Allegany County Ways & Means committee approves staffing, multiple grant applications and a $75,000 Byrne reallocation

The Allegany County Ways & Means Committee met April 8 and approved a series of personnel hires and funding actions affecting county operations and public safety.

The committee approved requests from County Treasurer Jenna Kelley to create and fill a full-time Senior Tax Specialist (AFSCME, Grade 13) and to fill a Senior Accountant (PEF, Grade 8) and an Account Clerk Typist (AFSCME, Grade 7). Kelley said the Senior Tax Specialist will act as a liaison between the county and an outside foreclosure firm and provide parcel research. Annual salary ranges provided at the meeting were $43,680–$53,142 for the Senior Tax Specialist, $56,235–$77,843 for the Senior Accountant and $37,055–$43,380 for the Account Clerk Typist; benefit estimates were provided for each position. All three positions were described as included in the 2026 Budget; the Senior Tax Specialist and Account Clerk Typist are 100% county-funded and the Senior Accountant will support Employment & Training accounting needs.

Public health officials won approval to fill a Director of Environmental Health and a Public Health Technician, both listed as 100% state-funded and included in the 2026 Budget. County Superintendent of Public Works Thomas Windus received approval to hire up to 19 seasonal employees at $16 per hour, funded in the 2026 Budget.

Several staffing requests in public safety and legal offices were approved: the Public Defender’s Office will fill a Junior Accountant position; the Conflict Defender’s Office will fill a Legal Services Case Manager, a Paralegal and a Temporary Office Aide; and the Probation Department will fill a Probation Officer Assistant. The committee recorded that many of those positions are state-funded, while the probation post is county-funded.

The Sheriff’s Office received committee approval to pursue multiple grant opportunities. Sheriff Scott Cicirello asked to apply for Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee (GTSC) programs including Child Passenger Safety funding (up to $40,000), General Highway Safety funding (narrative/data-driven grants to address documented traffic safety problems) and Police Traffic Services (PTS) funding (up to $46,000). Cicirello also requested authority to apply for a State Traffic Enforcement Technology Grant to outfit patrol vehicles for electronic tickets and crash reports; the maximum award per county was not specified at the meeting.

The committee approved a resolution to reappropriate $75,000 in unspent FY2025 DCJS Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (C#633204) funds, originally accepted under Resolution No. 327-25, to add two Sheriff’s Office vehicles to the 2026 fleet. The appropriation and revenue lines were specified during the request.

Committee members approved an April 8 audit of claims totaling $4,191,461.87 and forwarded the audit to the full Allegany County Board of Legislators for payment approval. The meeting also included routine approvals of meeting minutes from March and adjourned at 1:22 p.m.

At the meeting, many motions were approved “on a motion made by” a listed legislator, “seconded by” another and “carried”; no roll-call vote tallies were recorded in the minutes. Several members asked procedural and staffing questions during presentations; where funding sources were referenced, staff identified positions as county-, state- or grant-funded.

What happens next: Human Resources will be notified to process approved hires and county staff will prepare resolutions for the grant applications and the Byrne reappropriation. The audit will be considered by the full Board at its next meeting.