Supervisors pause hiring of environmental health and land-use administrator after concerns about wells, septic experience
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Summary
A hiring committee recommended Andrea Morris for the combined environmental health and land-use administrator post at a $94,000 starting salary; supervisors raised concerns about her wells and septic experience and moved to postpone further action and meet the candidate.
The Board of Supervisors reviewed a hiring committee recommendation to hire Andrea Morris as the county’s combined environmental health and land-use administrator with a proposed starting salary of $94,000 and an anticipated start date of Nov. 10.
Board members and several meeting participants raised concerns that Morris’s resume did not demonstrate direct experience with wells, septic systems and time-of-transfer inspections — functions that supervisors and local contractors described as high-liability and essential for immediate day-one operation. One meeting speaker identified in the record as a resident with long experience in the local land-use field said, "I have concerns that she has no experience in wells and septics... We need someone in case Barb decides to leave, Matt decides to leave, to take over, be able to take over that office from day 1."
County staff and the hiring committee described Morris’s qualifications in environmental health and laboratory work; the board noted the committee included board of health members and human resources representation and said the committee believed Morris’s public-health and scientific background and leadership skills would pair with existing land-use expertise in the office. Supervisors said the position would be split financially between public health and land-use budgets and that the committee expected Morris would handle leadership duties while learning technical land-use elements.
Because of the concerns, a supervisor moved to table/postpone the hiring, request a meeting between the county supervisors and the Board of Health with the candidate present, and investigate certification and training time and costs for well and septic responsibilities. The motion to table was made and seconded on the record; the transcript does not include a roll-call vote on that motion in the excerpt provided.
Supervisors discussed contingency options if existing certified staff leave, including contracting services from another county under an intergovernmental agreement. The transcript records an explicit request that the supervisors obtain additional information about certification timelines, potential training costs, and estimated contract rates from neighboring counties before final action.
