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Council adopts new comp‑time policy: no voluntary in‑service payouts; law enforcement cap cut to 240 hours
Summary
Parowan approved Resolution 2026-07 to stop voluntary in‑service comp‑time cash payouts except in rare approved cases and to reduce the law‑enforcement comp‑time accrual cap from 480 to 240 hours; Chief Addison Adams expressed concern about optics.
The Parowan City Council unanimously adopted Resolution 2026-07 on May 28, 2026 to amend the personnel policy on compensatory time. City Manager Dan Jessen told the Council the proposed changes would eliminate voluntary in‑service cash payouts of accrued comp time (payouts at separation remain as required by federal law) and would set a maximum comp‑time accrual cap of 240 hours for law enforcement.
Police Chief Addison Adams told the Council that while 240 hours would be operationally manageable, officers were concerned about the optics of reducing a recently granted benefit; the department only began accruing comp time in March 2026 after reaching six officers. City Treasurer Jerry Ross provided a budgetary rationale, estimating that a 480‑hour accrual for a veteran officer could represent roughly 23% of annual salary as a potential liability if multiple senior officers separated simultaneously. City Attorney Scott Burns framed the tradeoff as balancing budget predictability with employee compensation.
Council consensus favored eliminating voluntary in‑service payouts as the most important reform and accepting the 240‑hour cap for law enforcement. Council Member Rochell Topham’s suggestion to require employees to use comp time before vacation time was discussed but staff cautioned it could increase vacation forfeitures. The motion to approve Resolution 2026-07 carried 5–0.
