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Athens Board of Elections Makes Salary Changes For Key Positions
By: WOUB Staff Writer
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Bookkeeping changes at the Athens County Board of Elections will affect how the director and deputy director will get paid.
At Friday’s special board meeting, the board approved changes that make the director, Debra Lee Quivey and deputy director, Penny L. Brooks salaried employees.
Prior to the meeting, those positions are paid by the hour, and eligible for overtime.
What’s not clear right now is exactly how much they’ll get paid. Their new salaries will not be determined until the County Commissioners weigh in. What is clear, is that the salaries will fluctuate depending on the type of election year ahead.
The yearly pay is expected to be based on the hours those administrators typically work during different election years. For instance, in the past, the difference in hours between a presidential election year and other years meant approximately $10 – 15,000 in overtime for Quivey.
In September the results of a state audit found “poor internal controls” lead to eight employees being overpaid for a total of $1603. Quivey and Brooks repaid those funds.
Elections Board chair Kate McGuckin says this move is just another update toward best practices for the Board of Elections, “We’re stewards of the taxpayer’s money and so we want to make sure as efficient as we possibly can be and have careful oversight of our budget and provide a system of checks and balances.” Board member John Haseley added, “A lot of what we do voters never really see or hear but it’s an internal thing to improve the process internally but voters can continue to expect the very best customer service from the board of elections and fair and open elections that they’ll have access to.”
Quivey was made aware of her new pay structure after the board’s executive session Friday morning and added, “We serve at the pleasure of the board and whatever the board comes up with – we work with that.”