Spat between Weed & Pest board members brought before commission

The county commissioners have been asked to pass judgment on a conflict of opinions between members of the Crook County Weed & Pest Board. The issue was brought forth by board member Wade Dennis, who feels there has been a “serious breakdown in the chain of command between the board and the supervisor”.

Dennis explained that he feels board members have chosen to act as the Weed & Pest supervisor themselves, directly violating the contract with that supervisor. He listed perceived transgressions such as individual board members calling to dictate the hours that should be worked; instructing the supervisor who he may and may not hire as a seasonal employee; and telling the supervisor where exactly he must shop when making small purchases.

“I wanted to be very clear that these actions by the board definitely are not condoned by me as a board member,” Dennis said.

In a written complaint to the board, Dennis also outlined a situation in which the board had turned over duties of supervision for the position of office manager to the supervisor, but retained the ability to hire and fire that role. This, he said, created a difficult situation in which the chain of command was quickly broken and “mistrust” was established.

His complaint also included concerns about “micro-managing” of the day-to-day operations set forth by the supervisor. This led to contradicting orders when the pandemic began, as board members asked the office manager to remain in the office when she had been instructed by the supervisor to stay at home.

According to Dennis’s complaint, Commissioner Kelly Dennis had been present when one incident between the board and supervisor was discussed during a meeting and “warned the board that they serve the commissioners and that if they continued to act out of line, there would be consequences brought down by the commissioners”.

Chip Neiman, board chairman, refuted the accusations, telling the commission that there are reasonable explanations for actions that have been taken. He acknowledged that he did step in to question a purchase of pallet racking for $6000 to suggest it would be more fiscally responsible to purchase used pallets for a lower price.

“Are we not responsible to…try to be as efficient as we can with what we’re given here?” asked Neiman. “That responsibility is all of us, not just the supervisor.”

Neiman also suggested that the board had vetoed a particular person as a seasonal employee for good reason and that there is a lot more to that situation than the commissioners currently know. He stated that he would like them to hear the history “from the board in person” as there is more to it that should be discussed.

Another issue raised during the meeting was Dennis’s annoyance at having been instructed by the board chairman that he may not use electronic devices during meetings. Dennis stated he had done his research and feels, “That’s an attack upon my rights and if that ever happens again I will personally seek legal action against the board and the chairman.”

Board member Leroy Curren addressed this complaint, stating that there is no problem when the device is “being used to look up things on the board,” but not for personal use in a general meeting.

Neiman enquired as to the legality of using an electronic device to speak to others outside executive session, to offer information to someone else. County Attorney Joe Baron said it would not be permissible “Unless the board approves it, but the way to address that is to enact rules and regulations governing it.”

Though at first, the commissioners considered the idea of creating a written response to the board, Commissioner Jeanne Whalen commented that, “We can’t make a decision until we hear both sides”. She suggested the commission should accept the invitation to attend an upcoming Weed & Pest board meeting on May 13.