Klamath County commissioners approve hiring exception for sheriff, waive jail inspection fee and authorize several administrative measures

Klamath County commissioners, meeting for their first administrative session of 2025, approved a set of administrative measures including a hiring exception that will allow the sheriff to eliminate a captain post and create an undersheriff position, and they waived a public‑health jail sanitary inspection fee.

The measures matter because the undersheriff position is described by county staff as central to the sheriff’s office administrative structure and will increase personnel costs that the county must absorb or offset. Commissioners also approved a one‑time adjustment to payroll records for a departing employee, moved to equalize commissioner training funds for the newly seated commissioner, endorsed social‑media guidelines for county communications staff, signed letters of support for two local infrastructure grants and accepted a capital‑funding request form for the Shasta House project.

Lieutenant Strickland, identified in the meeting as the jail commander for the sheriff’s office, asked the board to waive a $285 public‑health inspection fee for the county jail’s upcoming inspection. County staff indicated the fee could be covered from general‑fund administrative community‑benefit monies and the board voted to waive the fee.

County staff said the sheriff’s office proposed restructuring by eliminating one captain position and…