Plumas County approves $46,350 contract for AI-based job classification and pay-comparison software

The Plumas County Board of Supervisors voted to authorize the county to contract with Holly, an AI-native classification and compensation software provider, in a motion approved during the board’s meeting. The contract is effective March 1, 2026, and was described in the agenda as not to exceed $46,350, with the general fund impact included in the adopted budget.

County staff said the Holly platform will ingest the county’s job classifications and data from nine comparable counties to enable on-demand salary surveys, FLSA (Fair Labor Standards Act) analyses and classification similarity scoring. “So what Holly does is we ingest all of the classifications … and then where AI comes into the mix it allows users in the county HR department to understand how different classifications compare to each other,” Holly’s representative Max said during the presentation.

Board members asked how the county would verify recommended changes. County HR staff and counsel outlined an existing review process: HR compiles recommendations, submits them to county counsel for legal review, and then brings proposals to unions for meet-and-confer before final board approval. A county staffer summarized the workflow: after internal review and counsel sign-off, the union and impacted employees review changes and the board gives final approval.

Supporters on the board said the platform would reduce reliance on costly outside consultants and speed routine updates. One supervisor noted the vendor’s pricing is population-based and contrasted it with previously quoted alternatives. The board also discussed a CPI escalation clause expected to add about 3% per year to the contract price in later years.

Supervisor McGowan moved to approve the item and Supervisor Goss seconded; the motion passed on a voice vote. Board members and staff said the tool would not replace county review and legal processes but would streamline classification maintenance and recurring salary comparisons.

The board approved a related supplemental budget transfer to cover over-budgeted HR costs tied to job description and FLSA work. The county will return to the board for any final approvals required as recommended classification changes move through counsel and union review.