Executive committee preapproves hiring steps to address Economic Support staffing shortage

Human Service Director Beth Hoerchler told the Oneida County Executive Committee on May 6 that the Central Consortium serving Oneida, Marathon, Langlade and Portage counties is about 22% understaffed and currently counts seven vacancies and three employees in training.

Hoerchler said the consortium has enhanced funding that can be used to hire and train staff in advance of a vacancy becoming effective, and she asked for preapproval to advertise and hire when a written vacancy notice is received so training overlap of up to three months is possible. She said the funding would come from the consortium’s Enhanced Funds and that the action would not create a cost to the County levy.

Hoerchler emphasized the urgency in part because the state has provided $539,000 to the Central Consortium to reduce the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program error rate to below 6 percent; she said the current state error rate is 6.11 percent and warned of a potential federal payback obligation if the rate remains above the 6 percent threshold. "The penalty for not being under the 6% error rate is that the State would need to pay the Federal Government back $69 Million dollars," Hoerchler said.

The committee approved a motion authorizing the Human Service Director to advertise for an Economic Support vacancy with up to a three‑month overlap for training, funded from Consortium Enhanced Funds and not charged to the County levy. The motion was recorded as Fried/Holewinski and passed with all members present voting Aye.

Lueneburg noted this preapproval would not become standard practice indefinitely; the committee agreed the authority was intended to allow rapid hiring when notified of a forthcoming vacancy.