Fall River County commissioners approved several personnel and operations items affecting public safety and county services, including a monthly increase for a county nurse, the rehiring of a jailer, renewal of a fingerprint-machine maintenance agreement and a climate-control purchase for dispatch equipment rooms.

A commissioner asked about the budget basis for salary adjustments and why some increases were flat-dollar amounts rather than percentage cost-of-living adjustments. Commissioners were told that union contract rules, longevity and comparative hiring surveys influence pay adjustments.

The board adopted a motion to increase the county nurse’s monthly pay to $1,500 (a $3,000 annual increase), after a commissioner noted the nurse is on 24-hour call and can reduce emergency room visits by answering clinical questions.

Commissioners approved appointment of Anthony Ottinson as a jailer effective the upcoming Sunday and set his hourly pay to reflect the new starting rate: the transcript indicates a corrected starting wage of $24.50 per hour. The board discussed the need for experienced jail staff; a mover said the county “needs experienced jailers.” The motion to hire Ottinson carried.

The board also approved a one-year maintenance and support renewal for the IDEMIA LiveScan fingerprint machine and printer at a cost of $2,536, covering February 2025–February 2026.

County officials voted to purchase a dual-head wall split heating and cooling unit from Nelson’s Oil and Gas to climate-control the dispatch center/server and an adjacent equipment room. The item’s purpose was to protect radios, servers and cabling from heat-related failures; the transcript noted the market price for comparable units is commonly $9,000–$10,000, and the presenter said Nelson’s had offered a substantially lower price. The exact purchase price was not specified in the transcript.

All motions in this package were carried by voice vote as recorded in the minutes.