Arapahoe County proposes updates to volunteer policy emphasizing program-based background checks and electronic records

Sarah Obey of the commissioner's office presented a rewrite of Arapahoe County's volunteer policy and asked the board to approve placing the revision on a consent agenda.

Obey said the county uses volunteers across many programs — from the county fair and the "Day Out of Your Neighbor" program to public-health harm-reduction kit assembly, victim advocacy, and the HUD point-in-time homelessness count — and reported participation figures. "At the end of 2025, we had 515 volunteers in our database who contributed over 2,500 hours of service in 2025," she said.

The draft policy keeps criminal background screening but recommends aligning checks to program risk rather than applying a universal standard. Obey said the goal is to preserve community voice in programs such as public health, where some volunteers may have lived experience and certain criminal history that staff, in coordination with HR, may deem acceptable for particular roles.

To reduce administrative burdens for large group events, the revision proposes options such as accepting a human-resources letter from a partnering school or organization that certifies prior checks, or sampling (for example, requiring checks for one in every four volunteers in a group). The draft also removes a hard-copy records requirement in favor of electronic recordkeeping and adds guidance that volunteers should have building access only when supervised by county staff.

Michelle Halstead, speaking for county staff, said the background-check requirement has been in place since 2006 but that staff have worked to make the process easier and clearer. "We will reinforce that this is a long-standing policy and the why," she said, and described staff's work to streamline timing and applicability.

A commissioner asked whether volunteers who serve on boards and committees are included in the volunteer database; Obey replied they are not currently listed and that adding them would increase tracked hours. Staff said they will continue to develop a separate volunteer management guide with operational details for departments, including how to set up new volunteer roles effectively.

Staff asked the board for informal approval to place the revised policy on a consent agenda. The chair said he heard what sounded like "five thumbs up" in the room; staff said they would finalize details and bring the item forward on consent.

Next steps: staff will continue to refine the volunteer management guide and the policy language; the revision was slated to be placed on a future consent agenda pending final edits and board concurrence.