Hampshire County names interim emergency‑services leaders and delays vote on governance overhaul

The Hampshire County Commission on Jan. 30 appointed internal staff to three interim emergency‑services posts and agreed to delay consideration of a governance‑reform resolution that would launch a 60–90 day drafting process for an ordinance to restructure how emergency‑response policy is set.

Presiding Commissioner called the special meeting at about 9:15 a.m. to consider interim leadership for the Hampshire County Emergency Services Agency (HCSA) and Homeland Security and Emergency Management (HSEM). Commissioner Mance told the commission that HCSA staff and the HCSA advisory board had "unanimously" supported two internal volunteers — Cole (HCSA employee nominee) and Mikaela Raines — to serve as interim director and interim training officer for the agency, respectively. Mance also reported that former emergency‑management director Tad Malcolm agreed to consider serving as interim director of emergency management.

The commission adopted a motion from Commissioner Mance appointing the three interim leaders; the motion was seconded and approved by voice vote. The motion did not include detailed employment terms on the record; commissioners said those operational details would be worked out among HCSA staff, the advisory board and Commissioner Mance.

The meeting also included a wider proposal from Commissioner Mance to create a stakeholder governance structure for emergency services. Mance said the intent was not to create new statutory authority but "to put the people that are responsible for the provision of our safety in charge of those policies," and described a 90‑day timeline that would start with a 60‑day drafting period to produce an ordinance for public comment and refinement, with appointment authority and board structure to follow only if and when an ordinance were adopted.

The sheriff urged caution, saying he had received the resolution only that morning and noting "state law says that there's to be an advisory board" for 9‑1‑1; he suggested legal advice be solicited on whether the county could lawfully assign additional, authoritative functions to a reconstituted board. A representative of the Hampshire County Fire Association warned the commission not to upend volunteer fire‑department governance, saying the association already holds certain policy responsibilities for the volunteer companies.

Cole, speaking as an HCSA employee nominee, highlighted operational priorities and pilot programs that staff are preparing to launch, including whole‑blood trials and advanced prehospital care capabilities, and told commissioners that employees "want to see solid progress forward within 30 days" on the governance and leadership issues.

Several commissioners said they had received the resolution late and wanted time to review statutory, budgetary and stakeholder implications. Commissioner Mance moved to table consideration of the proposed resolution until the commission's Feb. 10 regular meeting (or until a special meeting if one is called sooner); the motion was seconded and passed by voice vote. The commission also voted to table evaluation of duties and the advertisement for permanent hires until after the governance questions are addressed.

What the commission decided in practice on Jan. 30 was to install interim leadership to preserve operational continuity while pausing substantive policy change: interim appointments were confirmed, and the broader governance‑reform resolution was deferred for additional review and legal analysis. The commission adjourned after confirming those motions.

Quotes used in this article are taken verbatim from the Jan. 30 meeting transcript and are attributed to the roles or speaker identifiers used during the meeting.