County to rework first‑deputy election stipend math after clerk raises concern

At a budget hearing, the county clerk and council members flagged a discrepancy in how the first deputy's election stipend and the 80% salary calculation were being applied. The clerk's office presented data showing the first deputy worked roughly 65 extra hours during an election period and that the office had structured compensation changes this year that affected overtime and stipend calculations.

Council staff and the clerk's office discussed that when the first‑deputy 80% salary change was implemented, the calculation may have used the clerk's total compensation (including the clerk's stipend) as the basis. If true, that method effectively transfers part of the clerk's stipend to the first deputy. A council staff member acknowledged the likely error and proposed recalculating so the 80% is derived from the clerk's base salary alone and then accounting for election stipends separately.

The clerk asked whether overtime could be compensated with paid time off instead of additional pay; council staff and the clerk discussed that the voter‑registration and election functions generate concentrated extra hours and that time‑and‑a‑half overtime typically applies for nonexempt employees who exceed 40 hours in a week.

Council staff committed to returning corrected figures and a recommended structure before final budget adoption. No formal appropriation or change was made on the record during this session.