Grand Jury on Staffing Increase

A Garrett County (Md.) grand jury has visited the county’s Emergency Management comm center and agreed with director Bud Frantz that staffing should be increased to provide more than one dispatcher on-duty at most times. The center has 8 employees, which limits how many shifts can be covered with two dispatchers, he noted. The grand jury said their position probably would not be approved by the county commissioners because of budget constraints, but they asked that staffing be given top priority during the next round of budget talks. A future new sheriff’s headquarters could provdie the opportunity to gain some positions, county officials said.