Davenport commission approves hiring plan to add seven positions to reduce investigation backlog

The Davenport Civil Rights Commission on Sept. 9 authorized Director Lacey to proceed with hiring a package of new positions intended to reduce an investigation backlog and replace departed staff. The commission voted to allow hiring for the positions presented by Director Lacey; the motion was made by Commissioner Holly and seconded by Commissioner Boyd and carried on a voice vote. Director Lacey described the staffing proposal as follows: add 1 senior civil rights analyst (an investigator-level position to manage caseload and make recommendations), civil rights intake specialists (to perform intakes and assist mediations), civil rights intake interns (law-student interns to provide temporary legal support), a civil rights mediator (an on-call, hourly-paid mediator to reduce reliance on unpaid volunteers), and a part-time civil rights analyst to assist with investigations. She said the additions would increase total commission staff from the current three (including the director) to 10 people, with about three part-time roles and the mediator working on an on-call hourly basis. Lacey said the hires are "targeted towards helping us reduce the backlog and really kinda stretching our budget as far as we can based on the limited resources that we have." Commissioners asked clarifying questions: how many positions were new (all seven are new), the part-time count (three part-time roles), and that the mediator would be paid on-call. The commission agreed the positions are intended to address workload and backlog; no specific dollar amounts or budget appropriation details were provided in the discussion and the hiring authority was granted subject to existing budget constraints. The minutes record the motion allowing Director Lacey to hire the positions; commissioners were asked to provide further questions or follow-up on budgetary details at a later time.