March 25, 2020 - 6:00 PM - County Board of Commissioners Meeting Minutes (Special)

10 310 Meeting of the Johnston County Board of Commissioners March 25 , 2020 6 00 pm The Johnston County Board of Commissioners met in special session Wednesday , March 25 , 2020 at 6 00 pm The meeting began in the Commissioners Meeting Room , Johnston County Courthouse Annex , Smithfield , North Carolina ; however , the Board voted to recess the meeting to the Old Superior Courtroom Courtroom No 4 in the Johnston County Courthouse The following members were present Present Chairman Ted G Godwin , Vice Chairman Chad M Stewart , Jeffrey P Carver , Larry Wood , Tony Braswell , Patrick E Harris , and RS “ Butch ” Lawter , Jr Absent None Also Present County Manager Rick J Hester , Clerk to the Board Paula G Woodard , Finance Officer and Assistant County Manager J Chad McLamb , County Attorney Jennifer J Slusser , and Paralegal Deputy Clerk to the Board Dana Cuddington Chairman Ted G Godwin called the special meeting to order at 6 00 pm for the purposes of receiving updates and taking necessary actions for items related to the COVID - 19 Coronavirus Pandemic and a Remote Participation Policy Upon a motion by Commissioner Patrick E Harris , seconded by Commissioner Chad M Stewart , and carried unanimously , the Board voted to recess the meeting to the Old Superior Courtroom Courtroom No 4 in the Johnston County Courthouse The Chairman called the meeting back to order immediately upon arriving to the Old Superior Courtroom at 6 05 pm Commissioner Butch Lawter offered a prayer 1 Updates to the Board Health Director Dr Marilyn Pearson thanked her staff at the Health Department for all the work they have been doing during the COVID - 19 Pandemic Dr Pearson also thanked all the partners that have been working with the Health Department Dr Pearson reported the number of cases in North Carolina are increasing and the Governor announced today that North Carolina has over 500 confirmed cases She reported Johnston County currently has nine confirmed cases and they are monitoring 66 people Dr Pearson explained the numbers are not reflective of the true burden of the virus due to testing capabilities as well as recent changes to testing recommendations She noted most people with COVID - 19 symptoms will recover without needing medical care at all Dr Pearson stated the community health care providers are continuing to see patients in their offices , but many of them are utilizing telehealth visits at this time Dr Pearson stated there continues to be a need for more Personal Protective Equipment PPE She stated this event is a big challenge for the Health Department , Johnston Health , businesses , and the community in general Dr Pearson stated it is extremely important for residents to stay home and follow the recommended CDC guidelines to help stop the spread Johnston Health Interim CEO Tom Williams stated the hospital’s goal at this point is to be prepared for multiple scenarios Mr Williams stated their main concerns include having enough capacity , ventilators , PPE supplies , and workforce Mr Williams reported on the various actions they have been taking in order to be ready , stating they are continuously meeting with their health care partners including the Johnston County Health Department Mr Williams agreed with Dr Pearson on the need for more PPE supplies stating most of that type of equipment is in short supply ; however , they are working on local opportunities to obtain more Mr Williams thanked the Board of Commissioners , the Johnston Health Board , UNC Health , and Health Director Dr Pearson for their support to the hospital Dr Eric Janis , Chairman of the Johnston Health Services Corp , addressed the Board and expressed his appreciation to all those that dedicate their lives caring for others , especially over the last two weeks He commended the caregivers who risk exposure every day while caring for others Dr Janis spoke on statistics regarding the regular flu versus the COVID - 19 Coronavirus and noted one big difference between this virus and the regular flu is that there is no vaccine for COVID - 19 He stated the number of confirmed cases is increasing not only because it is spreading but also because more testing is being done Dr Janis encouraged everyone to follow the recommended CDC guidelines for social distancing and handwashing He also encouraged businesses that remain open to provide proper social distancing measures for customers and handwashing Page311 March 25 , 2020 – 6 00 pm Continued Emergency Services Director Kevin Hubbard thanked all those responding to the COVID - 19 pandemic , especially the EMS personnel who are often the first to respond Mr Hubbard provided the Board with an update on PPE supplies and noted they still have open requests to the State for more supplies and equipment Mr Hubbard stated everyone is in need of the same supplies so there are delays Mr Hubbard reported the call line is still open and they are still receiving calls with most questions concerning if someone should be tested or not Mr Hubbard stated the Health Department has staffing for the call center to answer those questions 911 - Communications Director Jason Barbour provided the Board with an update on the 911 operations Mr Barbour stated they have implemented and adjusted their protocols when responding to situations where there is a suspected COVID - 19 patient Mr Barbour spoke on the safety measures they have in place to protect the EMS personnel He stated the overall call volume remains steady and in the last seven days , of the 219 EMS calls received , 43 of those have met the criteria for possible COVID - 19 exposure Mr Barbour also noted that once a confirmed COVID - 19 case is known , they make a note of that address within their system in the event EMS has to be dispatched to that location so the EMS personnel can take the necessary precautions 2 Human Resources – Teleworking Options Leave Time for Employees Human Resources Director Lu Hickey updated the Board with regards to practices being implemented for the County’s workforce during the COVID - 19 period She thanked the Board for granting flexibility to the County Manager regarding the Personnel Policy as the County supports the employees who continue to provide necessary and essential services to the citizens She stated staff is being encouraged to utilize conference calls and video conferencing in lieu of face to face meetings and many departments will be staggering shifts and teleworking in an effort to minimize exposure Ms Hickey stated employees are practicing social distancing , avoiding unnecessary travel , and staying home when sick Ms Hickey updated the Board with regards to the Families First Coronavirus Response Act , which requires Johnston County to provide employees with paid sick leave or expanded family and medical leave for specified reasons related to COVID - 19 She noted this Act is effective April 1 , 2020 and applies to leave taken between April 1 , 2020 and December 31 , 2020 Ms Hickey stated generally , the Act requires Johnston County to provide all employees that are unable to work or telework with the following ? Two weeks up to 80 hours of paid sick leave at the employee’s regular rate of pay where the employee is unable to work because the employee is quarantined and or experiencing COVID - 19 symptoms and seeking medical diagnosis – limited to a maximum of 511 day and 5,110 over the entire sick leave period ; OR ? Two weeks up to 80 hours of paid sick leave at two - thirds of the employee’s regular rate of pay because the employee is unable to work because of a bona fide need to care for an individual subject to quarantine or provide care for a child whose school or child care provider is closed or unavailable for reasons related to COVID - 19 – limited to 200 day or 2000 over the entire two week period ; AND ? Up to an additional 10 weeks of paid expanded family and medical leave at two - thirds the employee’s regular rate of pay where the employee is unable to work due to need to care for child whose school or child care provider is closed or unavailable for reasons related to COVID - 19 – limited to 200 per day or 12,000 over the twelve week period Ms Hickey stated health care providers and emergency responders are exempted from the Act and the County will utilize that exemption to provide the necessary services to Johnston County Citizens Ms Hickey also reminded the Board of the County’s overtime provisions , as follows Employees of the county can be requested and may be required to work overtime hours as necessitated by the needs of the county and determined by the supervisor Overtime work must be approved by an employee’s supervisor In the event the Emergency Operations Center EOC is fully activated , employees working to provide essential services in support of continued operations will be compensated according to the overtime pay policy ? nonexempt employees will be paid at one and one - half times their regular rate of pay for actual hours worked beyond the regular 40 hour work week ; ? Exempt employees will be granted compensatory time or will be paid at the rate of one time their regular rate of pay for actual hours worked beyond the regular 40 hour workweek Ms Hickey stated in the event there is an ordered shelter in place by the Governor’s Office and employees are unable to telework and do not have adequate leave comp , vacation and or sick to cover the length of the order , if there are no objections by the Board , the County will advance up to 80 hours with thePage312 March 25 , 2020 – 6 00 pm Continued ability for employees to repay the advance within 24 months Ms Hickey stated the intent is to have as many employees as possible working through flexible working arrangements while following any orders which may be issued There were no objections by the Board County Manager Rick Hester noted the County will seek federal reimbursement wherever possible as has been done in the past during weather related events such as hurricanes 3 Waiver of Online Processing Fees – Public Utilities Credit Card Payments County Manager Rick Hester took a moment to thank the citizens of Johnston County for their patience in utilizing as many online services as possible during this time Mr Hester also thanked all the employees for their hard work and dedication He stated this is a team effort and he is very proud to be a part of the Johnston County team Mr Hester noted the traffic in the courthouse has significantly decreased and staff is working on alternatives to help reduce traffic in some of the other frequently visited areas Mr Hester stated because the County is encouraging citizens to utilize online applications as much as possible during this time he would respectfully request the Board consider waiving the online processing fees associated with credit card payments for Public Utilities retail water and wastewater customers Upon a motion by Commissioner Chad M Stewart , seconded by Commissioner Larry Wood , and carried unanimously , the Board voted to waive the online processing fees associated with credit card payments for Johnston County Public Utilities retail water and wastewater customers until April 30 , 2020 and authorized the County Manager to extend if necessary during the COVID - 19 period 4 Remote Participation Policy County Attorney Jennifer Slusser submitted and reviewed with the Board a draft Remote Participation Policy She stated the policy will provide flexibility for the Commissioners as well as boards and committees appointed solely by the Commissioners to participate remotely if needed Ms Slusser offered to answer any questions Upon a motion by Commissioner Jeffrey P Carver , seconded by Commissioner Butch Lawter , and carried unanimously , the Board adopted the following Remote Participation Policy REMOTE PARTICIPATION POLICY FOR MEETINGS OF THE JOHNSTON COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS Members of the Johnston County Board of Commissioners Board may remotely participate in briefings and official meetings of the Board , subject to the following rules and procedures 1 Remote participation may be used only in limited circumstances A Commissioner desiring to participate in a meeting remotely must assert one or more of the following four reasons for being physically unable to attend the meeting i Personal illness or disability ; ii Employment purposes ; iii Family or other personal emergency ; or iv To participate in other scheduled County related meetings which make it logistically impossible to attend the Board meeting 2 Remote participation may be allowed only during open sessions when a quorum of the Board is physically present at the meeting and the Commissioner participating remotely is not necessary to establish a quorum 3 Remote participation shall not be allowed during the following a Quasi - judicial hearings ; and b Closed sessions Page313 March 25 , 2020 – 6 00 pm Continued 4 A Commissioner desiring to participate in a meeting remotely must notify the Clerk to the Board of the need for remote participation and request approval by the Chairman of his her remote participation at least 24 hours prior to the start of the meeting , unless advance notice is impractical 5 At the start of the official meeting and prior to participating in deliberations , the Chairman of the Board shall announce that a Commissioner is participating remotely Such Commissioner shall identify himself or herself and state the reason that he she is participating remotely 6 A Commissioner participating remotely shall be allowed to participate in all open session Board briefing discussions and open session official Board meeting discussions with the exception of quasi - judicial hearings A Commissioner participating remotely shall be able to vote on matters allowed under the policy 7 A Commissioner participating remotely shall be provided with all documents to be considered during the briefing session and the official meeting 8 A Commissioner participating remotely shall participate via simultaneous and or electronic communication and must be fully heard and if possible seen by other members of the Board and any other individuals in attendance at the official meeting Use of telephone , internet , or satellite enabled audio or video conferencing , or any other technology that enables the remote participant and all persons present at the meeting location to be clearly audible to one another is necessary If clear audio is not available , the Chairman may elect to disallow or discontinue the remote participation 9 A Commissioner participating remotely shall provide a voice vote which can be heard and recorded if participating by telephone and shall provide a voice and hand vote if participating by video 10 The only exception to this policy is that remote participation by electronic means by any and all Commissioners is permissible during a state of emergency declared pursuant to NCGS § 166A of the North Carolina General Statutes and Article 36A Chapter 14 of the North Carolina General Statutes and shall be consistent with the North Carolina Open Meetings Law During the state of emergency , the 24 hour notice requirement shall be waived and the Board may conduct closed sessions , as by law provided 11 This policy shall be applicable to all Johnston County Government boards and committees appointed solely by the Johnston County Board of Commissioners , as may be allowed by law th Adopted this 25 day of March 2020 5 Update from Sheriff Steve Bizzell Sheriff Steve Bizzell thanked the Board of Commissioners for their support and he also thanked Health Director Dr Marilyn Pearson and her staff for their excellent work Sheriff Bizzell commended his entire staff stating the Sheriff’s Office is open for business and all the employees have been doing an outstanding job Sheriff Bizzell updated the Board on the jail capacity and stated they are presently holding 230 inmates He noted they have suspended the visitation at the jail for now Sheriff Bizzell stated he is unsure what will happen later in the week as far as orders coming from the Governor’s Office , but he is fully aware that people have to buy groceries and people have to get to work Following final comments from the Commissioners encouraging everyone to follow recommended CDC guidelines for handwashing and social distancing practices , there being no further business , Commissioner Tony Braswell moved the Board adjourn Commissioner Chad M Stewart seconded the motion , which carried by unanimous vote The meeting adjourned at 7 15 pm Ted G Godwin , Chairman Paula G Woodard , Clerk to the BoardPage