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Commissioners table bailiff job description, approve separate pay-scale for Argenta bailiff after heated exchange
Summary
The board tabled a proposed revision to the Argenta (Argen/Argenta) justice court bailiff job description for redlining and discussion with county administration, then approved a separate pay scale for future hires after public comment and debate about union negotiations and parity with sheriff deputies.
The Lander County Board of Commissioners on May 22 tabled consideration of a revised bailiff job description for the Argenta justice court and later approved a revised pay scale for future bailiff hires after public comment and debate.
Judge Spencer Roberts presented changes to the bailiff job description that removed some court-services duties (to be handled by district court services), added security-related tasks, and added camera- and key-card-related responsibilities. Commissioners asked for a redlined version of the document and directed the judge and county administration to confer so the board could review a marked-up draft before taking action. A motion to table the job-description revision carried.
Separately, commissioners considered an item to re-set the base pay scale the county would use for any future Argenta/Argen justice court bailiff hiring. County staff explained the proposed change was prompted by union negotiations and by concerns that newly hired sheriff deputies with POST certification were starting at pay rates lower than previously set bailiff starting wages. The county attorney who advised the board said the change would align starting pay across some POST-certified positions. That proposal drew strong opposition from current court staff and the Argen court bailiff, who said the modification would effectively reduce the previously agreed MOU pay scale and could be seen as punitive.
After public comment — including a statement from the current bailiff and from Judge Roberts urging the board to preserve the previously approved scale for position continuity — a motion passed to approve the proposed revised pay scale for future hires and to make clear it would not affect the current bailiff’s pay. Commissioners also recorded direction that future job-description revisions be provided in redline form in meeting backups and that the judge consult with the county administrator to resolve facility-security responsibility questions.
