County buys $14,223 in clothes for ambulances
Staff writer
Keeping school kids in clothes can be expensive, but it’s nothing compared to outfitting ambulance workers.
If you work for the Marion County ambulance service it’s quite expensive, all at the expense of taxpayers.
With almost no discussion Friday morning county commissioners Friday morning approved a $14,223 bill from Western Associates to outfit EMS workers.
After the meeting Commissioner Mike Beneke said the clothing was partly for new EMS volunteers.
The items included 18 duty boots, 62 pants, three different shirt styles totaling 146 in all, 50 caps, 81 polo embroiders, 250 pens, and a number of parkas.
Commissioner Dave Crofoot, who did not attend Friday’s meeting, works for Western Associates.
Commissioner Clarke Dirks wanted to be sure the county followed all rules regarding bids.
He asked whether the county received any other bids for the clothes and other items. There were other bids, not in the county, and they were higher he was told by County administrator Tina Spencer.
“What is our policy in getting bids?” he asked. “Do we have a minimum amount?
The minimum amount is $1,000 before a bid is sought, Spencer said.
A few hours after the meeting, Dirks told the Record it was just a few shirts and pants per employee.
“We have about 30 EMS employees, and you can’t wear the same shirt or pants all week,” Dirks said. “Clothes wear out. It’s not like we buy them every year.”
He also said he didn’t know whether it was even legal for a used uniform to be passed on to another employee.
Regarding personalized pens, Dirks said it’s just a few hundred dollars to be more like what other organizations and companies provide to employees.
In other action Friday, commissioners approved $1,553,663 to pay the bills for the month.
Dirks wanted to see detail of billings rather than just detail with what they are paying consultants billed amount with no explanation.
“As an elected official I am accountable to the public,” Dirks said. “I consider it my tax money.”
With bills totaling $5,175 for planning and zoning consultant work, he wants to know what benefit this was to the county.
“If someone sends me a bill for $450, I know what I am getting,” Dirks said.
“The public needs an explanation of what we are getting for that money.”
Spencer said the county paid consultants $125 an hour, but they didn’t provide detailed billing.
“This is nothing new,” she said.
Outside the meeting, Dirks said this practice could change.
Commissioner Kent Becker wondered whether phone meetings with consultants for 15 to 20 minutes were being billed at a one-hour minimum.
There was also an issue with the county being overcharged. The consultant rate the county pays is $125 an hour but the county was billed $150 an hour. County administrator Tina Spencer said the county would get a refund for the overbilling.
In addition to the May to August bills of $5,175, another $1,950 was billed since September.