Juvenile Court asks for deputy court administrator post, building maintenance and pay adjustments totaling about $353,480

Juvenile Court representatives told the Finance, Audit and Budget Committee that their caseloads have risen sharply and that they are on track to exceed 2025 case volumes. The court requested three reconsideration items for FY26: creation/funding of a deputy court administrator position with a $125,000 salary for succession and continuity; $20,000 to cover building maintenance and preventive repairs; and $81,000 for in‑grade adjustments to bring some staff salaries in line with peer jurisdictions.

Court administrators said the juvenile facility handles six courtrooms, programs six days a week and supports roughly 86–87 staff; they argued an on‑site maintenance capability is more cost‑effective than repeated Facilities work orders because of procurement lags and response times that have, at times, interfered with operations. The deputy role was presented as succession planning after an emergency medical leave demonstrated the operational disruption caused when long‑serving staff are unavailable.

Commissioners asked for a detailed line‑item spreadsheet to reconcile the presented math; the court agreed to provide the requested breakdown the same day. Commissioner Michelle Long Spears and others pressed whether Facilities could absorb maintenance needs and were told some HVAC and other issues took multiple days to resolve, prompting the court’s request for targeted funds.

The committee requested the spreadsheet for Zach and TJ to review before the February 25 final special call; no vote was taken at this meeting.