County officials review rising overtime payouts, long-term comp-time liability

County finance staff presented commissioners with historical and year-to-date data showing an increase in overtime and comp-time dollar amounts even while total comp/overtime hours remained relatively flat.

The presenter outlined that certain categories (prisoner custodial and county sheriff) accounted for the bulk of 2025 overtime dollars, noting figures of $527,000 for prisoner custodial and $288,000 for the county sheriff for 2025. "For those same amount of hours, we're paying that increased amount," the presenter said, urging the board to consider the drivers behind higher payouts.

Commissioners asked whether the most recent payroll was included in the data and discussed how comp time accrual works for exempt employees. One commissioner said the county faces more than $3,000,000 in combined liabilities for vacation, sick leave and PTO and sought clarification that comp time itself is generally not paid out at severance. Staff confirmed comp time for exempt employees typically accrues hour-for-hour and is not paid as severance.

Board members pressed for preapproval discipline and requested a department-by-department summary of comp and overtime caps and policies. A commissioner asked whether hiring more staff would reduce overtime; staff said they could not guarantee reductions because posts must be covered for vacancies, FMLA and leave.

The board asked staff to circulate a reminder about preapproval practices and for a summary of comp-time caps across departments.

Provenance: Overtime/comp-time presentation and Q&A (topic introduced SEG 505; discussion ends SEG 761).