By James Beaty
McAlester News-Capital
MCALESTER, Okla. — Pittsburg County commissioners passed a resolution Monday requiring drug and alcohol testing for all county volunteers who work in what they consider “safety sensitive positions.”’
District 2 Commissioner Kevin Smith said the resolution is intended to cover volunteers who drive county vehicles.
For now, that consists of Pittsburg County Reserve Deputies and volunteers with the Pittsburg County Office of Emergency Management, such as storm spotters or others who may assist during inclement weather.
Pittsburg County Sheriff Joel Kerns told the commissioners he doesn’t mind the drug and alcohol testing for his reserve deputies — but he thinks the county should pay for it. Reserve deputies already pay for their training and gear, the sheriff noted. His office does provide vehicles the reserves drive while on-duty.
My guys (are) already volunteering,” Kerns said of the reserve deputies. “They work for free anyway.”
District 2 Commissioner Kevin Smith said he had no objection to the county paying for the tests.
“I think that’s part of the deal,” Smith said.
District 1 Commissioner Gene Rogers and District 3 Commissioner Ross Selman joined Smith in unanimously passing the measure during the commissioners’ regular Monday meeting at the Pittsburg County Courthouse.
Smith said the commissioners passed the resolution requiring the drug and alcohol tests for county volunteers in the safety sensitive positions at the suggestion of the Association of County Commissioners of Oklahoma. The county is self-insured for liability through ACCO, according to Pittsburg County Clerk Hope Trammell.
Drug and alcohol testing of the county volunteers will be conducted randomly, Smith said. He said the process is expected to begin soon after the commissioners’ office obtains a complete list of all county volunteers. Any new reserve deputies coming on-board will be expected to submit to a drug and alcohol test as a requirement for coming on-board, Smith said.
Drug and alcohol tests cost $40 each and will be conducted by Southeastern Drug Testing in McAlester, Smith said.
Kerns said all 15 of his regular deputies already participate in drug and alcohol testing. Although such testing hasn’t been required of the reserves in the past, he understands why it’s being added. They not only assist with events throughout the county, but also help with events in McAlester, he said.
The Pittsburg County Sheriff’s Department currently has 28 reserve deputies, said Rick Wall, who is commander of the reserve force.
“We work tons of stuff for the city and the county, and they don’t get paid,” Wall said. He said reserve deputies are at every event put on by communities which do not have their own police force, such as Crowder, Canadian and Indianola, for example.
Kerns said all of the reserve deputies are trained and certified through the Council of Law Enforcement Education and Training. Reserve deputies provide their own guns, uniforms and ammunition, he said.
Wall said he’s supportive of requiring the drug and alcohol testing for reserve deputies.
“I’m all for it,” he said. “I can’t believe it hasn’t been required already.”
Wall also said the reserves provide everything themselves, including their uniforms. The only things the sheriff’s office provides are the sheriffs’ patches on the uniform and the vehicles, according to Wall. He said it’s important to have official vehicles present when working a community function.
“If we work an event, we like to have marked units, just to let them know law enforcement is there,” Wall said. “It’s a deterrent.”
Wall is glad the county has agreed to pay for the tests, based on what Smith told the sheriff.
“If they agreed to that it tells me they are on-board with what we do and the services we provide to the city and the county,” said Wall.
Copyright 2015 the McAlester News-Capital