Public health seeks extra vital-records staff and vehicle replacements in FY27 request

Clint Welty, assistant health director for Mohave County Department of Public Health, told the board the department will seek several items outside its baseline FY budgets for fiscal year 2027, principally an additional vital-records position and conversion of long-term temporary staff to permanent status.

Welty said vital-records volumes are substantial: about 20,500 death-certificate orders annually (roughly 1,700 per month) and about 2,900 birth-certificate orders annually. The department currently assigns one full-time staff member to vital records and estimates adding a position would cost approximately $68,000. Welty said one staff member creates processing delays (he estimated a 3'to'4-week backlog on orders), contributes to burnout and turnover, and pressures other staff to cover duties.

Welty also reported an internal human-resources requirement to convert some longtime temporary employees to permanent status when they exceed thresholds for hours worked; the principal fiscal effect would be health-insurance costs and paid-time-off accruals. He estimated the additional benefits cost at about $70,000 (the figure may vary by the insurance plans selected and family versus individual coverage). Welty said two of the seven temporary employees are fully grant-funded and one is 80 percent grant-funded; the remainder currently rely on a mix of grant and general-fund dollars.

On senior-program transportation, Welty said the department plans to request two replacement vehicles at an estimated $56,000 each (about $112,000 total). He noted a county vehicle-replacement fund exists and that those vehicle purchases could be covered by that set-aside rather than general-fund increases. Welty also identified two recently ended grants (Health Start and Arizona Health Zone) and said the department is working with local partners to continue services without immediate layoffs by shifting staff internally.

Board members probed assumptions and numbers. Commissioner Gould questioned the $70,000 estimate for benefits; Welty explained the figure is a planning estimate and may range higher for employees who elect family coverage. Director Palmer and other staff explained temporary employees already receive some benefits such as ASRS retirement enrollment and workers'comp coverage, while health insurance remains the principal new cost if positions become permanent.

No formal board vote was taken on the presentation; board members asked staff to refine cost estimates and to include the requests in upcoming budget discussions.