The Richland County Executive & Finance Committee voted Dec. 23 to authorize moving forward with a proposal from Public Administration Associates, LLC (PAA) to assist with a county administrator search and interim coverage, and to forward to the full county board a resolution naming interim appointments.

A presenter reviewed PAA’s proposal and timeline, saying PAA previously ran the county’s prior search and can reuse materials to reduce cost. The presenter listed an initial fee of roughly $22,750 and noted a $1,000 reuse discount; additional optional savings were $400 for a virtual kickoff meeting and another $400 for a virtual document review. The presenter said the firm recommends emotional‑intelligence assessments for finalists but acknowledged skipping that service would reduce the fee by about $1,900 to roughly $20,050.

Committee members discussed scheduling in light of the current administrator’s departure. Candice, the current county administrator who announced her resignation, said she would be back in the county late on Jan. 3 and offered assistance during transition. The presenter estimated a realistic start for a new full‑time administrator in mid‑late April or early May and said the kickoff date is adjustable.

After discussing options, the committee voted to forward the PAA engagement to the full county board for approval and to schedule a special meeting on Jan. 7 for consideration. The committee also returned from a closed session where it discussed personnel appointments and, in open session, the chair announced a resolution to appoint Derek (the county clerk) as interim county administrator and Josh Elder as deputy interim administrator; the county attorney will prepare MOUs and financial terms. A motion to forward that resolution to the full county board was made by Mr. Manning and seconded by Mr. Woodhouse; the committee voted in favor.

Next steps: the full county board will consider the PAA contract and interim‑appointment resolutions at a special meeting scheduled for Jan. 7; county counsel will draft MOUs with compensation terms.