November 18, 2022 Hood County Special Called Meeting

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The Hood County Commissioner's Court convened on November 18, 2022, to canvas the November 8 general election results and address several operational and personnel matters. The court approved hiring a full-time Tyler Odyssey application support specialist for the county clerk's office and authorized deputies working consecutive shifts to take marked county vehicles home within a 30-mile radius, contingent upon development of liability waivers for family member transport. The court also voted to compensate the on-call investigator at $100 per week effective November 21, 2022, to be funded through the forfeiture fund rather than general revenue.

• Call to order and meeting logisticsThe special called meeting of Hood County Commissioner's Court convened on Friday, November 18, 2022, at 10 a.m. in the Ralph H. Walton Junior Justice Center Central Jury Room in Granbury, Texas.
• Canvas of November 8, 2022 general election resultsElection Administrator Stephanie Cooper presented results from the November 8, 2022 general election for official canvas approval by the court.
• Tyler Odyssey application support specialist position in county clerk's officeCounty Clerk Katie Linn requested approval to hire a full-time Tyler Odyssey application support specialist to assist with the county clerk's records conversion process, funded from the records management preservation fund.
• Amendment to county vehicle policy for Sheriff's OfficeSheriff Deeds requested amendments to the Hood County vehicle policy to allow deputies assigned to shifts and on-call status to take county vehicles home for faster response and operational efficiency.
• Sheriff vehicle take-home policy for consecutive-shift deputiesThe Sheriff's Office requested approval for deputies working consecutive days to take county vehicles home instead of unloading and reloading equipment daily.
• Insurance and liability concerns regarding non-employee ridersA commissioner raised concerns that county insurance may not cover non-employees riding in county vehicles, flagging this as a significant liability issue.
• Policy revision needed for family member transport provisionsCommissioners requested that liability waivers and policy language be developed before approving any family member transport provisions.
• Motion to allow deputies to take vehicles home on consecutive shiftsThe court voted to allow deputies working consecutive shifts to take marked vehicles home within a 30-mile radius of Hood County.
• On-call investigator compensation of $100 per weekThe Sheriff requested $100 per week ($5,200 annually) compensation for the on-call investigator to ensure availability and dedicated focus during their assignment.
• Funding source: abandoned vehicle fund for on-call compensationThe Sheriff proposed using the abandoned vehicle fund (Fund 61) to pay for the on-call investigator stipend instead of general taxpayer funds.
• Implementation method and fiscal year fundingThe department and commissioners discussed how to process the on-call stipend through payroll and agreed to use forfeiture funds through the current fiscal year.
• Motion to approve on-call investigator compensation from forfeiture fundThe court voted to authorize the Sheriff's Department to pay on-call investigator compensation from the forfeiture fund effective November 21, 2022.