IN THE COUNTY COURT OF THE STATE OF OREGON IN AND FOR THE COUNTY OF GRANT

Access the County Court Agenda and approved Minutes on the Commissioner’s page at www.gcoregonlive2.com

April 27, 2016

Pursuant to notice made to the newspaper of general circulation throughout Grant County, the radio station, county website, and e-mail distribution list, a regular meeting of the County Court was held at the County Courthouse in the County Courtroom in Canyon City, OR.

9:00 am — Call to Order. Present were Judge Scott W. Myers, Commissioners Chris B. Labhart and Boyd Britton, Secretary Laurie Wright, Road Master Alan Hickerson, Doug Ferguson, Eastern Region Coordinator Scott Fairley, Jim Spell, Beth Spell, Linda Gingrich, Jim Sproul, Judy Kerr, Mike Cosgrove, Curt Shelley, Logan Bagett, Jim Hamsher, Treasurer Kathy Smith, Assessor Karen Officer, and Pastor David Hoeffner. A Pledge of Allegiance was given to the United States flag. The invocation was given by Pastor Hoeffner.

AGENDA. MSP: Myers/Britton — to accept the agenda with the addition of discussion of the Sheriff’s payroll request regarding the Undersheriff, Resolution 16-15 supporting GEODC’s grant application for a Hazard Mitigation Plan for Canyon City, and approval of a hand check for election postage in the amount of $647.78. Myers voted yes, Britton voted yes, Labhart voted no because he feels unless there is an emergency items should not be added to the agenda.

ANNOUNCEMENTS. Commissioner Britton stated he has not seen a formal letter from the Geographic Names Board regarding the name changes they approved for Grant County. Britton has heard the approval was completed though. Britton advised the county will continue to fight the name changes and some of the changes will be very difficult to pronounce. He continues to visit with citizens as they stop by his shop.

Commissioner Labhart reported last Wednesday the 20th he attended an LCAC meeting, Thursday the 21st he went to the fairground for the USDA grant presentation, had lunch at the John Day Senior Center, attended a department head meeting at the courthouse and attended a Grant County Chamber meeting. On Thursday, April 21st he attended Neale Ledgerwood’s retirement and roast party at the road department, and on Friday, April 22nd he evaluated Senior Projects at Grant Union Junior/Senior High School. Last Saturday, April 23rd Labhart participated in the Candidates Forum at Canyon City Community Hall and on Monday, April 25th he had lunch at the John Day Senior Center. Labhart said this upcoming Thursday the 28th he will attend a TEC board meeting in Baker City and will attend the Bi-Annual Cycle Tourism meeting in John Day.

Judge Myers met with Alan Hickerson, Terry Brandsma and a representative from Tidewater Construction last Thursday to review a paving project at the fairgrounds for a pathway that will lead to the arena and also the Heritage Barn, the two sale barn entrances and the Pavilion. Once completed it will be an asphalt walkway instead of the gravel it is right now. CIS Insurance will pay $7,500 toward the project and Myers isn’t sure at this time where the rest of the funds will come from, but this is a major safety issue that needs to be addressed. Myers went to Neale Ledgerwood’s retirement party last Thursday afternoon at the road department. Myers will meet with Mandy Taylor from Bisnett tomorrow to discuss the county’s insurance coverage, will attend a courthouse security meeting, a Local Public Safety Coordination meeting and has a name change hearing in the afternoon. On Monday May 2nd Myers will be going to Fossil to attend a reinvestment meeting regarding reducing recidivism in prisons and jails. Myers will attend interviews the evening of Tuesday, May 3rd, for the airport manager position.

MINUTES. MSP: Britton/Myers — to approve the April 20th minutes as presented.

CANYON CREEK CHANNEL REHAB PROJECT. Doug Ferguson (Ferguson Surveying & Engineering) updated the court on the Canyon Creek Channel Rehabilitation Project. Ferguson stated a couple of weeks ago he proposed figuring out how to advance towards the long term project and Regional Coordinator Scott Fairley has been working on this.

9:19 am King Williams and Zach Williams entered.

Scott Fairley introduced himself and said he is the Eastern Region Coordinator for Governor Brown’s office. Fairley said immediately after the fire Ferguson came up with the short term flood berm project and began also working towards a long term flood solution. Fairley congratulated Ferguson, the road department and the entire county on the completion of the short term berm project. He stated he has been in discussions with Ferguson on how to proceed with the long term project because it is going to be much more complicated and will require numerous permits. The Army Corp requires presentation of three alternative projects and once the Corp receives the proposals they meet with other agencies to review and decide which is the most viable and offer input. Ferguson discussed some possible alternatives he has thought about. Britton suggested one of the alternatives could be doing nothing and showing what could happen in this scenario. Fairley explained after the initial proposals are presented and a plan is selected an application must be submitted to the Army Corp and the estimated cost of this for the phase of the application review would be around $100,000 plus engineering costs. Fairley stated one option to raise funds for this is possibly creating a water control district where people within the district would pay a fee. Fairley gave a general summary of how a district is formed. The district would need to be requested by the citizens and formed by a vote of the citizens. Fairley reported after initial funding is in place, the first phase is to look at the three alternative proposals, the second step is to investigate to see if there is interest in forming a district to fund the project, the third step would be submitting the application to the Army Corp of Engineers, and the final step would be to build and maintain the project. He said creating a water district seems to be a complex process and people he has talked to about this have suggested hiring legal counsel to develop this or to utilize GEODC’s assistance. Britton said he thinks the money should come from the State and pointed out how quickly the State came through with money when they wanted to remove Canyon Meadows Dam. Britton would like Fairley to look into possible state funding. Fairley stated there may be some state money available through existing programs, but would likely be competitive grants for restoration. Britton suggested BPA may be another alternative. Fairley added another option might be to propose something in the next legislative session. Myers stated the first step should be getting a contract in place with Ferguson. Labhart would like to know what the citizens of the county want and what they see as priorities. Britton would like to see this project be even larger and include water impoundment along with stream restoration. Ferguson advised this is a large project and will possibly cost 8 to 10 million dollars and include more than just stream restoration. Britton asked Fairley if he could look into ways to assist the county with paying for the project and Fairley said he would. King Williams asked Ferguson what kind of maintenance the creek will require if the stream bed is restored. Ferguson said if the design is completed correctly there should be very low, if any, maintenance needed. In William’s opinion forming a water district will be very difficult to get voters to pass. Treasurer Kathy Smith inquired if the large project would be a new project, and if so, it should be put out for bids for the engineering. Smith said a request for proposals should be completed prior to the project commencement to cover everyone. Myers agreed this needs to be taken care of quickly. Labhart would like to see a community meeting held to discuss all of the different projects being proposed within the county and to get public input. Curt Shelley stated education is important to him along with having a quality facility to provide education in and there is currently a 4 million dollar state match grant available to schools, but a bond would have to be asked for to match the funds. Shelley doesn’t feel we have enough of a tax base here to support large projects without outside help. Shelley can’t get a bond passed while the school is in a flood zone. Shelley advised those in attendance about issues the school has including water under the school. Shelley reported it makes sense to renovate the current building rather than build a new school, but not until the current school is out of the flood zone.

10:01 am Patrick Bentz and Dan Becker entered.

AIRPORT UPDATES. Airport Manager Patrick Bentz updated the court on projects at the airport.

Re-Keying Locks. Bentz said at the last airport commission meeting the discussion was held to only re-key the most important locks and this will save money. The Forest Service will pay for their side of the building for re-keying. Myers pointed out when the building was constructed all the locks were master keyed and he isn’t sure why. Bentz talked to a locksmith in Prairie and was told he didn’t have time and he has been unable to contact the other locksmith in Prairie. Jim Hamsher will get a hold of Stan (locksmith in Prairie) and have him contact Bentz.

Outside Power Meter. Bentz acquired two quotes for placing the power meter, one from Red’s Electric in the amount of $1,421.31 and one from North River Electric in the amount of $1,655.00. MSP: Myers/Briton — to allow Bentz to move forward with placement of the power meter and have Red’s Electric perform the work.

Runway Lights. Bentz said the new runway light regulator was installed yesterday and is working. The old regulator was kept just in a spare was ever needed. The airport is required to have runway lights and this was a major safety issue.

Airport Sign. Bentz applied for a Chamber of Commerce grant ($2,500) for an airport sign and is hoping to hear something soon. The grant should pay for the entire cost of the sign. Network Clock. The network clock controls the lights on the outside of the building and a portion of the interior lights. Ron Hasher is supposed to be getting a quote to replace the clock and is initially estimating around $3,000. The current clock model is not made any longer and the new clock utilizes digital relays so the analog relays in place now will need to be replaced. Bentz said the cost of this clock will probably come out of maintenance and the airport has the money. Myers suggested using some of the revenue from the conference room rental to offset the cost.

Fuel Tanker. Bentz informed the court he came across a used fuel tanker that is smaller and much cheaper than what was discussed in the earlier budget hearings. The truck Bentz located would cost $17,000. Bentz explained how much easier this would make it to fuel the tanker planes and helicopters during fire season. The contractors buy their fuel from the airport and this is a good source of revenue for the airport. Jim Hamsher said he drove fuel truck and fueled helicopters and suggested putting a tank in the back of a pickup; this truck could also be used for plowing snow. Hamsher advised this worked very well when he did it. Bentz stated he is simply providing information to the court at this time.

10:18 am Jim Carpenter entered.

RESOLUTION 16-14. The court reviewed Resolution 16-14 for the Assessor to submit the Oregon Department of Revenue Assessment and Taxation Grant Application. Myers told the audience this is an annual resolution for operating capital and allows the assessor to remain in compliance with taxation. This grant is in the amount of $640,594.00. MSP: Myers/Labhart — to approve Resolution 16-14 and circulate for signatures.

MONUMENT RURAL FIRE DISTRICT. The court reviewed a Statement of Dissolution and Plan for Dissolution for Monument Rural Fire District prepared by county counsel Ron Yockim. Myers said this has been going on for a long time and explained how the court came to be the board of trustees. Myers said this is long overdue for dissolution. MSP: Myers/Britton — to sign the board of trustee’s statement and plan for dissolution.

GEOGRAPHIC NAMES BOARD LETTER. The court reviewed and signed a letter to the US Geographic Names Board (USGNB) requesting additional review of the names the USGNB approved for areas of Grant County. Britton attempted to pronounce the approved names to those in attendance and read a portion of the USGNB principles of policy and procedure aloud. Britton would like to continue fighting the name changes with the courts blessing. This letter was completed by Britton and Gregg Smith. MSP: Britton/Myers — to circulate the letter for signatures and to allow Britton and Gregg Smith to continue to fight for the county with the USGNB.

10:26 am Kathy Stinnett entered.

Judy Kerr supports everything Mr. Britton is trying to do in this matter and doesn’t understand why something that has been named a certain way for so long and is a part of our history needs to be changed.

DISTRICT ATTORNEY PROPOSAL. District Attorney Jim Carpenter presented his proposal to the court to provide legal counsel services to the county. Carpenter stated he told the citizens of Grant County in 2014 that he would be willing to serve as county counsel and he is still willing to do so. Carpenter has talked to some other counties and the larger counties use outside counsel. The smaller counties he spoke with all use the district attorney for some county counsel services and utilize outside counsel for land use issues. Carpenter said Grant County has historically used the district attorney to provide this service until a district attorney was in office who didn’t wish to do this. Carpenter stated he is comfortable in providing whatever legal services the county may need him to provide. He revised the initial proposal he submitted to the court and stated he would change the proposed monthly cost from $2,000 to $1,600 and be available whenever the court might need his assistance. Britton commended Carpenter for fulfilling some of his campaign promises such as working with the Assessor to collect back taxes. Jim Spell also complimented Carpenter on presenting this to the court as a department head and Spell feels more department heads should present proposals in person. Spell is worried about possible conflicts and the possibility of Carpenter’s work load increasing if he were to lose the grant that pays for his Assistant DA and also what might happen if Carpenter lost the next election. Spell feels the county is in a good situation working with Mr. Yockim now. Carpenter agreed there are situations in which outside legal counsel would be necessary and this is why he changed his proposal. Carpenter said by statute the county can ask him for legal advice and this has historically been paid on a fee basis. Jim Sproul stated what the DA is proposing is a credible proposal and offers more local control and availability. Sproul urged the court to think about what their constituents want and the fact the DA would be accountable to the county and the voters. Britton doesn’t feel this is the right time to change county counsel, but this could be revisited in the future. Carpenter stated he respects Mr. Yockim and would be able to offer the same level of service and he has kept his promise to the voters. Judy Kerr wanted to know why the court wanted to keep dispatch local, but not legal counsel. Myers said changing legal services now would be the same as changing dispatch services now. Mike Cosgrove expressed concern about the additional workload Carpenter would be taking on if he became legal counsel. Carpenter explained that attorneys are not allowed to take on more work than they can complete and he took this into account when he prepared his proposal. Carpenter stated he would like to take on new legal issues and said the court shouldn’t change counsel regarding current litigation. Britton still doesn’t feel like this is the time to change services. The court could revisit this in the future.

RESOLUTION 16-15. Resolution 16-15 is in support of the Greater Eastern Oregon Development Council grant application to assist Canyon City with developing a National Hazard Mitigation Plan by amending the county plan to include Canyon City. The court approved Economic Director Sally Bartlett’s request to apply for this grant at last week’s court meeting, but the grant requires a letter of support or resolution of support from the county governing body. MSP: Myers/Britton — to approve Resolution 16-15 and circulate for signatures.

SHERIFF PAYROLL REQUEST. Sheriff Palmer sent a written request to the court to allow the Undersheriff to be paid comp time in a different week than it was earned. Myers explained the Undersheriff position is an exempt position and read the other county positions that are exempt to the audience. Exempt positions are exempt from overtime pay and comp time accruals. Kathy Smith said only elected officials don’t have accruals. Myers said the issue is the new Undersheriff worked comp hours in one week and then was incorrectly directed to take time off the next week for the comp time he worked. Myers explained BOLI requires that flex time must be taken in the same week it is earned. The Undersheriff was incorrectly told he could take the flex time in a different week, but he must use vacation hours (per county policy) to make up the missed hours since he is an exempt employee. Kathy Smith stated historically the two previous Undersheriff’s took accruals when they didn’t work a 40 hour work week and this has been a practice of this position. If the court allows this change on the current Undersheriff’s time card a huge can of worms would be opened up with all current exempt employees and former exempt employees. Labhart has an issue with Sheriff Palmer not being here to discuss this issue as the department head. Britton stated all the court is doing today is discussing county policy. MSP: Britton/Labhart — to uphold county policy and direct payroll to deduct 18 hours of vacation from the Undersheriff’s accruals. Jim Sproul said he doesn’t feel it is right to penalize someone for working overtime in an emergency situation by taking away their vacation. Smith stated you have to treat every exempt employee the same in each department and emergency situations should have nothing to do with it, overtime is overtime. Britton said this has worked in the past and he doesn’t believe this will be an issue in the future now that the Undersheriff knows the policy. Zach Williams said this is no different than how teacher’s salaries work and when you choose to take an exempt position you are paid at a higher rate to compensate for being exempt. Williams said as an exempt employee you are expected to work a minimum of 40 hours, but by taking the position you agree to work whatever hours are necessary to complete the job.

PUBLIC COMMENT. Judy Kerr announced the death of Earlene Holliday. The service will be held on Saturday, April 30th, at 3:00 pm at the First Baptist Church in John Day. Britton stated we have also lost Ms. Osbourne, Maxine Woodworth and Jake Streeter over the last week. Jim Spell inquired about the paperwork Jim Sproul delivered to the court at the end of last week’s meeting. Myers said some of the paperwork was relevant to dispatch, but as far as he can tell it is from a 2012 feasibility study and he couldn’t find anything in the paperwork about mandating regional dispatch centers. The rest of the paperwork seems to be statutes and administrative rules regarding dispatch and how dispatch works. Labhart added he reviewed the paperwork and he also cannot find anything stating dispatch centers will be mandated to regionalize and believes this was just a study completed that discovered it wasn’t going to be feasible. Labhart has been unable to find anything regarding dispatch centers being regionalized in the future.

11:18 am – Adjourned.

Respectfully Submitted,

Laurie Wright

County Court Secretary