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Commissioners clash over plan to use ARPA funds for $2-per-hour retention pay; manager’s legal defense and resignation threat punctuate debate
Summary
Macon County commissioners debated a proposal to use remaining ARPA/SLFRF funds to provide $2-per-hour retention pay through Oct. 2024. The proposal prompted a heated exchange between Commissioner Shearl and County Manager Derek Roland over legality and fund use, with calls for accounting and a requested report in December.
The Macon County Board of Commissioners spent a large portion of its Nov. 14 meeting debating whether to use remaining American Rescue Plan Act/State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds to pay employees a $2-per-hour retention payment through Oct. 20, 2024.
County Manager Derek Roland told the board the county’s ARPA allocation totals $6,964,996 and presented a Grant Project Ordinance that would transfer $1,850,659 to county operating funds to cover salaries and fringes under the revenue-replacement category. Roland framed the payments as a recruiting and retention measure that would be paid as lump sums after each six-month period and noted the policy had limits and reporting controls.
"We need to 'stick with the plan' and use the funding for recruiting and retaining qualified staff," Roland said while explaining the policy’s mechanics and the three six-month retention periods beginning April 10, 2023.
Commissioner William Shearl (identified in the record as Commissioner Shearl) vigorously opposed the plan, saying he received guidance from the School of Government indicating limits on premium-pay uses and arguing that the proposed transfers would divert funds away from capital projects. "We cannot spend every dime we get trying to make employees happy," Shearl said, urging fiscal restraint and questioning whether the board had been adequately informed when the premium-pay proposal was first advanced.
The discussion grew personal. According to the transcript, Shearl accused management of misrepresenting the earlier premium-pay guidance and at one point said he had been called a liar; the exchange ended with Roland telling the board that if Shearl and two other members voted against the policy he would tender his resignation that evening.
Other commissioners weighed in: Commissioner Antoine urged approval, saying the payments would help employees; Commissioner Young affirmed past support for premium pay and urged continuity; Chairman Paul Higdon asked for an accounting of ARPA receipts and expenditures and said he would withhold his vote until the board received full documentation.
No final roll-call result for this specific motion is recorded in the meeting minutes excerpt; the record shows robust debate, a manager-submitted Grant Project Ordinance, and a formal request from Chairman Higdon for a full accounting of ARPA funds at the board’s December meeting.
Why it matters: The proposal would use federal recovery funds previously allocated to Macon County and touch broad staffing across county operations. Commissioners requested more transparency about how ARPA funds were spent and sought written reports to justify tapping SLFRF resources for recurring retention pay rather than capital projects.
What happens next: Chairman Higdon requested a full accounting of ARPA receipts and disbursements to be presented at the Dec. 12, 2023 meeting; the ordinance and budget amendment presented by the manager remain in the record and will be considered further with the requested documentation.
