County administration asked the Grand Forks County Commission to amend two internal policies: travel reimbursement and the hiring-freeze process.

The county requested the travel reimbursement policy be changed from allowing a single reimbursement voucher per month to allowing reimbursement per travel occurrence. The commission approved the change by voice vote.

On the hiring-freeze policy, county administration proposed that the freeze continue to apply to any request that would increase overall headcount, but that routine refills of existing vacant positions be handled administratively. Under the approved change, the county administrator will review vacant-position requests with human resources and department heads and will authorize refills that do not increase headcount; requests that add positions will still come to the commission. Commissioners said department heads should analyze vacancies for potential savings through attrition before refilling.

Both items passed unanimously. The changes shift some operational approvals from the board to county administration while preserving board review for new headcount.