CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – Employees from four county-affiliated organizations could receive up to $10,000 in premium pay each from Montgomery County using funds from the federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).

In October, the county announced that its employees who provided essential services during the COVID-19 pandemic would receive up to $10,000 in premium pay. Several county-affiliated organizations were left out, including Bi-County Solid Waste Management, the Community Corrections Program, the Health Department and the Emergency Communications District (E911), because their employees not legally defined as county employees.

The decision on who would receive premium pay originated from the office of County Mayor Jim Durrett, who also serves on Bi-County’s board of directors.

“We approved premium pay for county employees two months ago. When we met as a staff, we looked at who we felt was eligible and who we felt weren’t eligible. They weren’t easy decisions to make, but I think we agreed unanimously as a staff that it would be county employees only,” Durrett said at an informal County Commission meeting on Monday.

Those employees could now receive premium pay under a series of resolutions on this month’s commission agenda.

‘We’re not going to make them the bastard children of Montgomery County’

Several commissioners spoke Monday in favor of premium pay for what came to be called “pseudo-government employees.” Employees of Bi-County were the chief topic, largely due to theirs being the first resolution on the agenda.

Among the proponents was Commissioner Joe Smith, who said it was unfair to say Bi-County staff are not county employees when their W-2s, employee cards and other documentation say “Montgomery County.”

“We’re not going to make them the bastard children of Montgomery County,” Smith said. “It’s unfair to say, ‘Ah, your funding comes from a different source. You’re not an employee of Montgomery County,’ when all these things say they are, just because they are a revenue generator.”

“It doesn’t necessarily matter who funds it,” added Commissioner Joshua Beal. “It’s where their HR file is. If their HR file is with Montgomery County, then I consider them a county employee.”

But that may no longer be the case. Until recently, personnel files for these agencies were housed with county Human Resources. Over the summer, personnel files for Bi-County and E-911 were transferred to the boards governing those agencies.

A precedent issue

Speaking against the idea of premium pay was Commissioner John Gannon, who said the county already does a great deal for Bi-County and its employees.

“When I hear that morale is low because of this, that kind of bothers me a little bit, because I know all the things that have happened in the past and how we take care of Bi-County. My only drawback at this point is that they’re not considered Montgomery County employees. I think we are setting a big precedent if we start doing it, because I don’t know where it ends.”

Durrett agreed. “These people, with all due respect, are not county employees, and to say that they are does not help this situation at all,” Durrett said. “They may look like an employee, they may get stuff that looks like it, but in fact they’re not.”

County Attorney Tim Harvey added that in past lawsuits involving Bi-County, their lack of county employee status has been part of the county’s defense.

“They have a board of directors that has, for example, chosen to accept our personnel policy, but that’s their vote,” Harvey said Monday. “They are a separate entity, and they are not employees of Montgomery County … and we have alleged in some lawsuits, some of which are still pending, that employee complaints about management are not the responsibility of Montgomery County. Our defense is that we’re not managing those employees. There is a relationship, but they’re not employees of Montgomery County, and we do plead that in lawsuits.”

Durrett said he has even been approached about distributing the pay to private health care workers. He said he might bring future requests for premium pay to the commission, citing grocery store workers as an example.

Where’s the money?

In response to questions from commissioners, County Director of Accounts and Budgets Jeffery Taylor said the county does have ARPA funds available for premium payments, but they are waiting on federal guidance on how to allocate the funds.

The county allocated $11 million for county employee premiums, leaving a little over $8 million unallocated. Another approximately $22 million has not yet been released to the county.

Durrett said other proposed uses for those funds include a new communications tower for EMS and Sheriff’s Office employees in the Highway 48/13 area and a testing site for future public health emergencies.

County commissioners will vote on premium pay for Bi-County Waste Management, Community Corrections, the Health Department and E911 on Monday, Dec. 13, at 6 p.m.

Eight commissioners supported premium pay in their comments on Monday, meaning that only three additional commissioners are needed for a majority.