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County HR presents 2026 personnel plan: department reductions, several new position requests and $1 million estimated compensation reduction
Summary
Lewis County HR director Caitlin Smith briefed legislators on proposed 2026 personnel changes that would reduce funded compensation by an estimated $1 million and included departmental cuts and several new position requests; staff said net personnel changes will be refined as budget work continues.
Caitlin Smith, director of human resources, presented the county's 2026 personnel request and summary of headcount and full-time-equivalent (FTE) adjustments at the committee meeting on Oct. 8.
Smith said county departments scrutinized headcount and FTEs; she explained the difference between headcount (actual people) and FTEs (labor cost equivalent used for salary calculations). She said the county's proposed changes would reduce total compensation by an estimated $1 million, though that figure reflects gross compensation and not the local-taxpayer share because many positions are partially supported by nonlocal funding streams.
The presentation listed departmental reductions and vacancies being removed from the compensation plan: Social Services reductions of seven positions (staff held several vacancies and streamlined workload), one position removed from buildings and grounds, reductions in highway and real property, a part-time position eliminated in the county attorney's office, 4.5 FTEs proposed to be removed in Recreation, Forestry and Parks, and one position in Public Health (the latter discussed earlier in committee). Smith said those cuts could leave some departments operating very lean and that departments might return to request additional staffing if workloads change.
Smith also presented requested additions and reclassifications: a DMV examiner position (county clerk'side change intended to be budget neutral), an ADA salary increase, a CDL trainee-and-trainer structure, a probation supervisor, a senior community development specialist and a transportation stipend for a program administered for Fort Drum (vendor-funded). Smith said the net compensation increase for these requests is roughly $81,000 in salary dollars, but that the budgetary impact may be offset by other adjustments.
On labor costs, Smith said union and exempt-group contracts will affect future budgets: a pending vote for the corrections/dispatch unit affects 2026 and the county's largest union'general unit'contract expires in 2026, requiring negotiation and possible salary-study work in 2026.
Smith said the county aims to reduce staff by another 5 to 8 FTEs in a future budget cycle and stressed that these figures are estimates that will change as vacancies and funding assignments are finalized.
