Columbia County commissioners approve hires, step increases and promotions

Columbia County Commissioners voted unanimously on March 19, 2026, to approve several personnel actions including new hires, step increases and salary adjustments for county staff and elected-office employees.

The actions approved by the board included a six-month step for Brittany Swilley, Supervisor in Children and Youth Services (CYS), showing a salary entry of $61,756.66 (1/26/2025) and $63,609.36 (1/1/2026); the hire of Ashley Pelton as a CYS aide at $16.18 per hour, effective March 23, 2026; a two-year step for Levi Yoder, Caseworker II, at $27.25 per hour effective Feb. 27, 2026; salary adjustments for Public Defenders Andrea Pulizzi and Franklin Kepner III to $39,000 effective March 15, 2026; and a six-month step for RyLee Sortman, full-time corrections officer in the jail, at $21.15 per hour effective March 28, 2026.

The board also approved hires and promotions among elected-office and court employees: Denise Boston, Deputy Treasurer, was recorded as receiving a ten-year step effective Jan. 1, 2026 at $25.04 per hour; Heidi Knorr was promoted to Second Deputy Treasurer effective Feb. 24, 2026 at $17.17 per hour.

Procedurally, Commissioner Kovach made the motions for the personnel items; the motions were seconded (for the county-staff package the transcript records Commissioner Brewer as the seconder) and the board recorded unanimous approval for each item. The meeting opened with Commissioner Brewer calling the session to order and listing attendees, and it concluded after the personnel approvals with a motion to adjourn that passed unanimously. The minutes of the prior meeting were also approved earlier in the session.

No individual discussion, dissenting votes, or amendments to the personnel items are recorded in the transcript. The meeting record was attested by Chief Clerk David J. Witchey.