HOULTON, Maine — At the first meeting of 2021 for the Aroostook County Commissioners, the board reappointed Paul Adams as commissioners chairperson, and commissioner Paul Underwood as the chief elected official for the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act.
First taking office in 1987, Adams serves District 1 of Aroostook County, which covers the southern and central parts of Aroostook County, such as Houlton, Mars Hill and Dyer Brook. Underwood has been in office since 2001, and serves northwestern Aroostook, including Caribou and Presque Isle.
Signed into federal law in 2014, WOIA provides job training and opportunities for workforce development programs, and addresses barriers to employment as identified within local communities and businesses. The agency in charge for northern Maine, including Aroostook, is the Northeastern Workforce Development Board.
In other commissioner business, the board voted to increase the credit card business account with Katahdin Valley Trust. County officials are issued credit cards that can be used to make larger purchases, such as necessary equipment.
“Sometimes, they order a piece of equipment or something, and that maxes out their card, then before the bill comes in and it gets processed and paid, they might have to order something else,” County Administrator Ryan Pelletier said. “The only way to increase their individual limit is by increasing their master limit and assigning more of a limit to their individual cards.”
The individual card increases are slated to go to officials in the Sheriff’s Department, with Sheriff Shawn Gillen and Deputy Sheriff Craig Holder’s limits being increased from $5,000 to $10,000, and Commander Joey Seeley being increased from $3,500 to $5,000.
The county commissioners will reconvene next month, Feb. 17, in Fort Kent.
