Votes at a glance: commissioners approve personnel reclassification, consultant funds, cab-rate change, safety plan and bad-debt write-off

MERRIMACK COUNTY — Commissioners approved several routine personnel, contract and financial items during the meeting:

Reclassification: The board approved reclassifying the director of food services at the jail from hourly to a salaried exempt position within labor grade 11. County staff said the reclassification should reduce overtime and provide scheduling flexibility; the motion carried by voice vote.

Consultant payment: Commissioners approved an additional $5,000 from opioid abatement funds to cover extra hours worked by community corrections consultant Kevin Warwick this year. Staff said opioid settlement funds can be used for jail-based substance-use services and that allocations are tracked annually.

Concord Cab contract rates: The board approved raising Concord Cab rates by $3 per one-way trip — from $24 to $27 for Concord trips and from $37 to $40 for Franklin trips — with costs covered from the inmate trust account.

Safety and health program: Commissioners adopted a revised county safety and health program required by state law; staff will sign and file the updated document with the Department of Labor as required.

Bad-debt write-off: The board approved writing off $79,086.76 in uncollectible balances largely from 2021–2023 after an electronic medical-record conversion complicated collections; finance staff detailed accounting treatments that will be applied at year-end.

Votes: Each item was moved, seconded and approved by voice vote; formal roll-call tallies were not recorded in the public transcript.