Council considering reclassification

Council members will consider changing a job description and salary classification. But they are concerned about the precedent it might set.
After hearing a request Wednesday from assessor Diana Stults, Jay County Council agreed to submit a proposed new job description for a reassessment deputy to be reviewed by the firm that created the county pay plan.
Council also clarified a rule about holiday compensation and discussed an upcoming meeting of the county budget committee.
Stults told council members she believes her deputy, Cherrie Geesaman, should be moved up in classification on the county’s pay scale because of the work she does beyond what is included in her current job description. She suggested that Geesaman receive at least $30,000 per year, up from her current $26,608.
She explained that Geesaman has level I, II and III state certification as an assessor as well as a realtor’s license and has handled a workload that was previously done by outside contractors. She estimated that her office is saving about $200,000 over a four-year period because of the responsibilities Geesaman has taken on.
“Cherrie has been and is a great asset to this county,” said Stults. “She’s saving us a lot of money. I just feel like we need to compensate her."
Stults noted that she has money to pay for the increase in her fund for part-time employees, who have not been needed in part because of the work Geesaman has done.
Some council members expressed concern about making such a change, saying other departments would likely have similar requests. Fairness was also called into question, as council put a freeze on salaries during its budget process last year.
Finances are tight in the county’s general fund, which needed $500,000 from the rainy day fund this year to balance the budget.
Council voted 5-1, with Bob Vance dissenting, to take the first step by sending the proposed new job description to Muncie consulting firm Waggoner, Irwin, Scheele and Associates for its assessment. The firm will review the proposal and give a recommendation as to whether the additional responsibilities warrant a pay increase.
County auditor Anna Culy noted that it would make sense to keep the current job description regardless, in case Geesaman ever leaves the assessor’s office and her replacement does not have the same skills.
Council members Mike Leonhard, Gary Theurer, Ted Champ, Jeanne Houchins, Mike Rockwell, Cindy Newton and Vance also clarified that by county ordinance holiday time must be used during the calendar year it is accrued and can’t be carried over. Champ had asked about accumulating holiday time because the question had been raised with him regarding Jay Emergency Medical Service employees.
The ordinance reads, “Holiday time can not be carried over to the next calendar year. If not used, the hours are lost.”
Culy asked council what kind of information it would like to have available for a budget committee meeting scheduled for May 4. After a brief discussion, they decided budget packets for that meeting should include as much detail as possible, similar to what the council typically receives during the budget approval process in August and September.
The committee, which includes commissioner Faron Parr, county engineer Dan Watson, Champ, Houchins, Vance and Culy, will discuss the budget and recommendations made by consultant Greg Guerrettaz of Financial Solutions Group.
In other business, council:
•Gave approval to advertise additional appropriations of $24,308.25 for computer equipment at Jay County Sheriff’s Office and $5,000 for a water tester for Jay County Retirement Center. Council had approved the spending at previous meetings. The sheriff’s office equipment records conversations between inmates and jail employees.
•Approved an additional appropriation of $1,000 for purchase of a new computer for Jay County Community Corrections, and $109.54 for office supplies for work related to the Salamonie Watershed.