Finance committee postpones public-health lab staffing additions pending revenue analysis

The Barnstable County Assembly of Delegates Standing Committee on Finance on March 31 postponed consideration of proposed staffing additions and wage increases for the county public-health laboratory until the lab director can confirm whether laboratory revenue will cover the additional costs.

Committee members described three proposed full-time positions in ordinance 4: an assistant lab director (required by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection for quality-assurance purposes), a chemist currently carried on ARPA funding who performs PFAS analysis and a bacteriologist to provide backup for beach and water sampling workloads. The committee also discussed a planned wage increase for public-health assistants and water samplers from $21 to $23 per hour.

The committee recommended postponement so Director Gardner (lab director) can provide a revenue analysis; the director told the committee he would return an analysis by April 7. The motion to postpone until the April 7 finance meeting passed unanimously.

Clarifying details

- Ordinance-number-3 line: the lab’s requested amount under ordinance 3 was recorded as $4,190,000 (referenced in the meeting record as the requested figure under ordinance number 3 for the department generally). The staffing additions and wage changes were in ordinance 4. - Staffing additions: three full-time positions (assistant lab director; chemist for PFAS analysis (previously ARPA-funded); bacteriologist). The committee described the assistant lab director as required by the state DEP for quality-control purposes and noted the lab has recently become certified to do PFAS testing in-house. - Wage adjustment: proposed increase for public-health assistants and water samplers from $21 to $23 per hour.

Ending

The committee will revisit the lab staffing and wage proposals on April 7 after the lab director submits the requested revenue sufficiency analysis.