Dec. 9, 2013
By Bob Balgemann
Reporter
Flexibility sought on health department hiring
BELVIDERE - The Boone County Board of Health wants to be better informed about happenings in the health department.
Department administrator Cynthia Frank doesn't mind that, but she doesn't want her hands to be tied when trying to fill existing vacancies.
That conflict brought debate during the board's Dec. 2 meeting. Member Allen Sisson told Frank she had not provided sufficient details when nine employees were slated to receive pay raises from 13.9 to 55.7 percent.
Frank disagreed.
"You were given the information,” she said. “Maybe I didn't go into enough detail."
The wish for more information prompted the board to meet privately in October, to review its decision of the previous month to approve those increases. In addition, the board was criticized by some county board members for allowing the raises.
Sisson wanted to be sure that didn't happen again.
With that in mind, the health board's finance committee recommended approval of four motions during its Nov. 19 meeting, three of which applied directly to its being better informed.
Two of the four motions brought discussion at the Dec. 2 board meeting.
Most of the debate centered on wanting information associated with the hiring process, though lingering unhappiness with the large salary increases was voiced
Sisson said the pay raise incident was "a classic case of bait and switch. The board was the scapegoat; the board knew about it after the fact. You (Frank) did not tell us the complete story. Shame on you."
But Bill Hatfield, director of environmental health, said some of the board's comments were "completely inaccurate." He said all of the information concerning the pay increases was presented at a finance committee meeting. It was in committee members' packets.
"The question is whether the board of health wants to run (health department) operations?" he asked. "Cindy should be able to replace people as long as the budget is not affected."
Still, Sisson insisted, "I want to know what's happening with existing staff."
Board member Kathleen Taylor said members had to know how the money was spent in a department they oversee.
"I don't appreciate being knocked by the county board all the time," she said. "We just want to know what's going on.”
A motion was passed, 9-0, stating that while the board would not be directly involved in the hiring process it would be informed beforehand when a position is being filled and how much that person is going to be paid.
Capital expenditures
Minimal debate accompanied the motion stating all capital expenditures must be approved by the board.
Frank questioned what would happen should there be an emergency, such as the air conditioning system going out?
Sisson said the intent was for the full board to know what's happening so there is no miscommunication. If an emergency arises, he said the full board should meet to consider it.
But Frank said it's not always possible to get a quorum.
And Hatfield said contacting board members by telephone would run afoul of the Open Meetings Act. He once again questioned board involvement with the day-to-day operation of the health department. The administrator, while communicating with the board chairman, handles emergencies.
"Otherwise, board of health officers need to be here every day," he said.
An amendment to the original motion, allowing the administrator to handle emergencies while communicating with the board chairman, was approved 9-0. Then the original motion passed, 9-0.
No discussion accompanied the other two motions.
One was to present the full board with a balanced budget, which was done. The other stated all salary increases must be approved by the full board with all of the details having been presented. Both passed, 9-0.
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