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HOLLIDAYSBURG -- Blair County expects to hire 10 to 20 people, at $10 an hour, to handle the opening and processing of mailed ballots being submitted for the Nov. 3 election.
The county salary board voted Thursday to hire temporary staff to help the elections office process thousands of mailed ballots rendered in light of the coronavirus pandemic. So far, the county has responded to 16,000 requests for mailed ballots, with more requests being filed. TChe deadline to apply is Oct. 27.
County Administrator/Chief Clerk Nicole Hemminger told the salary board Thursday that the elections office will need more help as of Election Day, Nov. 3, based on current law permitting counties to start opening and processing mailed ballots at 7 a.m. that day.
If the lawmakers adjust the starting time, then the temporary workers could be needed prior to Nov. 3, Hemminger said.
The temporary work is expected to last through Nov. 11, but that date is subject to change, too, based on information provided to the salary board.
Salary board members offered no objections to adding temporary staff or the proposed hourly salary.
"This is a task that must be done," said Controller A.C. Stickel, a salary board member. "We're not creating jobs that go indefinitely."
The cost of the additional help, Hemminger said, can be covered with money allocated to the county from the federal Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security Act.
While Director of Elections Sarah Seymour prepared a request for the salary board seeking 10 temporary workers, the salary board agreed that she should be able to hire more if needed. The salary board won't meet again for two weeks.
Commissioner Amy Webster proposed as many as 20, drawing concurrence from fellow salary board members.
Mirror Staff Writer Kay Stephens is at 946-7456.