The project is in response to the loss of employees in multiple county departments, particularly at the county’s Job and Family Services and sheriff’s offices, said Clark County administrator Jennifer Hutchinson.
“We are losing employees at a high rate,” she said. “We think this is something that can help us.”
The incentive will be calculated by gross annual income not including other bonuses, mileage, overtime and other payment beyond the hourly or base pay, according to commission.
The county commission employs hundreds of employees in multiple departments, and many permanent and probationary part-time and full-time workers are eligible for the incentives.
Departments who have their own appointing boards — such as the Clark County Combined Health District, the Board of Developmental Disabilities, the Mental Health and Recovery Board, the Clark County Law Library, the Transportation Coordinating Committee, the Clark County Park District, the Clark Soil and Water Conservation District and the West Central Community Correctional Facility — are not eligible for the incentives, according to the county commission.
Also not eligible for the incentive project are intermittent employees, temporary personnel, interns, seasonal workers and elected officials at county offices.
County employees can earn a 2.5% bonus in August in addition to the new 2.5% incentive eligible employees will now receive at the end of the year, according to the commission.
Employees must have a “fully active” pay status with the county on the date of the bonus disbursements to receive them, Hutchinson said.
ARPA funds can be used to provide worker retention incentives to encourage employees to stay employed by the recipient of the federal relief, according to the county commission.
Wednesday’s allocation is part of the $26 million allocated to Clark County from the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act that President Joe Biden signed into law in March 2021. A total of $350 billion was allocated to help local governments across the country reeling from the pandemic.
The Clark County commission has also allocated funding to more than 20 projects and other items, such as employee paid administrative leave and technology for the county’s dispatch center.
Commissioners also approved ARPA spending for a stormwater improvement project for Enon-Xenia Road to alleviate flooding in the area and for a fiber optic project to service county-owned buildings, as well as a safety improvement project for Spangler Road.
Another $220,000 was allocated in January to assist Clark County veterans seeking aid through the county veterans office.
Up to $2.5 million in the federal relief dollars was allocated to reimburse the county for a portion of dispatch center costs, as well an additional $300,000 to cover the costs of programming and personnel expenses for reentry services for people preparing to leave incarceration in Clark County.
The commission also voted to allocate $125,000 for a part-time position for several years for the Ohio State University extension office of Clark County. The position will focus on assisting the county’s local food program and community gardens. In addition, roughly $260,000 in ARPA funding was allocated to reimburse the county for COVID-19 health care expenses incurred by the county self-insurance health care program.
In addition, the commission allocated $10 million in ARPA funding in total to reimburse the county for revenue loss that resulted from the pandemic, $800,000 of which is being used to cover the costs of a waterline extension project on Rt. 235.
Last week, federal relief funds were allocated to cover $60,000 worth of staffing increases at the Clark County Dog Warden’s Office as dogs continue to fill the shelter at max capacity.
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