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Cayuga County approves amended WIC hires, public‑health educator fill and rabies contract
Summary
The Cayuga County Legislature approved three public‑health resolutions Nov. 12 to add hiring flexibility for WIC, authorize a public health educator hire, and contract with a local veterinarian for rabies specimen preparation; all three measures passed by voice vote.
Cayuga County legislators on Nov. 12 approved three public‑health staffing and contract measures aimed at maintaining services while widening hiring options.
The Legislature adopted an amendment to a previously approved WIC (Women, Infants and Children) create‑and‑fill resolution to permit the public‑health director to fill the role under several comparable titles — including competent professional authority, nutritionist, or supervising nutritionist — to broaden recruitment while keeping the position entirely grant funded. "This allows them the flexibility to reach a broader recruitment audience for the position," public‑health staff said during committee discussion. The amendment was recommended by the Personnel Committee and passed by voice vote.
Lawmakers also authorized filling a public health educator or senior public health educator position that has been vacant amid prior hiring restrictions. Public‑health staff told the panel funding will come partly from grants (roughly 50–60% depending on available awards) and partly from state aid; staff said that mixed funding allows the new hire to work across divisions of the department and create redundancy for public information work. The fill authorization passed on a voice vote.
Separately, the Legislature approved a contract with Megan Williams, DVM, to provide rabies specimen preparation services for the county's state‑mandated rabies program. County staff said the contract covers specimen preparation (not animal boarding) and that the vendor is local or from a contiguous county. "If we have the animal available to test, we prefer to do that," public‑health staff explained; the resolution carried by voice vote.
All three measures were presented as operations‑level changes to preserve service continuity — the WIC amendment for hiring flexibility, the educator fill to restore capacity, and the rabies contract to ensure compliance with state public‑health obligations. The committee discussion recorded that the WIC and educator positions would not increase head‑count beyond previously authorized levels and that WIC remains 100% grant funded.
The Legislature moved on after the votes to receive program summaries from public‑health staff, including lead‑poisoning case counts and bike‑and‑pedestrian safety grant activities.
