Marion County officials discuss revised pay schedule to address staffing shortages in sheriff's office, jail and 911 dispatch

An official at a Marion County personnel meeting said the county's previously circulated cost estimates for a proposed pay adjustment understated the impact and asked the court to consider a new pay schedule for the sheriff's office, the county jail and 911 dispatch.

The official said the difference reported to the committee last week as $58,000 was not accurate and instead said, "It's a $533,000 difference, and that's just salary alone, not counting anything to do with retirement, medical," and that countywide salary obligations would grow from about $6,600,000 to $7,800,000 under the revised figures.

Why it matters: Committee members said low pay has reduced staffing levels in critical public-safety departments, limiting the county's ability to house state inmates and maintain 24-hour coverage. Committee members asked that a revised pay scale be put on the April court agenda so the full court can consider it.

Meeting discussion and context

A participant urged the committee to examine three departments together: the sheriff's office, the jail and 911 dispatch, arguing those functions face the most acute staffing pressure. The participant said the jail was down to eight staff for some shifts and that staffing shortfalls had caused the county to stop housing state prisoners, reducing a source of county revenue.

Participants discussed retention measures and different pay-start figures raised by county staff. One committee member said the proposed increase to cover jail staffing and related retirement costs would be roughly $237,000 above current draws from county general funds, while the countywide salary total change was described as growing from roughly $6.6 million to $7.8 million over three years.

Committee members noted hiring and training timelines for new deputies: background checks and certification take time, with academy and field training sequences that can take several weeks to months before a new hire is fully operational. Members also discussed a night-shift differential and certification-related pay for dispatch (ACIC certification and a 40-hour telecommunications class), which the committee said has been a targeted retention incentive in that department.

No formal court action recorded

Committee members discussed routing the revised pay schedule to the full court for a decision rather than deciding within the five-person committee. Multiple participants asked that the matter be placed on the April court agenda; no formal vote to adopt the pay scale was recorded in the transcript. One motion recorded later in the meeting was simply to adjourn; no tally for other formal actions was recorded.

What comes next

Committee members said they will provide the revised pay schedule and supporting numbers to the full court and requested three sponsors to put the item on the April agenda so the court can consider authorizing the change.

Ending

Members agreed the pay and staffing issues are urgent for public safety and recommended referring the revised schedule to the full court for formal consideration in April.