LAWRENCE COUNTY – The Lawrence County Council approved transfers and additional appropriations for county departments during the regularly scheduled meeting Tuesday night.
Paula Edwards with the Lawrence County Health Department requested an additional appropriation to be made during the April meeting, to adjust the salary ordinance for a pay scale change, to better award the employees as they have been handling more responsibilities due to limited staffing.
The council will look over the proposal to adjust the salaries of three employees to accommodate their needs for the amount of workload that has been added to their jobs.
Purdue Extension provided their annual update with the continued support of garden programs at local schools, while also providing the opportunity for community members to meet with master gardeners for any issues they have. Grace Thompson was also introduced as the new Health and Human Sciences (HHS) Educator.
Public Defender Bruce Andis then requested a transfer of $20,000 to help pay members in his department, currently staffed with three additional attorneys besides Andis.
Chad Shew with Community Corrections then requested a transfer of $24,500 to go towards trading in and acquiring a new vehicle for the department. This item had been tabled previously, due to the council requesting more time to review the transfer. This was approved 6-1, with council member Mike Wright voting no.
Next on the agenda were chiefs of three of the local Volunteer Fire Departments, including Fire Chief Jason Lewis of Marshal Township VFD, Chief Bobby Brown of Shawswick VFD, and Paul Gillespie of Marion Township VFD.
Since January 1, 2022, there have been 991 calls between the 9 local VFDs in Lawrence County. Funding has been scarce and the departments are looking for any way to help alleviate the issues. Currently, it has been determined that the cost to properly outfit a Volunteer Firefighter is $3,000, and takes over 108 hours to train.
The council cannot give money to the departments but will continue to help find ways for the departments to find proper funding.
Lastly, Sheriff Mike Branham reported that the jail population currently sits at 155, which is 86 percent full. The budget for gas for the Sheriff’s Department vehicles is currently at $60,000 and will be going over budget if gas prices don’t improve.
Sheriff Branham has also brought to the attention of the council, plans to update the jail manual on the proper use of force, while providing the information digitally on their phones, with daily updates and policy changes to stay up to date on any issues.
