Union County adopts administrative ordinance moving telephone-room functions between departments

The Union County Board of County Commissioners on a 7-0 vote adopted Ordinance 855-2025, an administrative amendment to the county code that transfers the county’s telephone-room functions from the Motor Vehicle Bureau in the Department of Economic Development to the Department of Administrative Services.

County Counsel Michael Bergen described the ordinance during the public hearing as an "essentially an administrative ordinance" and said the move "will have no effect on functioning." Bergen told the board there would be "no employees coming or going" and explicitly stated, "No new hires." The ordinance was moved by Vice Chair Bodek and seconded by Commissioner Williams; the clerk recorded seven affirmative votes for adoption.

Why it matters: County officials said the change is intended to align organizational titles and budget lines; commissioners and staff did not describe any change in services or staffing as a result of the transfer. During the public comment period, resident Bruce Patterson asked whether the reorganization would create new positions and whether any new jobs would be filled despite a county hiring freeze.

Patterson said the ordinance’s text and related budget materials were not clear to him. In response, Bergen told the meeting the change was administrative and would not result in additional hires or changes to how the function operates.

The ordinance was read into the record by title before public comment was taken. After the hearing and the motion by Vice Chair Bodek, the clerk called the roll and the board voted to adopt Ordinance 855-2025.

The board did not take further substantive policy action tied to the ordinance during the meeting.