County Council Reviewing Two Pieces of Emergency Legislation Related to COVID-19

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Contacts:
Joint Information Center: (216) 443-5245; JIC@cuyahogacounty.us 


Legislation Regarding Emergency Purchases and Increased Capacity for County Employee Use of Sick and Unpaid Leave Time

CUYAHOGA COUNTY, OH
– Cuyahoga County Council today is reviewing two pieces of emergency legislation related to the COVID-19 outbreak in Cuyahoga County.

The first is an ordinance amending Cuyahoga County Code in relation to Emergency Contracting Authority. The amendment would allow the County Executive to enter into contracts or leases or make purchases over $500,000 on an emergency basis without obtaining the approval of the County Council or the Board of Control and would just require approval from the President of Council.

The second piece of legislation is a new uncodified ordinance granting Cuyahoga County employees who have exhausted their accrued sick leave to receive 80 hours of paid emergency administrative leave. This would be retroactively effective March 11, 2020 and expire December 19, 2020. This ordinance also authorizes the County Executive to provide additional paid emergency administrative leave on an individual basis.

“County Council understands the importance of having access to funds to facilitate important decisions at the County level,” said Council President Dan Brady. “Our ultimate goal is to make sure the appropriate actions are being taken to ensure we’re doing what we can as a county to protect everyone.”

“Passing these two pieces of legislation is critical in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and with the growing number of positive cases in Cuyahoga County,”
said County Executive Armond Budish. “As we continue to react to an ever-changing situation, it’s important for us to have the flexibility to make decisions quickly for the health and safety of our employees and our residents.”


  
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