Wichita County approves shared part-time position for indigent health and veterans services

Wichita County Commissioners on Tuesday approved changes to the 2025 budgets for the Indigent Health office (department 640) and Veterans Services (department 405) to create a single part-time employee who will split time between the two offices, the court said during its Feb. 25 meeting.

Commissioner Marty Beauchamp, who introduced the proposal, said both offices currently have only two employees, which “severely limits” their ability to provide coverage for leave or sudden absences. “We all know there's just 2 employees in each office, which which severely limits them ability to take off or have sick days or whatever because it it really affects the operation of of each office,” Beauchamp said during discussion.

Beauchamp told the court the Veterans Services office has taken on additional paperwork responsibility — a form he identified as a “BDD” that previously had been handled by Shepherd — and that the additional workload has added strain. To address staffing and coverage, the court amended salary line items in each department and authorized a budget transfer to fund a shared part-time position. The motion, as stated during the meeting, added a proposed position with a $24,500 budget line and authorized a transfer “to cover a max salary of $24,500” plus associated fringe benefits; commissioners discussed that the salary figure would be covered by reducing a currently vacant position in department 640 and transferring funds to department 405.

Commissioners described the hire as budget-neutral overall for 2025 because it reallocated existing budgeted salary dollars rather than adding a new full-time line. Beauchamp said the intent is to hire a credentialed candidate who can perform system entries and other duties when needed; another commissioner said the county should strongly consider hiring a veteran for the position in the Veterans Services office.

The court voted unanimously, 5-0, to amend the two departmental budgets and to authorize the described budget transfer and position additions.

The court's action instructs staff to establish the shared position for the remainder of 2025 and to reflect the changes in the county's payroll and ledger records; the commissioners said salary and fringe will be accounted for in the county budget documents going forward.

Ending: The commissioners said the arrangement is intended to provide immediate operational relief and to avoid gaps in service pending any future, separate full-time hires or further budget changes.