By Lisa Zahner
INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — Long-time County Attorney William Collins has announced that he will retire in March 2010, so the County has begun efforts to draft a job description and launch the search for a replacement.
On Tuesday, Commissioners directed staff to come back to them in mid-September with something for them to consider regarding the position. It was suggested that the candidate hired for this top administrative job not be offered the customary employment contract, but be employed at-will and subject to all County personnel and disciplinary policies and procedures, just like every other County employee. This could mean that, if the new attorney were terminated or resigned, the County would not be obligated to pay the large severance package provided for in the annual employment contracts for other top officials. Such contracts provide for officials for a year or more from the loss of income and benefits in the event of a separation of employment with the County.
Searches for positions such as the County Attorney, if not filled from within the current legal staff, often cast a net throughout the state, or at least the region, meaning a job-seeker might need to relocate his or her home and family to take the job.
When asked if he thought not being able to offer a contract would limit the ability of the County to attract the best potential attorneys for the job, Human Resources Director Jim Sexton replied, “I cannot comment on that. That’s not for me to decide.”
The County Attorney’s office is under the same budget constraints as the rest of the County departments, with the current staff members being required to take 26 furlough days during the 2009-2010 fiscal year beginning Oct. 1. Due to sharp declines in property tax revenue, combined with lower expected state cost-sharing funds and sales tax revenues, the proposed County budget includes a more than 20 percent cut in expenditures from the current year’s budget.
