The regular meeting of the Niobrara County Commissioners commenced on May 7, 2024, at 9:03 a.m. Present were Chairman Patrick H. Wade, Vice-Chairman John Midkiff, and Commissioner Elaine Griffith. Also present were County Clerk Becky L. Freeman and Sheriff Randy into L. Starkey. Members of the audience included Sheila Boldon, Colby Thurston, and Brandi Collins with the Lusk Herald. Chairman Wade led those present in the Pledge of Allegiance.
Road & Bridge- Foreman Fred Thomas met with the Commissioners and updated them on the status of the employee obtaining his CDL.
He discussed placing small rock/gravel around the sheriff’s storage building to help alleviate the drainage issue. He said he does not have any equipment small enough to get up to the North side of the building, and suggested contacting Neil Holmes to help with this.
Next, Foreman Thomas discussed the county’s gravel pits. He is still working on completing paperwork for the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) on Boner #2 pit. He said the landowner has signed off on paperwork to release the pit, however, DEQ wants it completely reclaimed, however the landowner does not. Foreman Thomas said that no topsoil was taken off any pits, just shale, but DEQ is wanting topsoil put down. He stated he would like to keep the Wasserburger and Wilson pits and turn back the rest of the pits.
He said that the entrance to the shop needs repairs.
Undersheriff Kelly Dean joined the meeting.
County Attorney- Attorney Wasserburger met with the Commissioners to discuss county business. Chief of Police Jake Gordon joined the meeting and discussed the School Resource Officer contract.
The County agreed to sign the contract but wanted to give the school board the option to revise as they see fit before signing.
Next, the group discussed the Memorandum of Understanding between the Niobrara County Sheriff’s Office and the Lusk Police Department for Law Enforcement Extraterritorial Assistance and Activities. Ms. Wasserburger explained that the MOU permits each party to assign certified peace officers to the other party for law enforcement services within the jurisdictional boundaries of the Sheriff and Lusk Police Department, as requested by the law enforcement agencies of the parties. It also authorizes the Town of Lusk, through the LPD, to provide general law enforcement services in those geographic areas of unincorporated Niobrara County abutting the Town, to the extent and the manner hereinafter set forth, but in all such instances subject to the direction and control of the Sheriff or his designee. For purposes of this MOU, unincorporated Niobrara County abutting the Town shall be areas defined as follows: all areas within 5 miles abutting the Town of Lusk. Highways abutting Town of Lusk are defined as, Town of Lusk to US Hwy 85 milepost 155 North, Town of Lusk to US Hwy 85 milepost 143 South, Town of Lusk to US Hwy 18/20 Milepost 35 West, and Town of Lusk to US Hwy 20 milepost 46 East.
The Commissioners and Attorney Wasserburger discussed the funding for the prevention and treatment of problematic gambling behavior through the Wyoming Department of Health. Ms. Wasserburger also touched on opioid settlement funds and said that they can only be used for treatment or other things related to recovery.
The Commissioners, Attorney Wasserburger, and Colby Thurston with the Niobrara Rural Fire District discussed the resignation of the current fire warden and who has the authority to appoint a fire warden. According to Ms. Wasserburger, the commissioners can make the appointment. Mr. Thurston said the fire district meets tomorrow night and will forward their recommendation to the Commissioners for consideration at their next meeting.
MOU for Extraterritorial Law Enforcement Assistance and Activities- Commissioner Griffith moved to sign the MOU between the Niobrara County Sheriff and the Lusk Police Department. Vice-Chairman Midkiff seconded, and the motion carried.
2024 Road Rehab Project Bid Opening- The Commissioners received one bid for the project. Brian Wakefield, engineer with BenchMark of Torrington, opened the bid from Whetsell Carpentry, LLC. for $162,562.88. Mr. Wakefield said everything appeared to be in order, but he said he would review all the paperwork. After visiting with Mr. Wakefield about the cost, the matter was tabled until the next meeting.
Old Business- Commissioner Griffith had nothing new to report on the Community Services Juvenile Board.
Sheriff Starkey said he had received a quote for fire system maintenance for the Justice Center.
Commissioner Griffith said she would like to collaborate with Sheriff Starkey and develop a plan for all the fire extinguisher maintenance and fire suppression systems that the County has.
Sheriff Starkey had nothing new to report on the inmate nursing independent contractor agreement.
Resolution 24-04- Election Districts and Precincts- Clerk Freeman explained that there are no changes to the existing districts and precincts. Based on that information, Vice-Chairman Midkiff moved to approve Resolution 24-04, a Resolution adopting official Voting Districts and Precincts for Niobrara County. Commissioner Griffith seconded, and the motion carried.
Wyoming Community Gas- Commissioner Griffith moved to sign the renewal agreement with Wyoming Community Gas for natural gas services for one year. Vice-Chairman Midkiff seconded, and the motion carried.
Commissioner Griffith moved to sign the Supplier Delegation Agreement with Wyoming Community Gas for one year. Vice-Chairman Midkiff seconded, and the motion carried.
Elected Officials and Department Heads- Sheriff Randy Starkey said his department is busy with new inmates, and the deputies have been busy with oil field traffic.
Emergency Manager James Santistevan discussed the minor updates he made to the hazard mitigation plan. He said there are some counties that have received “suspicious” mail and wanted to ensure everyone was aware of how to manage the situation should something like that happen here.
Clerk of Court Chrisanna Lund said she is busy working on a new grant with Sheriff Starkey for security equipment for the courtroom and courthouse. She also discussed the latest courthouse security meeting held with Judge Buchanan.
Assessor Teri Stephens said the time to appeal the notice of valuations ends May 10th.
Treasurer Keri Thompson said the second half installment for property taxes is due on May 10th, and her office has been busy. She also handed out a pamphlet with information for the Wyoming Property Tax Refund Program.
Extension Educator Kellie Chichester discussed summer and part time help for the extension office that is available through the University of Wyoming. She said the exhaust fan in the kitchen has been repaired.
County Clerk Becky L. Freeman said her focus is on the upcoming elections.
Vice-Chairman Midkiff said he attended the State Republican Party Convention.
Chairman Wade discussed the upcoming BLM meeting in Newcastle for the Newcastle Resource Management Plan revisions. He said the Niobrara Conservation District is helping with this process.
Michael Harberts, via telephone, and Chantry Filener discussed the Memorandum of Understanding for Endpoint Services with the Center for Internet Security (CIS) for the Niobrara County Assessor’s Office.
Before the MOU can be signed, the standard county related contractual wording is required.
Commissioner Griffith moved to enter into the MOU with CIS for Niobrara County Endpoint Protection Services for the Assessor’s Office contingent upon the requested county attorney changes.
Vice-Chairman Midkiff seconded, and the motion carried.
Will Arthur, representing Empower Financial Group, met with the Commissioners and gave a presentation about the Attentive/Washington National preventative care insurance for employees.
Consent Agenda- Vice-Chairman Midkiff moved to approve the consent agenda. Commissioner Griffith seconded, and the motion carried. Items on the consent agenda were the minutes of the April 16, 2024, meeting, and receipts for April from the County Clerk for $2,994.80.
Payroll and the following vouchers were approved for payment: Bills are listed in the following format: Vendor- Department- Description- Amount- April Payroll- $132,498.14, Aflac- Various- Supplemental insurance- $7,530.76, Allbright’s True Value- Various- Supplies, parts, maintenance/repairs- $182.91, Alsco- Road & Bridge- Shop towels & coveralls- $312.09, Anderson Carpet Sales, Inc.- Justice Center- Carpet- $6,273.90, Anne Wasserburger- County Attorney- Supplies- $614.79, Ashley Clark- Sheriff- Travel expense- $37.00, BenchMark of Torrington- Various- 2024 Road Rehab Project, Land Use Plan Revision- $10,044.03, Big Horn Roofing, Inc.- Facilities- Pay request 4 Justice Center Roof Repairs - $10,572.51, Black Hills Chemical & Janitorial- Various- Supplies- $594.75, Black Hills Energy- Various- Utilities- $1,168.82, Bob Barker Co., Inc. - Detention- Commissary account- $46.33, Boldon Welding & Repair, LLC.- Road & Bridge- Equipment repairs- $594.00, Budd-Falen Law Offices- Commissioners- Legal review for Draft Land Use Plan- $9,111.68, Canon Financial Services- General County- Copier service agreements- $330.00, Capital One Trade Credit- Road & Bridge- Gas & oil/oil pump- $599.99, Cathcart Fire and Safety LLC.– Various- Parts- $400.00, CenturyLink- Various- Telephones- $1,993.89, CenturyLink Business Services- Various- Telephones- $75.09, Chantry Filener- General County- IT expense- $1,180.00, Civil Air Patrol Magazine- Sheriff- Publication- $205.00, Connecting Point Computer Centers- Various- Copier service agreements & color copy overages- $352.78, Converse County Public Health- Public Health Nurse- Medical Supplies- $90.00, Cory Wilcox- Coroner- Deputy coroner stipend- $150.00, Dash Medical Gloves- Detention- Commissary account- $58.80, Decker’s Market- Dispatch- Supplies- $68.49, Delta Dental- Various- Dental Insurance- $974.80, Dennis C. Meier- Circuit Court Magistrate- Office rent- $1,000.00, Double A Properties, LLC.- Co. Attorney- Office rent- $1,000.00, Empower Trust Company- Various- Deferred compensation- $19,230.00, Frank Parts Co.- Road & Bridge- Parts- $1,177.45, Fusion Cloud Services- Various- Telephones- $1,213.66, Geographic Innovations- Various- Professional mapping, county map printing costs- $1,570.00, Goshen County Detention Center- Detention- Inmate housing & medical- $8,031.30, GreatAmerica Financial Services- Sheriff- Copier service agreement- $103.00, Harris Govern Ft. Collins User Group Inc.- Assessor- Dues- $150.00, Herren Brothers True Value- Road & Bridge- Parts- $5.34, Hiway Brake & Alignment– Sheriff- Vehicle Repairs- $1,050.68, Jameson Cleaning & Maintenance- Facilities- Fairgrounds cleaning contract, April fairgrounds event booking contract $8,100.00, Jub Jub, Inc.- General County- IT Expense- $60.00, Kassidy Miller- Prevention Grant- Travel expense $128.71, Kellie Chichester- Extension- 4-H Educator travel expense- $34.78, Ken Brown- Clerk of Court- Court appointed attorney fees- $1,872.00, Lexie Painter- Extension- April fair board bookkeeping- $600.00, Lusk Herald- General County- Publications- $2,258.64, Lusk State Bank- Various- Payroll taxes- $38,439.72, Michelle Kremers- Various- Travel expense- $91.79, NCIC Inmate Communications- $33.60, Niobrara County Fair Board- General County- 4th Qtr. Tax allocation & extension ofc. telephone payment reimbursement- $19,687.70, Niobrara County Hospital District- General County- 1% Option Tax $16,512.76, Niobrara County Library- General County- 4th Qtr. Tax allocation, & deferred comp.- $39,734.82, Niobrara Electric Association- Various- Radio tower electricity- $62.49, Office Depot- Various- Supplies- $1,490.76, Palen Law Offices- Clerk of Court- Court appointed attorney- $852.00, Patrick Cole- Facilities- Plumbing maintenance $600.00, Porter, Muirhead, Cornia, & Howard- General County- Audit $41,500.00, Quadient Leasing USA Inc.- General County- Quarterly postage meter lease payment- $1,202.19, Rancher’s Feed & Supply, Inc.- Road & bridge- Parts- $6.85, Rapid Fire Protection, Inc.- Facilities- Building equipment/maintenance $7,647.00, Rawhide Drug Company- Detention- Inmate medical $10.91, Sandrock Vision Clinic- Facilities- Rent & utilities for temporary sheriff’s office- $816.62, Smith Psychological Services- Detention- Employee medical- $400.00, Stephens-Peck, Inc.- County Clerk- Supplies $125.00, Swanson Services Corporation- Detention- Commissary account $316.32, Thomas Y Pickett- Assessor- Professional appraisal- $500.00, Thomson Reuters-West- County Attorney- Law library- $173.89, Torrington Office Supply- Various- Supplies- $764.12, Town of Lusk- Various- Utilities- $2,602.31, Traci Bruegger- Facilities- Cleaning contract- $4,300.00, Tyler Technologies- Treasurer- Computer expense $82.69, Verizon Wireless- Various- Phones, base charge $433.70, Visa- Various- Supplies, travel expense, postage, new equipment, IT expense, TANF grant, medical supplies, schools, commissary- $4,868.90, Vision Service Plan- Various- Vision Insurance- $421.88, Visionary Broadband- Various- IT expense- $745.14, Westco- Road & Bridge- Fuel- $8,616.53, WEX Bank- Various- Fuel- $3,528.94, WY Dept of Health- Public Health Nurse- Reimburse State for Co’s quarterly portion of PHN Sal. $4,785.85, WY Enterprise Technology Services- Various- Computer expense- $30.68, Wyatt Electric, Inc.- Library maintenance $3,306.92, Wyoming Lawn and Tree- Facilities- Library & justice center maintenance $204.00, Wyoming Coroner’s Association- Coroner- Ancillary support $175.00, Wyoming Educator’s Benefit Trust- Various- Health Insurance- $26,642.95, Wyoming Machinery Company- Road & Bridge- Parts- $510.10, Wyoming Network, Inc.- General County- IT expense- $200.00, Wyoming Women’s Center – Detention- Inmate meals- $141.12, Xerox Corp.- Co admin- Copier service agreement- $129.39
Total for April- $463,230.87
There being no further business, Vice-Chairman Midkiff moved to adjourn the meeting at 11:39 a.m. Commissioner Griffith seconded, and the motion carried.
NIOBRARA COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
Patrick Wade, Chairman
Attest:
Becky L. Freeman, County Clerk
Public Notice No. 6086. Published in The Lusk Herald on May 29, 2024.
