Following the state, Escambia adopts Juneteenth holiday
The Escambia County (Ala.) Commission voted Monday to add June 20, 2022, as a county holiday to coincide with the federal Juneteenth holiday.
Congress approved Juneteenth as a federal holiday commemorating the day slavery ended in the United States – June 19,1865.
County Administrator-Clerk Tony Sanks said the commission had previously agreed to set the county’s holiday schedule to coincide with the state of Alabama’s holiday schedule. He said there had been confusion in the past with state offices in the courthouse being closed and county offices being open. He said by following the state’s holiday schedule the courthouse will either be open or closed, so the courthouse will be closed Monday, June 20.
Sanks said the commission had set the county holiday schedule for 2022 in September, 2021. Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey then declared the Juneteenth holiday. Monday’s vote was to add the Juneteenth holiday to the county’s holiday schedule.
The other federal holidays include New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King, Jr., Day, Washington’s Birthday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day.
In other business Monday, the commission:
- Tabled approval of the tax collector’s list of errors, insolvents and litigations for tax year 2021.
- Approved setting the speed limit on Gandy Lane at 25 mph.
- Agreed to post ‘No Thru Trucks’ signs on Tumbling Lane. Commissioner Brandon Smith said GPS was directing the large trucks down Tumbling Lane, which was causing problems.
- Approved its annual agreement with the Alabama Emergency Management Agency for the county to receive a $33,000 grant for the Escambia County Emergency Management Agency.
- Approved an agreement with the Alabama Department of Public Health, which receives federal funds from the Centers For Disease Control, to provide funds for the county’s detention center related to health issues.
- Approved a resolution authorizing its annual Escambia County Alabama Transit System (ECATS) grant application.
