With an eye to keeping the budget in check, Cook County commissioners once again voted against giving themselves a raise for the New Year. The vote came at the county board’s December 15, 2015 meeting.
Commissioners voted to hold the line on their pay, per diems for meetings, and travel.
Board Chair Heidi Doo-Kirk said the last time commissioners voted to raise commissioner salaries was in 1997.
Commissioners will receive a 2016 salary of $22,395 per year, with the board chair getting an additional $1,500. Currently commissioners receive $100 per diem to attend meetings or an approved activity. The board does not receive per diem payments for regularly scheduled or special board meetings.
Commissioners will continue to receive mileage reimbursement at the federal rate (57.5 cents per mile), and meal reimbursement at the rate of $10 for breakfast, $12 for lunch and $15 for supper. This is the same per diem that other county employees receive.
While the county may have two people at a meeting, typically only the primary representative will get paid for his/her per diem. Alternates to meetings may be paid per diem expenses if they substitute for the primary representative.
County Administrator Jeff Cadwell asked the board if he should include their job descriptions in a county-wide comparable worth study he will be conducting beginning in the New Year, and they said yes.
Doo-Kirk said per diems collected by county commissioners had dropped this year from previous years, and said the board works “really hard and takes cuts from ourselves before our staff.”
Permits granted
Commissioners approved two special event permits, one for the Gunflint Mail Run Sled Dog Race that will be held January 9-10 and one for the John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon that will be held from January 31 and run through February 4.
Both permits allow mushers to cross county roads that will be closed or monitored by the Cook County Sheriff ’s Department. Both organizations will reimburse the county for the expense of traffic control.
The board also approved a resolution to seek a Development Infrastructure Grant of $145,096 from the Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board (IRRRB) that would be used to help with the extension of the Phase II Cook County Airport. Phase II consists of paving, lighting and extending the runway.
Firewise work to continue
Cook County Financial Coordinator and Deputy Auditor Karen Blackburn was authorized to manage the county credit cards.
Firewise Coordinator Todd Armbruster received a two-year service agreement that will see his hours and compensation increase not to exceed $40,000 per year; he will be paid at a rate of $27.50 per hour.
Armbruster is responsible for suggesting mitigation projects and sites based on Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Critical Infrastructure Assessment Protocol and he will assist state and federal partners with wildfire hazard mitigation projects as agreed, including site visits, coordination and communication with homeowners, and he will administer contracts and work with contractors in implementation of the Stevens grants and other fuel reduction projects such as debris shipping projects. Half of the money ($20,000) paid to Armbruster will come from the Stevens grant.
Hiring and contracts approved
Rebecca Isbell was hired for the position of the Auditor’s taxation/bookkeeper specialist for 32 hours per week. Cadwell said Isbell had started in her job the day before the meeting, but he added that Auditor/ Treasurer Braidy Powers had the authority to hire her without board approval.
With the retirement of Aimee Luick, Cadwell asked the board to approve hiring a human resource generalist to assume some of her duties.
As county administrator, Cadwell said he will also continue to serve as the human resource director for the county, and this new person would work under his guidance. This new hire will be responsible for approximately one-fourth of Luick’s duties, including benefits, administration, and onboarding and legal compliance. The balance of this position, said Cadwell, will manage the HRIS software system and work on employee development and communication strategies. The commissioners approved advertising for the position for 30 hours per week.
Widseth Smith Nolting (WSN) was hired at a rate not to exceed $4,000 to submit a proposal for providing professional engineering services for assisting with the Safe Routes to School (SRTS) grant application and proposed construction of a trail that will connect the school zone and sidewalk along County Road 7 to the Bike Trail. The trail will be 800 feet long, 10 feet wide, with 3 inches of bituminous, class 5 gravel, and a sand sub-base with separation from the roadway with a grass boulevard.
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