
FY25-26 Projected* |
FY26-27 Projected* |
|
General Fund |
$94,971 |
$83,055 |
$87,208 |
|
Total Funding Sources |
$94,971 |
$83,055 |
$87,208 |
*Projected amounts are estimates and are subject to change.
Narrative Explanation of Financial Impact:
Salary and benefits budgeted for 1.0 FTE Senior Fiscal Assistant, Step E in FY 2024-25 is $94,971. It is anticipated that a new candidate would be hired at a lower step. For purposes of this financial impact, FY 2025-26 is projected at Step B for a total of $83,055 with a 5% increase projected in FY 2026-27. Should you board approve the exception to the hiring freeze for the 1.0 FTE Senior Fiscal Assistant, then the fiscal impact for next year is an estimated $11,916 savings due to hiring a new candidate at a lower step.
STAFFING IMPACT:
There is no allocation or deallocation requested. This request is to approve an exception to the hiring freeze for an existing budgeted position. Should this position not be approved, there would be a substantial negative impact on the HCSO Business Office’s ability to handle the current workload. It would also be a negative impact to team morale and could result in further employees going out on medical leave or resigning.
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
None.
ALTERNATIVES TO STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS:
Your Board may choose to not approve the exception to the hiring freeze for 1.0 FTE Senior Fiscal Assistant which would result in closing the McKinleyville or Garberville station to the public. The Administrative Secretary at one of those locations would be reassigned to the Business Office to assist with the workload.
ATTACHMENTS:
None.
PREVIOUS ACTION/REFERRAL:
Meeting of: June 4, 2024, 6/11/2024
File No.: 24-902, 24-975