Health board confirms salary increases for employees | Belvidere Daily Republican

Written by Bob Balgemann

BELVIDERE – Boone County Board of Health officials have confirmed a Sept. 3 decision to give salary increases to nine employees, effective Sept. 1.

That occurred after two executive sessions, the first one being part of an emergency meeting of the board’s finance committee held at noon Oct. 3. The agenda initially called for a discussion of the 2013-14 budget, but the closed session was added at 9:37 a.m. that day.

Health department Administrator Cynthia Frank said the addition did not have to meet the 48-hour notification requirement because it was an emergency meeting.

After the committee gathered at noon member Allen Sisson asked that the executive session, which was second on the agenda, be taken up first. He said the sole purpose would be to discuss the Sept. 3 “market adjustment,” and that some individual salaries would be discussed. Beyond that, he said the topic would be germain to the new budget.

The private meeting convened shortly after noon and ended an hour and 30 minutes later. State’s attorney Michelle Courier joined committee members in the meeting.

When the executive session broke shortly after 1:30 p.m. committee members Kathleen Taylor, Jim Cox and Sisson left the building together. Cox said no action had been taken when the committee reconvened publicly.

The full board of health met at noon Monday (Oct. 7), also as an emergency, with an executive session the only item on the agenda. Board President Kent Hess, M.D., said the purpose of the meeting was to discuss specific employee salaries. He, Frank and six board members were the only ones allowed to remain in the room.

No to Thornberry

Health board member Ron Wait, who’s also a member of the county board, arrived a few minutes after the meeting began. He saw another county board member, Marion Thornberry, who had been asked to leave the room, and said he would ask if Thornberry would be allowed to attend. He didn’t return and said afterward the board had agreed Thornberry, a critic of the health department, should not be at the meeting.

The executive session lasted less than one hour, with the board convening publicly and voting to confirm the previous action of Sept. 3.

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