DATE: December 15, 2015
TO: Board of Supervisors
SUBMITTED BY: Brandi Orth, County Clerk/Registrar of Voters
SUBJECT: Salary Resolution Amendment
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
TITLE
Approve the Salary Resolution Amendment for County Clerk - Elections Organization 2850 as reflected on Appendix “C”, on file with the Clerk to the Board effective December 21, 2015.
REPORT
Approval of the recommended action does not increase the total permanent position allocations. This will allow the Department to combine two elections units under the supervision of one manager to provide greater oversight of key elections processes, increase effectiveness and facilitate cross-training of staff. There is no increase in net County cost associated with the recommended action. The total number of 28 allocated positions will not change.
ALTERNATIVE ACTION(S):
If the recommended action is not approved, the County Clerk - Elections positions will not change. The existing positions would remain within their groups as currently reflected in the Salary Resolution, and the two units would be managed by two different managers.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no increase in net County cost associated with the recommended action. Sufficient appropriations and estimated revenues are included in the County Clerk-Elections FY 2015/16 Adopted Budget.
DISCUSSION:
Approval of the recommended Salary Resolution Amendment will establish a new classification of County Clerk Program Manager that will provide the opportunity for the Department to staff at a level commensurate with the responsibilities associated with managing an elections division. The upcoming 2016 Presidential election cycle will be the most challenging, complex and high profile elections since 2008. Due to retirements and attrition of experienced staff since the last major election cycle, many Elections staff are new to the Department. The success of these elections depends on the experience level of the election officials. New staff must be provided hands on training in real time during an election and utmost care must be taken to protect the integrity of the election process. To address this situation, it is recommended that two of the elections units (Voter Services and Precinct Officers) be combined under the span of control of a single, highly experienced elections manager. This move will provide more opportunities for cross-training of less experienced staff and allow for closer oversight during the complex administration of the various elections processes.
Placement of the County Clerk Program Manager, County Clerk Program Coordinator, Program Technician I/II, Stock Clerk I/II Office Assistant I/II/III and Account Clerk I/II/III positions in partial combination will allow the flexibility to address organizational needs from both an operational and budgetary perspective with the option to underfill positions during off cycle election years as vacancies occur. In addition, it will allow the County Clerk - Elections Office to conduct internal promotional processes, if authorized by the Director of Personnel Services, which will reduce the amount of time needed to fill vacant positions.
The Department of Personnel Services agrees that placing the position in partial combination will allow the County Clerk - Elections Office additional flexibility; however, it should be noted that should layoffs occur in the future, there may be layoff displacement implications due to the placement of multiple positions in partial combination.
The total number of 28 allocated positions for County Clerk - Elections will not change as a result of the recommended action. The CAO and Interim Director of Personnel support the recommended action.
ATTACHMENTS INCLUDED AND/OR ON FILE:
Salary Resolution Appendix “C”
CAO ANALYST:
Ron Alexander