County Commission | The Magazine March 2019 | Page 19

FROM THE COVER
Making county government more attractive to quality employees by offering better
retirement benefits
Alabama Counties are again proposing legislation giving local entities participating in the Employees’
Retirement System (ERS) the option to shift existing Tier II employees to the more attractive benefits
package afforded to local employees hired prior to 2013. This change in the law would not impact
state revenue and would actually reduce costs for many counties, cities and local entities. If enacted into law, this
vital piece of legislation would allow local entities to remain competitive in the job market and retain and attract
talented employees.
Expanding the County Debt Set-Off Program
The County Debt Set-Off Program was created in 2014 to allow county entities to collect debts owed to
the county by intercepting a portion of a debtor’s state income tax refund. Alabama Counties propose to
amend the current statute to ensure that entities, including county health care authorities, be allowed to
participate even if the entity contracts with an outside entity to provide financial or administrative management.
Utilizing the next generation of 9-1-1 technology to better protect residents
The Alabama Next Generation Emergency Network (ANGEN) is a new communication technology
system designed to streamline the routing process for 9-1-1 calls, reduce costs for 9-1-1 districts, and
improve accuracy and redundancy issues in the current system. The administration of ANGEN has
been handled by the Alabama State 9-1-1 Board since 2013, but there is currently no statutory authority for the
Board to administer the program. Alabama Counties propose legislation that would provide the Board with clear
statutory authority to administer ANGEN and make a number of technical amendments to the general powers of
the Board.
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