Beltrami County approves sheriff's administrative assistant contract; Danielle Johnson hired at grade 7, step 9

The Beltrami County Board of Commissioners approved a contract to hire Danielle Johnson as the sheriff's administrative assistant, bringing her in at grade 7, step 9.

Sheriff Jason Riggs explained that a prior contract had referenced outdated sheriff statutes and that the corrected citation is Minnesota Statute 375.58. He said the position will be nonunion and is not exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act, so the administrative assistant will be subject to overtime and will record time worked and paid time off.

Sheriff Riggs described Johnson as an internal transfer from the auditor’s office with experience in bill coding and timekeeping. He said the sheriff’s office is bringing her in at the top pay for the grade because her current pay was already higher than the position’s standard. Commissioners asked for clarification about why the role was handled via contract and about opportunities for negotiation on pay; the HR director explained the pay-history-band rules in state statute and that offers are evaluated on knowledge, skills and credentials rather than prior pay.

Commissioner Carlson moved to approve the contract between the Beltrami County sheriff and Danielle Johnson as the new administrative assistant at grade 7, step 9; the motion was seconded and passed unanimously.

Sheriff Riggs noted the office received a large number of applicants and described a multi-stage hiring process before selecting Johnson. The board recorded no dissent on the vote and the contract was approved as presented.