OKTIBBEHA COUNTY —The board of supervisors is officially on the hunt for a new county administrator, with a plan in place to get the county through the interim.
During the board’s Monday meeting, the board voted unanimously to advertise for a new county administrator. Immediately after the vote, Board President and District 3 Supervisor Marvell Howard suggested agreeing to GTPDD’s contract for temporary help with administrative duties as a way to get through the county’s budget season.
“I’m going to make a motion that we enter into a professional contract with the Golden Triangle Planning and Development for professional assistance at $80/hr to assist us until we can get a new administrator hired,” Howard said.
Services in the contract included assisting county officials with developing the budget for next year, along with other tax calculations and worksheets needed in that process. GTPDD would also be responsible for assisting with the annual budget hearing and other administrative duties. The contract outlined that the majority of the work should be completed by October.
No specific staff member of GTPDD is designated as interim administrator, Howard said.
Supervisors vacated the county administrator position on Aug. 13 in a split vote, removing former administrator Delois Farmer from the role that she had held since July 2021. Supervisors disagreed on whether Farmer had been terminated or allowed to resign when speaking with The Dispatch the next day.
District 2 Supervisor Orlando Trainer asked Howard to read out the contract at the table, after which he voiced concerns about the time frame of the contract. Then, Trainer asked county Comptroller Deanna Collier if she believed the contract was necessary for the county to run smoothly until it gets a new administrator.
“I think we need it now,” Collier said. “I don’t know for future reference… but as of now, because of the time, and the things that need to be done on the budget to complete it for 2025, I would suggest yes.”
Howard said that he did not think it would be “fair at this moment to dump all” of the county administrator’s duties onto Collier while the county is in limbo during the hiring process.
At that, Trainer said he is not “looking for fair.”
“We don’t get to talk about… what’s fair,” Trainer said. “But I know what’s good for the county. And I know this process right here could have some negative implications on the county.”
Trainer said that if Collier said she needed help, he could accept that. But he stressed the importance of getting a permanent county administrator into position as soon as possible, instead of relying on outside help.
Howard said advertising for the position already shows that the county is not dragging its feet to fill the position. District 4 Supervisor Pattie Little then asked how long the time frame typically is for new applicants to get into a position in the county.
Trainer responded that the board doesn’t have to do anything, even hypothesizing that the board could appoint a new county administrator “this morning,” if it so chose.
“The precedent has already been set,” Trainer said. “We didn’t follow no rhyme or reason on what we did. So, the board can do whatever it wants to do. … You all just need to let everyone know what the board’s intentions are.”
District 1 Supervisor Ben Carver said he would rather emphasize getting a pool of three to five serious applicants and not rush into a permanent hire.
Trainer also said he believes the county should get the best county administrator possible, encouraging qualified candidates that currently work for the county to apply, along with others.
Former Starkville city attorney Chris Latimer, who was standing in for county attorney Rob Roberson during Monday’s meeting, suggested adding language to the contract allowing the county to terminate it at any time with 30 day notice to GTPDD. With the amendment added, Trainer moved to accept the contract with GTPDD.
Trainer then suggested giving Howard the authority to fill in on any decisions that do not fall under the purview of GTPDD’s contract, as the “main point person” to make decisions and keep the county running until a new administrator is hired, which the board voted to approve unanimously.
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