Staff shortages an ongoing struggle in Clark County, and what officials say is causing it
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DUBOIS – Working as a cop is something Rick Donohoo has dreamed of ever since he was a kid. And the chance to work as a deputy in Clark County was the perfect fit for him.
The Salt Lake City native moved to Dubois in April 2020 with his wife and kids. Though initially working in Idaho Falls, he started volunteering as a reserve deputy with the Clark County Sheriff’s Office. He was hired as a deputy full-time last May, forcing him to quit his Idaho Falls job. But at the time, his daily commute was 50 miles one-way.
Despite that, Donohoo tells EastIdahoNews.com Clark County is where he prefers to live.
“My wife and I had always talked about living in a small town. My wife grew up in a small town in Colorado. My grandparents lived in a small town in Utah, and so I spent a lot of time in small towns,” Donohoo says. “That’s where my heart’s always been.”
He cites the low population and slower pace of life as the main reason living in Clark County appeals to him. The county, which spans 1,765 square miles, has a population of 790 people, according to the 2020 census.
But not everyone feels the same way as Donohoo. In the last several years, numerous county employees have left after just a short time.
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On Nov. 30, Clark County Sheriff John Clements suddenly resigned two years into his term. Leaving alongside him were a full-time deputy and a dispatcher.
Clements told us then that his departure was due to budget limitations.
“No one wants to apply because it’s not the pristine job,” Clements said in November. “The county … can’t keep up in terms of pay, benefits and anything that would make someone want to work for you.”
As a result, Clements said the sheriff’s office is “understaffed and outnumbered,” and they’re being asked to take on more responsibilities.
Camille Messick is the county’s fourth clerk in the last six years. She was appointed in 2021 when Tyson Schwartz decided to resign after just eight or nine months in the position. Schwartz is now working as a teacher at Lindy Ross Elementary in Dubois. He declined to comment on the reason for his departure.
Messick was re-elected in November in an uncontested race, and in the short time she’s been in office, she agrees that financial issues are a challenge.
Salaries are “not competitive,” she says, and “there’s only so much they can offer.”
“(Employees will) come here and get trained … and then go and get quite a raise in a different county six to eight months later,” Messick says. “I don’t think anybody comes here planning to do that. It just happens.”
PILT (payments in lieu of taxes) funds are largely responsible for the budget limitations, Messick says. About 62% of the land in Clark County is federally owned. Camas National Wildlife Refuge is 17 miles south of Dubois off Interstate 15, and Spencer, Kilgore and Medicine Lodge have an abundance of camping, hunting and fishing opportunities.
And with fewer than 800 people in the entire county, the tax base is tiny. To offset that, the federal government allocates about $168,000 annually to Clark County in PILT payments, which helps pay the salaries of county employees.
Attempts to request additional funds is something commissioners have been looking into for years, but Messick says it never seems to get anywhere.
“It’s just not enough to run a government,” says Messick. “I see our commissioners here doing the best they can with the budget … but the money’s not there.”
EastIdahoNews.com repeatedly reached out to Clark County commissioners for this story, but our calls, emails and texts were not returned.
“Other counties obviously don’t want to give up what they’re getting, and I don’t know how hard our representatives and senators are working for us. But it doesn’t feel like anyone is working very hard to get this thing straightened out. All we want is what’s fair,” Messick says.
U.S. Sen. Mike Crapo says he’s committed to “fiscally responsible, long-term solutions to fully fund PILT.”
He worked with other members of the Senate to draft the Small County PILT Parity Act, which makes adjustments to the current law by providing “additional population tiers” for PILT reimbursements. It was introduced to the House in 2019, with Rep. Mike Simpson, also from Idaho, as one of the bill’s sponsors.
“I am a strong supporter of PILT, and am proud to lead my colleagues in efforts to ensure the program is fully funded each fiscal year. Congress must continue to ensure counties are properly reimbursed for federal lands within their borders while working toward a permanent solution,” Crapo says in a statement to EastIdahoNews.com.
Declining population
Other issues impacting the financial situation include a declining population. Messick says it’s difficult to start a business anywhere in the county because many people commute to Idaho Falls every day for work. In recent years, many are choosing to move there to be closer to people and amenities.
Steve Gilger has lived in Dubois since 1977. He and his wife, Bev, have owned and operated the Dubois Leather & Shoe Co. since 1985. He says life in Dubois looked a bit different decades ago than it does today.
“I first came here in ’76, and there were two bars, a cafe, and gas stations. They had a Ford dealer and a Chevy dealer. This (building that houses my business) used to be the grocery store,” Gilger recalls.
What he describes as the “big city syndrome” and the lure of higher wages in Idaho Falls caused people to move away.
Like many locals, Gilger is proud of his small town and the recreational opportunities that exist, and he doesn’t want that to change, but he says some growth is essential and the dwindling population is concerning.
“There needs to be some businesses come in that hire two, three or five employees, not 50 or 100,” Gilger says. “That causes problems with housing and then people are living somewhere else and driving here.”
Gilger served as a county commissioner for six years, and he’s sympathetic to public officials who may feel overwhelmed with the responsibilities in comparison to what they’re being paid. He’d like to see a change in the amount of funds that are allocated to the county.
But he also says that public service is voluntary, and the purpose of it is to serve one’s community. Making the decision to leave because of money is a bit shortsighted, says Gilger.
“You don’t realize how lucky you are to live here,” Gilger says. “Very few people actually spend enough time here to realize what they’re missing.”
Managing expectations
Since Sheriff Clements’ resignation, Marc McClure has been appointed in his stead. As of Jan. 12, two full-time deputies and five dispatchers have been hired, which means the sheriff’s office is now fully staffed.
RELATED | Clark County appoints U.S. Navy veteran as new sheriff
Donohoo became a chief deputy and was still attending POST when Clements resigned. He has since graduated, and even though he’s making less money now than he was making in Idaho Falls, he’s happy to live and work in Clark County full-time.
“It was a pay cut, and that was a little bit of a hard pill to swallow,” he recalls. “(But) I have almost no gas expenses anymore, so it balanced out a little bit.”
Right now, Donohoo says everyone employed at the sheriff’s office and the county seems to love what they’re doing, and he’s hopeful about the future.
Going forward, he says solving the retention problem might just be a matter of improving communication about what’s expected.
“This could be happening because people have these unmanaged expectations. They come in thinking it’s going to be one way, and it turns out to be (different from how it was presented to them),” says Donohoo. “If we can manage expectations a little better and set a clear understanding of everybody’s roles and how we’re going to fill those roles, it’s going to be a huge help.”
When it comes to the declining population, the solution isn’t as clear-cut. For the nearly 800 people who live in Clark County, it’s the best place to live because of the slower pace and secluded lifestyle it provides. But that’s not a style of living everyone prefers.
Still, Gilger believes the skills and lifestyle habits acquired from living in Clark County — such as self-reliance and learning to make due — are needed more than ever in today’s technology-driven world.
“The young kids that grow up on farms and ranches learn responsibility and hard work. Long before they can get a driver’s license, they know how to drive tractors, farm vehicles, equipment,” he says. “You might have to step up and plow your own roads because no one is going to do it for you. (This mentality) is something that kids in town never have.”
Ultimately, locals hope that like-minded people will want to make a home in Clark County and bring something to the area that will give others a reason to come.
“This is a wonderful place to do business. You can find a building here cheaper than anywhere else,” Gilger says. “Most of our business came from outside the county. You’ve just got to bust your butt.”