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Washington County board ends EDC MOU, moves economic director onto county payroll
Summary
The Board of Commissioners accepted termination of the Economic Development Council(EDC) MOU, approved creation of a county FTE for the EDC director role and designated that new county position as the county's official point of contact for economic-development leads.
The Washington County Board of Commissioners voted March 19 to accept the executive boardof the countyEDCtermination of the memorandum of understanding and to place the EDC director position under county employment.
The board approved two linked actions: terminating the existing MOU that had previously governed the relationship with the EDC and creating a county full-time equivalent position with a job description for an economic-development director. Commissioners also directed the county administrator to designate that new county position as Washington Countythe official point of contact for state and regional economic-development agencies.
The move resolves a months-long dispute over whether the EDC director was a county employee or a leased employee under an MOU. County counsel told the board the existing MOU specified the county remained the formal employer; commissioners said the new decisions will standardize onboarding and reporting processes.
Tracy Andrews, appearing as chair of the EDC executive board, urged cooperation and warned that economic development takes time, but said she supported moving forward to ensure the county could keep projects on track. Several commissioners said the prior arrangement had created confusion and called for strict performance reviews for the new county-managed post. "If he's not producing, we're going to find somebody else," one commissioner said, urging six- and 12-month performance checks.
The board also voted to stop future quarterly disbursements that had been budgeted for the EDC and to require that any signed documents under new delegated authority be circulated to the full commission so members are informed of commitments made by the chair or administrator.
The decisions were adopted by voice vote. Board staff said they will complete organizational-chart updates and standard onboarding procedures before the new position becomes active. The county administrator will contact state and regional partners to designate the county office as the primary contact for incoming economic-development leads.
