COMMISSIONERS’ PROCEEDINGS
NOVEMBER 22, 2022
The Rooks County Board of Commissioners met with the following present: Chairman, John Ruder, and Member, Tim Berland. Member, Greg Balthazor was absent but called into the meeting. Laura Montgomery, County Clerk, was present to write the minutes. Virgie Laska was present to write a report for the Stockton Sentinel. Ruder called the meeting to order and asked all to stand and recite the Pledge of Allegiance.
The agenda was accepted as presented.
Tyler Garst with Community Building Solutions, was in to introduce himself and explain what his company does. They do turnkey facility improvement projects that include energy savings and facility infrastructure. It is a local company and has six employees. It is community focus for rural communities.
Butch Post, EMD, was in to visit with the commissioners about training and lock down procedures. There is NIMS training in Hays on December 14th. There are 5 spaces available. There is a PIO class in Dodge City in January. It is three days and the county clerk is looking at going.
Post will have extra days of vacation and comp time at the end of the year. He is requesting to carry over his comp time to be used between Christmas and the first of the year. He will need to get paid for vacation. This was approved by the commissioners.
He has enough in his budget and will like to purchase a new hand-held radio for $5,000. The new radios have encrypted channels that will be required starting 2024. Ruder made motion to allow Post to upgrade his radio. Berland second the motion.
There was a meeting with the election officials and department heads in the courthouse about active shooter in the courthouse. The issues to address are installing deadbolts on doors between offices and key fobs for outside doors and automatic locking system. Post needs a plan for commissioners should there be an active shooter during a commissioner meeting. Ruder asked about exiting the building no matter what. Discussed countywide fire emergency.
The commissioners review November 15th minutes. Ruder made a motion to approve the minutes with changes. Berland second the motion.
Berland weekly report: The commissioner discussed Logan Road. The Post office isn’t delivering to three people who live on the road because of the condition of the road. The commissioners called and talked to Bouchey about the road. Bouchey said they didn’t get very far because a couple of the road crew had gotten sick. Ruder said we need to get the problem fixed because we are getting pressure from the postal service. Berland asked about the Damar Black top. Bouchey said he would work on patching it next week.
Ruder asked about using ARPA funds for the loan guarantee for Red Bud. Montgomery said she had talked with Carlotta from The Lloyd Group. Carlotta said the commissioners can’t have those funds unavailable for use.
David Luke with K-camp presentation: They have historical property reproduction coverage available. The deductible for wind and hail is $5,000 per occurrence. The county has many vehicles with just liability insurance. They would be included in the $5,000 deductible. Discussed vehicle coverage and deductibles. Other coverage includes flood coverage, earthquake coverage and mobile equipment. Because the county owns the ambulances but doesn’t operate them, the county needs an MOU with the City of Stockton. The county museum is the same with the Historical Society operating the museum. Other benefits include notary bonds and surety bonds.
Jes Pfannestiel with K-Worc presented his bid. There is no deductible. K-Worc has a jail school scholarship program where they pay 1/2 of the tuition. They have online video of training. Pfannenstiel reviewed benefits that include training. They do training for road, sheriff and jail staff
Mark Lowry with Heritage Group Insurance presented his bid which is a renewal of the county’s insurance policy. The county has had EMC Insurance for a long time. He presented some of the different benefits that EMC offers. There are different liabilities and options available. EMC offers a safety dividend program. The dividend has averaged over $14 thousand dollars over the last few years. Work comp is the most volatile. Property limit is $22 million with $5,000 deductible and $10,000 for wind and hail. No deductible on work comp. There are 73 vehicles insured. It is decided by department which vehicles to insure. They have enhanced policy on cyper protection. Lowry talked about the difference between insurance company vs insurance pool. He also breaks down the billing by department.
Ruder said the commissioners will need to have time to look at and discuss before making a decision.
Berland made a motion to sign the November 15th minutes. Ruder second the motion.
Berland made a motion to review and sign the weekly vouchers as follows. Ruder second the motion.
FUND WARRANT # AMOUNT
General 79331 – 79357 10,051.75
Road & Bridge 79358 – 79386 63,205.70
Health Dept 79387 – 79398 2,696.92
Sanitation 79399 – 79408 4,607.50
Insurance Claims Reimb 79409 10,445.64
TOTAL 91,007.51
The commissioners discussed the building for the new restaurant at the golf course. Jason Kephart, the owner, presented a bill for $4,800 for repairs. The commissioner agreed to pay ½ (2,400.00) out of the Federal Land Payment. The balance would be Mr. Kephart responsibility. The commissioners discussed what they were going to charge for rent and when he would start paying. The Commissioners talked about the other half of the bill could be used for rent payment.
With no further business to transact, Ruder made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Berland second the motion.
Adopted this 15TH day of November, 2022
ROOKS COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
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John Ruder, Chairman ___________________________________
Greg Balthazor, Member
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Tim Berland, Member
ATTEST:
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Laura Montgomery, Certified County Clerk