LETTER TO THE EDITOR, Carolyn Huddleston, Liberal
Friends, there’s more. A few days ago I became aware that JCAPS (Juvenile Corrections and Prevention Services) wrote raises for themselves into the grant application which was on the agenda for the Commission to approve February 24. That meeting was cancelled, which gives me this opportunity to share with all of you and ask for your help.
First, let me explain some about this agency. Both juvenile and adult community corrections operate under the same statutes. Like Cimarron Basin, the pay of the JCAPS staff is supposed to be consistent with that of employees in the host County, and their Governing Authority is the Board of Commissioners of that County. They also both get their funding from Kansas Department of Corrections (KDOC) grants.
The salaries of the people at JCAPS haven’t drawn as much attention as those of Cimarron Basin, probably because that of the Director hasn’t been as outrageous. Further, these Supervision Officers are required to have completed four years of college, which is a much higher bar than at Cimarron Basin, where the State only requires a high school diploma or GED. In any case, I believe there were already some problems here, and now let’s take a look at what they want to get paid when their KDOC grant for fiscal year 2027 starts in July.
The Director of JCAPS, Chelsea Droste, wants to increase her salary from $84,280 to $90,630. Her current pay is slightly more than that of the Sheriff, who earns $84,003, and getting this raise would place her $6,627 above the Sheriff and about $20,000 above the Undersheriff, who earns $70,983. No raise was requested for one employee, Monica Arredondo, Chelsea’s second in command. However, she is already earning $35.88 per hour (which is $74,630 annually). In all of the County there are only two individuals paid by the hour who earn more than this, and one of them is a Department head. Monica’s pay is about $4000 more than that of the Undersheriff, and she gets $10,000 more than the average of the Sheriff’s highest ranking, salaried Deputies. There are five of them, and their average pay is $64,807. One of the Supervision Officers wants $33.36 per hour (instead of $31), and two expect to be getting $31 per hour (instead of $28.07). That would mean annual salaries of $69,388 (instead of $64,480) and $64,480 (instead of $58,386). Compare those figures to the pay of staff at the Sheriff’s department, the Undersheriff at $70,983, those high ranking Deputies, whose average pay if $64,807, and let’s not forget about the rank and file Deputies, who are earning $22.33 per hour on the average (about $46,446 annually) and the Detention Officers, who earn an average of $19.46 per hour ($40,477 per year).
The Commission has the authority to refuse these raises. They could tell Chelsea Droste to revise her grant plan so that they would continue to get the pay they are currently receiving. I’m hoping you readers will encourage your Commissioners to do exactly that.
EDITOR’S NOTE — Some have asked why there is a concern over raises for agencies that receive funding from the State of Kansas Department of Corrections even though the employees work for Seward County. According to the 26th Judicial District Community Corrections Budget instructions, “Salary and Wage Costs: Grantee may not fund bonuses or other financial incentives outside of a position’s normal salary costs with KDOC grant funds. Grantees must demonstrate salaries for all positions are consistent with similar county-funded positions.” This document is then required to be signed by a representative from the organization (not a commissioner) that the salaries are in alignment with similar county positions. Either the representatives signing these documents do not understand alignment with similar county salaries, like law enforcement management, or the KDOC is not enforcing its own rules. Either way, the concern is justified and requires proper oversight from either the Seward County Commission or if the lack of oversight rests with KDOC, with legislative representation. Documents also name the Seward County Commission as the governing body over these agencies even though the commission has not always been consulted when raises were given.
