Park County amends PTO carryover rules, adds 720‑hour cap with limited payout on separation

Park County commissioners approved a change to personnel policy 8.11 that modifies paid time off carryover rules for employees on the county’s PTO plan.

Park County Clerk Elaine Renner presented the staff recommendation. Under the amendment commissioners approved, employees covered by PTO may carry over accrued PTO hours up to a maximum balance of 720 hours. To limit county‑liability, the policy retains a maximum payout schedule on separation, so employees may carry hours up to 720 but the payout at separation is capped at the amounts listed in the county’s payout chart (for example, payout levels reduce the county’s maximum cash liability to a subset of accrued hours; the transcript cited 216 hours payout at certain service bands). Staff recommended making the policy effective Dec. 1 to avoid multiple end‑of‑year payout requests.

Commissioners asked clarifying questions about aligning PTO carryover with legacy sick/vacation leave rules and asked staff to remove ambiguous wording in the paragraph that read “without limit” (staff agreed to strike the phrase and to change a cross‑reference from years to months of service to match the chart). The motion to approve the policy language as amended carried on a voice vote.

Next steps: county clerks and department heads will implement the new carryover and payout calculations and notify employees; staff will apply the Dec. 1 effective date for operational guidance.