County supervisors OK attorney going full-time

The Adair County supervisors unanimously passed a resolution Wednesday, Dec. 18 that makes County Attorney Melissa Larson full-time with the county at the beginning of the next fiscal year, which starts July 1, 2025.

Larson previously spoke with the supervisors about the idea of a transition recently, saying she had given it a lot of thought over an extended period of time. She said that Iowa Code prohibits full-time county attorneys to have a private practice, so if they authorized her to be full-time with the county, she would wrap up the work for her private practice by the time the transition takes effect.

The resolution Larson presented the supervisors with not only included language that set in motion the change in status, but it gave her a $10,000 wage adjustment, $2,000 lower than a $12,000 wage adjustment recommended by the compensation board, which also presented last week to the supervisors. The wage adjustment would be added in after any consideration of percentage increase she could receive as an elected official.

“I know the compensation board recommended $12,000 [for an adjustment] but I think $10,000 is a reasonable request, especially given the other expenses that will come into play,” Larson said. “When I came to you last time, you said to get you some budget numbers and a resolution.”

Supervisor Matt Wedemeyer commented that moving the county attorney from part-time to full-time has been discussed for awhile now, and he appreciated Larson telling the supervisors when she felt it was time to make that move.

Compensation board makes recommendation

The county’s compensation board met recently to study salary adjustments and form a recommendation to be made to the supervisors, and Jayne Lents represented that group in front of the supervisors.

Lents said the board recommends a 5% salary increase for the board of supervisors, auditor, recorder, treasurer and sheriff. They recommended a 5% increase for the county attorney if it is part-time. If it is full-time, they also recommended a $12,000 adjustment for the attorney.

Numbers provided to the compensation board by County Auditor Mandy Berg were helpful, Lents said. The compensation board is required to show their work they did to arrive at their recommendation.

In other action, the supervisors:

• entered into another ISAC Wellness Agreement

• signed a Tenex Election Equipment Agreement

• entered an agreement with Richland Township for a FEMA project to reimburse for cemetery repair costs relating to the tornado

• heard a presentation from Ryan Berven of Assured Partners about the fiscal year 2026 health, dental and vision insurance renewal

• approved a 180-day extension to the interim county engineer sharing agreement for Nick Kaufmann helping in Adams County, stating they don’t want the agreement to be permanent

• awarded resolutions on a culvert project in Harrison Township and a bridge replacement project in Summerset Township