Miles City clerk's office needs help, but city says money isn't there

The Miles City clerk's office is falling behind on city paperwork, and city leaders say they can't afford to add staff to catch it up.

City Clerk Mary Rowe said she and Deputy Clerk Tamara Ellsworth are the only full-time employees in the office, which serves as the administrative hub for every other city department. Several other administrative positions are part-time.

"Extremely understaffed," Rowe said when asked to describe the situation.

Last Wednesday, Sept. 23, the city's HR Committee discussed adding part-time help. Rowe said a position and job description have been created, but the city would have to find money in the budget to pay for it.

Mayor Chris "Butch" Grenz and Council President Brooke Bartholomew told the committee the city has no room in its budget for a part-time clerk's office position and is already operating at a deficit. The committee postponed action while members explore other options, including RSVP volunteers or interns from Miles Community College.

Meanwhile, the work keeps piling up. Rowe showed a thick stack of documents in the office that had not completed the filing process. Some were waiting for signatures, contract documents or other attachments, while others were ready to be scanned or filed but remained in the queue. Contracts can add delays because some must be mailed to another party for signatures.

The clerk's office handles payroll and employee accounting, grants, fire contracts, bank reconciliations and quarterly accounting updates. Rowe said the office has also spent considerable time correcting accounting and payroll issues that built up over the previous year and a half while trying to keep up with its regular workload.

Council meetings add to the load. Miles City holds three regularly scheduled meetings each month, and Rowe estimated each requires about two days of staff time. That includes gathering information, creating agendas and council packets, preparing documents, completing minutes and following up on contracts, signatures and filings.

Rowe said her duties have also expanded. She was recently instructed to begin drafting leases rather than only handling the billing associated with them. She has also been working on an annexation plan and policy for the city, which she said falls outside the normal scope of the clerk's office and is traditionally handled by the city planner.

The combined workload has contributed to a backlog of resolutions, ordinances and other city documents awaiting completion or filing. Rowe said the office tries to keep ordinances moving so they can be posted to the city's website.