Hays County Commissioners revisit salary study
The Hays County Commissioners Court will meet in room 301 of the Hays County Courthouse at 9 a.m. on March 28.
The court is set to discuss the Management Advisory Group, Inc Salary Study plan recommendations and requests which was meant to shed light on the pay disparities and make recommendations for needed pay increases. The county officials said they are aware that they need to bring a level of equity to the salaries among the various departments and their staffs. At issue is the potential impact on the future ability of the county to hire well-qualified employees and to retain them over time. The study was expected to be completed in March.
The court is set to hear a request by the county district attorney to hire two new attorneys, one legal assistant, one victim assistance coordinator and one paralegal to start May 1. According to the agenda, these hirings will reduce the backlog of unfiled cases in the county. Normally, the county has an expectation that there will be no more than 1,200 unfiled cases at any given time, but in mid-January there were more than 5,600 unfiled cases, some going all the way back to the second half of 2021. The addition of a victim assistance coordinator and a paralegal will allow for better service to those impacted by stalking and domestic violence.
There will be discussion and possible action on whether $195,602 from the ARPA fund may be used to create a Mental Health Specialty Court. Much like the Veterans Treatment Court which provides a special court process to address the needs of veterans, this new court would provide a special legal process for those with mental health-related concerns.
The court will consider mental health service contracts related to required counseling set which would fall under the jurisdiction of this new court, specifically addressing those who have no health insurance or with insurance, cannot afford to cover co-pays.
There will be discussion of construction on one of Wimberley’s major intersections at RM12 and RM 3237. According to the agenda, county staff recommends a contract be awarded to Aaron Concrete Contractors, LLC which submitted the lowest bid of $2,259,026.
The court will discuss construction on Robert S. Light Boulevard in Buda. The staff recommends awarding the contract to Hunter Industries, Ltd. which provided the lowest bid at $1,140,202.
