Cass debates providing county personnel to other governments in case of emergencies

WALKER -- A Cass County committee will re-assess a proposed policy on providing county personnel services for emergencies to other governmental agencies.

The Cass County Personnel Rules and Policy Committee recommended to the county board Tuesday strike situations in other governments be considered an "emergency" under which the county would provide personnel.

Commissioners Joanne Pels and John Stranne objected to that definition.

The county should not interfere with another government's issues, Stranne said. A strike does not qualify as an emergency in Pels' view.

The issue arose, department heads on the committee said, when Ah-Gwah-Ching Director Jeff Smith requested in writing the use of county licensed social workers or information technology staff should there be a state strike this winter.

Cass did provide, without a formal policy on the issue but with county board authorization, county personnel to assist in Red River Valley flood clean-up two years ago.

It was agreed among the commissioners county law enforcement staff would respond should there be civil disturbance during a strike in this area.

Probation Officer Reno Wells said department heads want a formal county policy on what constitutes an emergency in the board's view and how department heads should respond to written requests for assistance from other government agencies.

Other changes the committee recommended drew less board attention.

Those covered such issues as re-defining temporary personnel, making the drug testing program (mainly used for highway department personnel) a separate document, clarifying personal and professional service contracts, re-defining privacy issues, eliminating motorcycles from vehicles authorized for personnel use on the job and clarifying some fringe benefits.

The current personnel policy was adopted in 1997 and clarified in 1998 and 1999.