County commission minutes, November 21-22

December 7, 2011

Monday, November 21, 2011, Commissioners met in regular session with Chairman Ron Smith, Commissioner Walt Kirby, and Deputy Clerk Michelle Rohrwasser. Commissioner Dan Dinning was out of the office tending to personal matters. Blue Sky Broadcasting Reporter Mike Brown was in attendance throughout the meetings. 9:00 a.m., Clerk Glenda Poston and Road and Bridge Superintendent Jeff Gutshall joined the meeting. Mr. Gutshall said he is not presenting a written report, but basically Road and Bridge has been plowing snow. Mr. Gutshall presented Commissioners with the Local Highway Technical Assistance Council (LHTAC), Local Rural Highway Investment Program (LRHIP) Application for 2013. Mr. Gutshall said this application is for maintenance chipseal over recently paved roads to include for Roosevelt Road, Deep Creek Loop, Blume Hill Road, Ridgewood Road, and Frontier Village Road. Commissioner Kirby moved to authorize the Chairman to sign the Local Rural Highway Investment Program Application for 2013. Chairman Smith yielded the chair to second. Motion passed unanimously. Clerk Poston presented the Annual Road and Bridge Financial Report to Commissioners. Clerk Poston and Chairman Smith reviewed the balance information in the report. Commissioner Kirby moved to authorize the Chairman to sign the Annual Road and Bridge Financial Report. Chairman Smith yielded the chair to second. Motion passed unanimously. Clerk Poston left the meeting at 9:05 a.m. Mr. Gutshall and Commissioners briefly discussed the weather forecast. Mr. Gutshall said Road and Bridge worked on drainage in the Highland Flats area and they will also do work to Clifty View Road where the road normally gets torn up. This is between the road and the nursery and technically it is now called Cow Creek Road, according to Mr. Gutshall. Commissioners briefly spoke about the redistricting issue. Mr. Gutshall left the meeting at 9:20 a.m. County GIS Mapper Gary Falcon and Chief Probation Officer Stacy Brown stopped by Commissioners’ Office. Mr. Falcon informed Commissioners that State of Idaho E911 Coordinator, Eddie Goldsmith, won’t be able to come to Boundary County as he had planned, but Mr. Goldsmith had informed him he sent email correspondence to Frontier Communications requesting Frontier begin the enhanced E911 process for Boundary County since the County has met the federal percentage requirement of 95%. Mr. Falcon said the County had reached 97.7% for corrected errors. Mr. Falcon left the meeting at 9:35 a.m. Chairman Smith and Ms. Brown discussed various Misdemeanor Probation matters that came up during a Misdemeanor Planning/Training meeting Chairman Smith recently attended. Chairman Smith and Ms. Brown briefly discussed allowable fees associated with probation services. Ms. Brown said she knows that Boundary County charges well below the allowable probation service fee of $75. Chairman Smith said questions were brought up at the meeting about charging fees for urine analyses in addition to the standard $75 probation service fee. Chairman Smith said he needs to find out for sure what the order is on that. Chairman Smith asked Ms. Brown if she lists her department’s projected fees in her budget request for the year. Ms. Brown said she doesn’t list it as projected fees, but she does show that information. Ms. Brown said she does show charges for a urine analysis if it comes back positive. Chairman Smith asked Ms. Brown if she estimates the projected income in fees and Ms. Brown said yes. Chairman Smith spoke of a county in which the probation department charges the probation fee in addition to other charges the probationer has to pay. Ms. Brown said she doesn’t charge for a urine analysis unless it comes up positive and then she charges for the test, but otherwise she doesn’t charge anything more than the $25 monthly probation fee. Ms. Brown said in her department, a urine analysis is only $5, but if the test is sent off it will cost more. A level of service inventory (LSI) will be done and that charge is $20 and that is what the County’s cost is. It was said the County charges $25 and $5 is the cost of the urine analysis and the County receives the remaining $20. Ms. Brown said the reason the cost is so low is because probationers could not pay the higher fee and were getting so far behind that the County was not receiving anything. Chairman Smith said he will meet with the Clerk soon to see what the projected fees the County will receive should be. Chairman Smith spoke of the question if someone could not afford the fees. Chairman Smith said he would talk to Administrative District Judge Mitchell about that. Chairman Smith asked the status of the Probation Department Policy and Ms. Brown said she is still working on it. Ms. Brown and Chairman Smith briefly discussed the need for continued training. Chairman Smith spoke of various certifications the probation department employees have and Ms. Brown said all of her employees have the necessary certifications. Ms. Brown spoke of her involvement in the domestic violence training course. Ms. Brown and Chairman Smith spoke of the Probation Office obtaining the Idaho Statewide Trial Court Automated Records System (ISTARS). Ms. Brown left the meeting at 9:55 a.m. 10:05 a.m., Clerk Glenda Poston and Chief Probation Officer Stacy Brown returned to the meeting. Commissioner Kirby moved to authorize the Chairman to sign the Equitable Sharing Agreement and Certification Form for the Prosecutor’s Office for last year fiscal end September 30, 2011. Chairman Smith yielded the chair to second. Motion passed unanimously. Clerk Poston and Ms. Brown met with Commissioners to ask questions about charging a specific department for a urine analysis. Ms. Brown spoke of instructions for her office to run a urine analysis for people not yet on probation and Ms. Brown felt her office shouldn’t be charged for such a test in this case. The request for the urine analysis came from the Prosecutor’s Office and those present felt this charge should be paid by the Prosecutor’s Office in this situation. Ms. Brown said she is currently waiting for paperwork from the Judge as this instruction has only been given by a phone call from an attorney. Chairman Smith said he wouldn’t do anything without a court order. Ms. Brown said she doesn’t mind administering the test, but the cost should not come from her budget. Chairman Smith said once she gets the order and it doesn’t spell out who should pay for the test, he suggested Ms. Brown contact the person who signed the order. Clerk Poston and Ms. Brown left the meeting at 10:14 a.m. Commissioners tended to administrative duties. 10:35 a.m., Clerk Glenda Poston and Deputy Clerk Nancy Ryals joined the meeting. 10:35 a.m., Commissioner Kirby moved to go into closed session under Idaho Code #31-874. Chairman Smith yielded the chair to second. Motion passed unanimously. 10:37 a.m., Commissioner Kirby moved to go out of closed session. Chairman Smith yielded the chair to second. Motion passed unanimously. Commissioner Kirby moved to deny indigent application #2010-53 as per the Clerk’s recommendation. Chairman Smith yielded the chair to second. Motion passed unanimously. Commissioner Kirby moved to approve indigent application #2011-41 as per the Clerk’s recommendation. Chairman Smith yielded the chair to second. Motion passed unanimously. Deputy Clerk Nancy Ryals left the meeting at 10:38 a.m. Clerk Poston and Commissioners discussed various matters. Clerk Poston left the meeting at 11:00 a.m. Commissioners tended to administrative duties. 11:30 a.m., Hospital CEO/CFO Craig Johnson met with Commissioners to update them on Hospital matters. Mr. Johnson said the Hospital had a bit of a profit through October, but has experienced a bit of a loss now, which includes bad debt and depreciation. Mr. Johnson said the Hospital is close to breaking even. Patient volumes in all areas have been low, but that may be a sign of the times as people are putting off elective procedures and not going to the doctor’s office. Orthopedic surgeries are down and Mr. Johnson said all other hospital representatives he has spoken to have said they’re experiencing the same thing. Mr. Johnson informed Commissioners the Festival of Trees will be held on December 9 and 10, 2011 and tickets will cost $35 per person. The gala will be held on December 10th with dinner starting at 6:00 p.m., and the auction will start at 7:00 or 7:30 p.m. Mr. Johnson said the dinner will consist of a variety of heavy hors d’ oeuvres, but will including a carving. Decorating starts most likely the Saturday or Sunday before the event, according to Mr. Johnson. Chairman Smith informed Mr. Johnson the County has submitted the grant application for the elevator at the Restorium. Mr. Johnson said with the new chiller the Hospital obtained through the Energy Efficiency Conservation Block Grant (EECBG), this is the first summer that costs have been down. The decrease is approximately 12% and that is huge for the Hospital, according to Mr. Johnson. The meeting with Mr. Johnson ended at 11:45 a.m. There being no further business, the meeting recessed until tomorrow at 9:00 a.m. ***Tuesday, November 22, 2011, Commissioners met in regular session with Chairman Ron Smith, Commissioner Walt Kirby, and Deputy Clerk Michelle Rohrwasser. Commissioner Dan Dinning was out of the office tending to personal matters. 9:00 a.m., Commissioners held an elected officials/department heads meetings. Present were: Chairman Ron Smith, Commissioner Walt Kirby, Clerk Glenda Poston, Assessor Dave Ryals, Treasurer Jenny Fessler, Solid Waste Superintendent Claine Skeen, Prosecutor’s Office Manager Tammie Goggia, Chief Deputy Clerk Tracie Isaac, Chief Probation Officer Stacy Brown, County Noxious Weeds Superintendent Duke Guthrie, Restorium Administrator Karlene Magee, and Extension Office Educator Carol Hampton. Commissioner Kirby moved to amend the agenda to reschedule the conference call on redistricting to 10:00 a.m., and to reschedule the meeting with Mike Woodward to 1:30 p.m. Chairman Smith yielded the chair to second. Motion passed unanimously. Chairman Smith said he wanted to talk to everyone about a possible presentation on safety from the State Insurance Fund. Commissioners had a visit from Jack Kirsch, Risk Management Consultant with the State Insurance Fund, to discuss safety. Mr. Kirsch encouraged the County to draft and adopt a mission statement mentioning the importance of safety on the job. Chairman Smith said Mr. Kirsch would be willing to meet with the elected officials and department heads to give them information on safety as well as head a three to four hour training session. Chairman Smith said this training may have a bearing on the County’s insurance rates. Currently, the County’s claims are in good standing, but the State Insurance Fund takes the average of the last three year’s claims. Clerk Poston said the County’s experience model is at 37%, which means the County pays 37% more in State Insurance Fund premiums. Chairman Smith said the County was able to receive a 5% discount for taking part in the Idaho Counties Risk Management Program (ICRMP) training course, which equates to an approximate $9,000 reduction in ICRMP premiums. Chairman Smith said Commissioners will contact Mr. Kirsch to invite him to the next elected officials/department heads meeting to further discuss this. Commissioner Kirby mentioned Mr. Kirsch was talking safety and he questioned the County’s experiences with illness. Clerk Poston said the Idaho State Insurance Fund is strictly industrial accidents. It was said these types of accidents are seen more often at the Restorium, Road and Bridge, and the Sheriff’s Office due to the nature of the job. Chief Deputy Clerk Tracie Isaac said Mr. Kirsch mentioned time loss is where the County is also affected by higher premiums. Chairman Smith said it is beneficial to the County to bring an employee back once they are fit for a form of light duty rather than taking the time off. Light duty can be done in any office not just the normal office the employee works in. Clerk Poston said the County spends approximately $180,000 for worker’s compensation insurance so if the County can keep that premium down, the County is looking at saving thousands of dollars. Chairman Smith said this discussion is not to point fingers at anyone or specific departments. Chairman Smith gave an example of an employee picking up a heavy object improperly as being one instance of training the County can keep up on. Chairman Smith said Commissioners have had discussions about recycling and he believes that 70% to 80% of what goes into Commissioners’ garbage can is recyclable. Chairman Smith said he would like to think about having a majority of the garbage cans in any office be strictly for recyclables and have only one garbage can designated for actual garbage. Chairman Smith said it is amazing what a difference recycling makes and he listed the post office recycling paper as an example of how much is recycled. Chairman Smith said he does think employees in the Courthouse are doing a good job at recycling, but there is probably still room to improve. Chairman Smith informed those present that he and Mr. Skeen are going to visit with the school superintendent and school principals about the importance of recycling. Chairman Smith said the County operates under the small community exemption, which allows no more than 20 tons of garbage per day in the landfill’s hole. The County has met the requirements for this exemption and Mr. Skeen has been monitoring the limits for a few years now, but at one point the County was close to meeting that 20 ton per day limit. Since the County began its commingling system, the amount of garbage into the hole has been reduced to approximately 13 tons per day. The County does budget funds for future closure of the landfill as closure costs are approximately $1,000,000. At the moment the County has $600,000 saved and if the landfill had to close, there would not be enough funds saved at this point. Chairman Smith said when he came back to work for the County in year 2003 he thought he was told the landfill only had approximately 15 years left, but with recycling that is no longer the case. Chairman Smith said he would prefer Commissioner Dinning to be here as he wanted to talk about a cost of living increase. Chairman Smith mentioned he had spoken to Assessor Ryals about the homeowner’s exemption threshold having been decreased and he has also talked to Treasurer Fessler. Treasurer Fessler said her office has received complaints about taxes, but after the issues have been explained, it hasn’t been bad. Chairman Smith said there is an affect to retirement benefits if a cost of living increase isn’t given. Chairman Smith spoke of the County’s medical benefits and providing a cost of living increase when the County was able to do so. There isn’t the ability to select certain employees for a cost of living increase and the County would have to look at its employees as a whole as all employees are important. Chairman Smith said he doesn’t want the employees to leave the County to work somewhere else as the pay may be better and that is why he suggested the holiday time off to show employees they are appreciated at a time when a cost of living increase is not possible. Chairman Smith said he would like to sit down soon and just see what it will cost for a cost of living increase. The landfill’s budget doesn’t affect the County as far as levy as it is run on fees and Road and Bridge is separate as well, but the remaining offices are a factor in the budget. Chairman Smith said he is only speaking for himself, but he feels it is his obligation to take care of the County’s employees and have Boundary County be a place where the employees want to come to work. Chairman Smith said he would be willing to discuss this with people who dispute this. Mr. Skeen said with the County’s benefits, it is a huge benefit even though it is not actual money that puts food on the table. Chairman Smith said the insurance cost for a family is $1,546 and none of that is paid by the employee. It was mentioned there is life insurance and retirement to consider as well. Chairman Smith said at the last Government Employees Medical (GEM) Plan board meeting, some county premiums sustained a 5% increase while other counties didn’t receive any increase due to their claim history. Chairman Smith said the GEM Plan is doing well right now with a reserve when at one point they were in the hole. Last year GEM Plan board members said there would be no more than a 5% increase while some increases would be less and he explained how the GEM Plan increases are determined. Ms. Brown said a friend of hers who works for another county did receive a cost of living increase, but they also have to pay their insurance to this person actually ended up with less in the end. Ms. Brown said in talking about recycling, her office is not allowed to throw anything away as one of her employees is really good about recycling. Mr. Skeen said recycling is a source of revenue for his department and is a part of helping keep landfill fees down. Clerk Poston informed everyone the Courthouse Christmas tree should be here on Monday, November 28th, and the Courthouse will again be a site to collect toys for kids in need. The elected officials/department heads meeting ended at 9:50 a.m. Clerk Poston and Mr. Guthrie remained after the meeting. Mr. Guthrie provided Commissioners with a departmental report and said he is working on his annual operating plan. Mr. Guthrie said he feels that grant funds will be down considerably this year. Last year the County received $64,000 for the Selkirk Cooperative Weed Group, but there has been a minimum 20% decrease in funding this year. Last year $90,000 was requested for the Cooperative Weed Group, but this year only $56,000 was requested. Mr. Guthrie said Bonner County joined with Boundary County in requesting $4,500 to treat invasive weed species while last year $8,000 was provided and a lot of weed sites were eradicated. Mr. Guthrie said he thinks these funds will dry up. Mr. Guthrie briefly mentioned the Forest Service is requesting funds for equipment replacement and a part time employee for this district, but that is something the U.S. Department of Agriculture might cut right off the bat. Commissioner Kirby moved to sign the Noxious Weed Cost Share Request for year 2012. Chairman Smith yielded the chair to second. Motion passed unanimously. Commissioner Kirby moved to adopt Resolution 2012-4. A resolution reimbursing County funds for election expenses. Chairman Smith yielded the chair to second. Motion passed unanimously. Resolution 2012-4 reads as follows: Resolution 2012-4 REIMBURSING COUNTY FUNDS FOR ELECTION EXPENSES WHEREAS, Boundary County receives funds from the State of Idaho for the purpose of conducting special elections; and WHEREAS, Boundary County has expended funds out of the Current Expense Fund for salaries, postage expense and copy charges and out of the Justice Fund for salaries for the purpose of conducting the City of Bonners Ferry and the City of Moyie Springs November 8, 2011 elections; and WHEREAS, the state election funds received were deposited into revenue account 01-00-337-09 and it is appropriate to transfer state election funds from that revenue account into the various county account line items from which the expenses were paid as follows: Account Number Amount 01-18-440-01, Postage & Meter Supplies $52.00(postage) 01-01-440-00, Supplies – Office $235.00(copy charges) 01-01-401-00, Salaries - Officer $1,113.26 01-01-402-00, Salaries – Deputies $3,902.51 08-01-402-00, Salaries – Deputies $171.10 01-10-404-00, Salaries – Supervisor $826.40 NOW THEREFORE, upon motion duly made, seconded and unanimously carried, IT IS RESOLVED that state election funds received and deposited into revenue account number 01-00-337-09 in the total amount of $6,300.27 be transferred into the various accounts as outlined above is hereby authorized and ordered; and, IT IS FURTHER RESOLVED that the Clerk is instructed to deliver certified copies of this resolution to the Boundary County Treasurer and the Boundary County Auditor. Dated this 22nd day of November, 2011 COUNTY OF BOUNDARY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS s/________________________ RONALD R. SMITH, Chairman s/________________________ DAN R. DINNING, Commissioner s/________________________ WALT KIRBY, Commissioner ATTEST: s/______________________________ ___________ GLENDA POSTON, Clerk of the Board of County Commissioners Recorded as instrument #252471 Mr. Guthrie left the meeting at 10:00 a.m. Darrell Kerby with Pace Kerby Insurance joined the meeting. 10:00 a.m., Chairman Smith, Commissioner Kirby, Clerk Glenda Poston, County Attorney Phil Robinson and other counties took part in a conference call regarding the issue of legislative redistricting. Attorney Christ Troupis said Twin Falls County is concerned about the southern Idaho counties and he said a minimum county split plan doesn’t necessary benefit other counties. Idaho County, the way it is configured under the proposed split, could be problematic if they’re linked with Shoshone County. It was said the feeling is the plan should be formulated to take into account community interest. In all likelihood, the Supreme Court will decide that L87 is unconstitutional and they should defer to a new legislature or commission in adopting a plan. There is a need to make sure the right points are rated, to follow statutory guidelines to preserve communities of interest, and not follow blindly the minimum number of counties. It was said that argument is not being made in this petition and should be made. 10:13 a.m., Darrell Kerby with Pace Kerby Insurance joined the meeting. It was said that someone doesn’t want the Supreme Court to decide what plan to adopt and most likely the Supreme Court will send the plan back for reconsideration. A new panel may be requested other than the panel that adopted L87. Attorney Troupis said the Twin Falls County petition has simplified matters for him. Attorney Troupis said it is basically formulating the initial arguments so his proposal could be reduced from $20,000 to $15,000. Attorney Troupis offered his services to cover this issue. Chairman Smith said Plan L82 was being promoted, but later that same day Plan L87 was adopted and he doesn’t feel Plan L82 was even considered. Benewah County Commissioner Jack Buell questioned if anyone sat with the commission. It was said a key thing done with the first commission is the staff outlined they wanted a public hearing in Coeur d’ Alene, Boise, Twin Falls, Idaho Falls, and Pocatello. A public hearing was also held in Meridian and Canyon County and that is where the battle began with the democrats as all that mattered to the democrats is the minimum county split. The minimum county split map is L76. It was said the Secretary of State was basically taking the democratic’s stance on the minimum county split. A compromised map was drafted by the original commission. It was said that communities of interest were ignored and Plan L87 was passed. A number of positions were put together for the Supreme Court and Attorney Troupis said the petition that was filed raised constitutional arguments very fairly. Idaho County Prosecutor Kirk MacGregor asked if there was a timeline on filing and Attorney Troupis said no and that the Twin Falls petition had been filed. Since the petition has been filed, it was assumed the Supreme Court would take emergency action due to the election cycle. Attorney Troupis said because of time and briefing schedules, he assumed, it would be good to file paperwork before the end of the month. Attorney Troupis added that one could wait years to file a challenge, but it would be an uphill climb. Clearwater County Commissioner Don Ebert clarified what Plan L82 encompasses. Attorney Troupis said he is concerned about the position drawing up plans would put him in. Clearwater County Commissioner Don Ebert said it sounds like all are in favor of Plan L82. Those present discussed splitting the attorney fees of $15,000 between approximately seven counties. Those participating in the conference call were asked if they want to take part in moving forward. It was said that Idaho County will most likely take part, but Commissioners will vote on it. Chairman Smith questioned if the counties in District 1 want to take part, why couldn’t the attorney’s fees be taken from District 1 funds. Chairman Smith said this matter doesn’t affect Boundary County, but Commissioners do want to be supportive of other counties so he would prefer to utilize District 1 funds. Shoshone County, Bonner County, and Benewah County said they also support that concept. It was said one of the counties may balk at contributing financially as they haven’t been able to offer a cost of living increase over the last four years and they are working on less funds already. Chairman Smith said there is $14,301 in District 1 funds so there is are funds available if District 1 chooses to provide funding. Attorney Troupis said he would prefer to have Lewis County involved even though they may not be able to contribute financially. District 1 members suggested scheduling a special meeting to discuss funding a petition. The conference call ended at 10:55 a.m. Commissioners informed Mr. Kerby that Mike Woodward is providing engineering services for the Waterways Building addition and the issue of a lack of insurance coverage has come up. Commissioners said Mr. Woodward’s portion of work doesn’t cost that much, but Mr. Woodward doesn’t carry insurance. Mr. Woodward has suggested he become a temporary employee of the County for the time needed rather than enter into a hold harmless agreement. It was said that Mr. Woodward will not receive benefits. Chairman Smith asked about the possibility of just making Mr. Woodward an employee. Mr. Kerby said the only concern that won’t be met, if it is a concern, is if Mr. Woodward was to somehow make an error in his work to cause the project to be redone later. As an employee, the County wouldn’t be able to bring a lawsuit against Mr. Woodward. Mr. Kerby said if Mr. Woodward’s error caused harm to the general public, Idaho Counties Risk Management Program (ICRMP) would cover Mr. Woodward as an employee of the County. Mr. Kerby said Mr. Woodward doesn’t have Errors & Omissions Insurance or worker’s compensation insurance because he works on small jobs that don’t pay him enough to carry insurance. Mr. Kerby said he doesn’t see a problem by employing Mr. Woodward as an employee unless the County wanted some way to hold him accountable. Mr. Kerby said the County does not have to go to bid so this method should be fine all the way around insurance-wise. 11:00 a.m., County Attorney Phil Robinson contacted Commissioners via telephone to join the meeting. Mr. Kerby said if the County made Mr. Woodward an employee for a short time, Mr. Woodward would be covered by ICRMP for liability as his work could be in error and cause injury to a third party. In that event if there was an error in the design work resulting in redoing the job, the County wouldn’t have any recourse in errors or omissions. Attorney Robinson agreed. Clerk Glenda Poston left the meeting. Mr. Kerby said that is the only downside, but if Mr. Woodward is a good and honest person, it is probably worth the risk. Chairman Smith said they would contact Mr. Woodard to have him come and complete employment papers. Those present briefly mentioned working on a new vicious dog ordinance. Attorney Robinson said it looks like the debate is that the State has made certain issues infractions whereas the County had made those same issues misdemeanors. Chairman Smith informed Attorney Robinson the Park and Recreation Board has talked about increasing their fees. If the increase is more than 5%, Commissioners need to hold a public hearing on that proposed fee increase. The phone call with Attorney Robinson ended at 11:09 a.m. Mr. Kerby left the meeting at 11:10 a.m. There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 11:15 a.m. /s/ RONALD R. SMITH, Chairman ATTEST: /s/ GLENDA POSTON, Clerk By: Michelle Rohrwasser, Deputy Clerk