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County clerk raises objections to recent budget staffing cuts and outsourcing; requests reconsideration
Summary
County Clerk Laura Holdridge told commissioners she was not given the salary-resolution text ahead of the meeting and urged reconsideration of budget cuts that remove positions and outsource payroll; she provided historical context and asked that personnel and budget changes be reviewed.
County Clerk Laura Holdridge spoke at length during the meeting about recent budget actions that she said affect her office and the register of deeds. Holdridge said she had not received the resolution text in advance and that the salary changes would reduce the county clerk’s pay by $10 and cut $5,000 from the register of deeds budget, while also noting new positions show up in the budget (a finance position and an administrative assistant) she did not expect.
Holdridge described statutory duties of the county clerk — attending sessions, keeping official records and audit responsibilities — and said recent outsourcing of payroll to a private company increases workload on the clerk’s office because the clerk remains responsible for reconciling payroll and benefits in county records. She said her office had been prepared to absorb additional duties and that prior temporary funding had been used for one-time needs.
Other commissioners and officials raised questions about whether positions should be full-time, part-time or filled by contract, and whether benefits would be provided when hours change. Multiple commissioners asked for documentation from prior minutes (Holdridge said she would provide those) and suggested parts of the personnel conversation be handled in executive session to protect employee privacy. The board scheduled follow-up discussion in executive session and agreed to examine the budget during the upcoming public hearing and the next week’s agenda.
No final vote on staffing or the specific payroll outsourcing was taken during the meeting; the clerk requested reconsideration and more complete documentation before formal action.
