Quincy, Illinois (KHQA) — The Adams County Board of Supervisors voted on an agreement with the Adams County Sheriff’s Department.

The Board voted on August 13, 2024 to terminate its previous tentative agreement with the Adams County Sheriff’s Department.

The previous agreement stipulated that civil servants who worked 84 hours did not receive pay for four of those hours, but instead received paid leave as compensation.

Because this deal was made over a decade ago, the Adam’s County Sheriff’s Department joined forces to insist on its repeal.

We spoke with Bret Austin, finance chair of the Adam’s County Board, about why the board voted to repeal the tentative agreement.

“Here, the average age of a deputy sheriff is probably in their late 20s, so they weren’t there. And it was time to get that cleared up and avoid a controversial discussion at the signing of the contract, so it was kind of a bridge of trust between both parties.”

The Adams County Sheriffs Union stated, “The TA is a settlement agreement that resolves a long-standing dispute over deputies’ pay. The history of this dispute is very complicated. In short, there was a loophole in the law that prevented deputies from being paid for all hours worked. The parties blamed each other for the loophole but were able to resolve their differences through negotiations. Under the settlement agreement, deputies will now be paid for all hours worked.”

The removal of this interim agreement will result in officers being paid for their full hours, which will potentially impact scheduling.