By Rachel Engel
NEW CASTLE COUNTY, Del. — A hazard pay initiative funded through the CARES Act was put on hold after officials requested implementation clarification.
Earlier this year, County Executive Matt Meyer proposed using federal coronavirus funding to provide full-time first responders with $10,000 in “bonus” hazard pay. However, the measure did not pass due to council members concern that bonuses were not considered an acceptable use of the CARES Act funds, WDEL reports.
Later, an Aug. 25 proposal to use $5 million in CARES Act funding for New Castle County and municipal employees hazard pay was passed and signed into legislation.
However, in a memorandum dated Sept. 24, County Attorney Wilson Davis raised questions about the program.
“The ordinance is silent as to how hazard pay will be calculated; for example, whether eligible employees would receive a lump sum or percentage of their base salary. The ordinance does not provide guidance as to whether the hazard pay would be on a weekly, monthly or hourly basis. Nor does the ordinance provide any guidance as to whether all eligible employees would receive the same level of compensation,” the memo read. “Council must clarify its intent in supplemental legislation on these key questions.”
The memo prompted pushback from key members of the county council, including President Karen Hartley Nagle, who sponsored the hazard pay legislation, and said she has no plans to offer clarification on terms.
“It’s already done. It passed council, and the county executive signed it, and so it is law,” she said in an interview with WDEL. “There’s nothing more to do, it’s up to the administration to implement it.”
In a rebuttal, Meyer said it is the council’s responsibility to provide guidance on the passed legislation.
“Six months ago we proposed a $15 million allocation to provide $10,000 hazard pay to each police officer, paramedic, firefighter and all first responders who put herself or himself in harm’s way during this crisis,” he said. “County Council rejected that. Instead, they passed a $5 million allocation that our legal department says cannot be spent without additional action from County Council.”