The Lowndes County Board of Supervisors is giving its employees a financial shot in the arm, thanks to the American Rescue Plan Act.
Supervisors voted Monday to give county employees premium pay in an upcoming pay period to the tune of $1,000 for full-time employees and $500 for part-time employees. It is a one-time payment.
At a previous meeting the board earmarked $350,000 of its approximately $11 million ARPA allocation for premium pay.
County Administrator Jay Fisher estimated the county employs about 346 total people but noted that the number fluctuates. He said he wasn’t sure how many of those were part-time.
“Not every person who receives a paycheck from Lowndes County is a Lowndes County employee,” Fisher said. “We have some people who use our payroll function, for example the Lowndes County Port Authority uses our payroll, but (Port Director Will Sanders) is not an employee. We get paid back for his pay. There are other situations like that.”
Some part-time workers, such as the summer help at the Road Department, don’t qualify for the premium pay, either, Fisher said.
“The payment will be made under the revenue loss provisions of (ARPA),” Fisher said. During the COVID-19 pandemic “county employees worked under difficult conditions.”
Each employee will have to sign a contract in order to receive premium pay, he said.
“That is part of what we have to do to conform to both state law and ARPA regulations,” Fisher said. “We’re not paying them for past work, we’re...
Alex Murdaugh's defense team and state prosecutors are engaged in a contentious dispute over evidence ahead of his murder retrial. The defense claims prosecutors are withholding complete cell pho...