July 7, 2020
The Miner County Board of Commissioners met in regular session July 7, 2020 in the Miner County Courthouse. Members present: Roger Wentland, Garrett Gassman, Tom Reisch. and Alex Protsch. Absent: Voni Durant. Chairman Wentland called the meeting to order. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited. Motion by Gassman, seconded by Reisch and carried to approve the agenda.
The minutes of the June 16th meeting were approved. No one appeared for Public Comment. No conflict of interest was declared. Protsch reported that due to restructuring of the ICAP Board of Directors, Miner County will no longer have a commissioner serving as an ICAP board member.
The auditor’s account with the county treasurer showed a July 1, 2020 balance of $8,009,671.19 in all state, county, civil, school and trust accounts.
The following correspondence was received: SD DENR-Approval of Lake Thompson Vegetation & Sediment Removal Plan with Conditions; SD DENR-Revised Phosphorus-Based Nutrient Mgt. Plan for Shannon Hutterian Brethren; SD DOT-Tentative 2021-2024 Four Year Statewide Transportation Improvement Program; Miner County Moisture Report.
It was moved by Gassman, seconded by Protsch and carried to approve the following claims for payment: Alliance $150.00, Santel $55.12 911 CHARGES; FJM $7.50 COLLECTIONS EXPENSE; ICAP $674.75 COMMUNITY ACTION PAYMENT; SD Dept. of Transportation $40,229.65, JH Earthmoving $1,620.00 CONTRACTED MAINTENANCE; SD Office of Child & Family Services $1,602.64 CO NURSE PMT TO STATE; Stephanie Moen & Associates $63.00 DEPOSITION; Xcel $10.16 ELECTRICITY; Diesel Machinery $39,900.00 EQUIPMENT; JH Earthmoving $32.40 EXCISE TAX; Puetz Design + Build $6,250.00 FACILITIES STUDY; HFCA $11,314.20 FUEL; Northwestern Energy $147.57 GAS SERVICE; Todd Spader $981.00 MOWING; Susan Connor $161.87, Homestead $449.98, Rusty’s $21.95 PANDEMIC SUPPLIES; Miner Co Treasurer $70.70 POSTAGE; Miner County Pioneer $223.08 PUBLISHING; Al’s Service $242.65, Howard Auto Clinic $82.24, James Valley Landscape $144.14, Office Peeps $70.07, S&S Contracting $3,841.33, Ultra $1,102.25, Winker Trenching $344.00 REPAIRS; Homestead $778.55 ROAD MATERIALS; Greg Protsch $900.00 STATE’S ATTY OFFICE EXPENSE ALLOWANCE; Relx $149.00 SUBSCRIPTION; Colleen Arens $13.69, C&B Operations $55.81, Dakota Data Shred $16.00, DS Solutions $280.00, Dust-Tex Service $130.94, ES&S $2,308.14, Maria Feldhaus $79.00, Homestead $131.75, HFCA $8,560.00, John Deere Financial $668.65, Mac’s $21.98, Matheson Tri Gas $44.81, McLeod’s $321.36, Miner Co Treasurer $116.85, Office Peeps $657.18, Pheasantland Industries $84.37, Redwood Toxicology $240.00, Rusty’s $81.67, Safety Kleen $400.00, Tami Severson $20.00, Thomson Reuters $219.26, Titan Machinery $347.72, Tom’s Hardware $111.12, Ultra $78.00 SUPPLIES; Alliance $886.10, Colleen Arens $30.00, AT&T $291.08, Century Link $14.28, Tami Severson $30.00, Verizon $59.43 TELEPHONE; Garrett Gassman $44.10 TRAVEL; City of Howard $1,784.60 UTILITIES; Beadle Co Auditor $1,175.00 VICTIMS ADVOCATE.
Director of Equalization Tami Severson joined the meeting.
It was moved by Reisch, seconded by Gassman and carried to authorize Chairman Wentland to sign the fiscal year 2021 WIC contract amendment with the SD Dept. of Health.
It was moved by Reisch, seconded by Protsch and carried to postpone action on Ordinance 2020-01 and refer the ordinance to the Planning Commission for additional consideration.
It was moved by Gassman, seconded by Reisch and carried to authorize the auditor to make the following operating transfer as provided for in the 2020 budget from general fund to Rd & Bridge Fund $725,000 and to 911 Fund $20,000.
It was moved by Reisch, seconded by Gassman and carried to transfer $259,985.07 unassigned Road & Bridge Fund Balance to Road & Bridge Assigned Special Bridge Funding.
Tami Moore with the Miner County Soil Conservation District presented her 2019 annual report. Moore reviewed equipment rentals, tree planting, community activities, and grant programs. Protsch stated that Soil Conservation Board member, Marvin Kizer, asked about the conservation district utilizing a portion of the newly acquired property by the 4-H grounds to store the district’s machinery. Through the discussion it was determined that it would be in the best interest of the district and the public’s safety to continue to rent the property near the district’s office.
Treasurer Pat Carmon met with the board to review tax deed properties. Deputy State’s Attorney Kristian Ellendorf joined telephonically. Ellendorf informed the board the tax deed for Lot Three (3), Block Twenty-six (26) of the Original Plat of the City of Carthage, Miner County, South Dakota has been filed. Ellendorf also gave a brief review of the status of other properties which are in the tax deed process. Discussion was held on granting the Carthage property to the City of Carthage. Ellendorf will draft a resolution to be considered at the July 21st board meeting.
Treasurer Carmon presented the following resolution for consideration. It was moved by Protsch and seconded by Reisch to adopt the following resolution.
MINER COUNTY RESOLUTION 20-22
FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF AN ADMINISTRATIVE FEE
FOR CERTAIN TITLE AND REGISTRATION SERVICES
WHEREAS, South Dakota allows out of state and resident applicants to title motor vehicles by mail; and
WHEREAS, any title, interstate title and initial registration applications that are processed entirely by mail and more time consuming and result in higher administrative expenses and allocation of staff time for the Treasurer’s Office; and
WHEREAS, SDCL 32-3-18.1 allows counties to charge an administrative fee for applications for title, interstate title and initial registrations completed entirely by mail; and
WHEREAS, South Dakota allows resident and nonresident applicants to title large boats, as defined by SDCL 32-3A-2(5) entirely by mail; and
WHEREAS, SDCL 32-3A-21.1 allows counties to charge an administrative fee for applications to title large boats, as defined by South Dakota law, completed entirely by mail; and
WHEREAS, SDCL 32-3A-4 requires residents and nonresidents to register boats requiring numbering by the State of South Dakota; and
WHEREAS, initial registration of boats completed entirely by mail is as time consuming as the titling process for large boats or motor vehicles; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to SDCL 7-8-20(7), the Miner County Commission is empowered with the responsibility to superintend the fiscal concerns of the county and secure their management in the best possible manner;
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that, as of August 1st 2020, the Miner County Treasurer’s Office will charge an administrative fee of $25.00 for any title, interstate title or initial registration application that is received and processed entirely by mail.
Voting aye: Gassman, Protsch, Reisch and Wentland. Voting nay: none. Resolution adopted this 7th day of July, 2020.
Roger Wentland, Chairman
Miner County Board of Commissioners
Attest: Susan Connor, Miner County Auditor
Ron Krempges, Highway Superintendent, informed the commissioners of flood damage that occurred mostly in the northwest corner of the county. Redstone & Carthage townships have inquired about county assistance in making repairs to a bridge located in Carthage Twp. and the recently installed culverts in Redstone Twp. The board instructed Krempges to have the townships complete the required application for assistance. Once the applications are submitted the board will review the requests. Krempges reported he had received a request from a member of the public to advertise in the Miner County Pioneer the timeline the county intends to mow county roads. Another request received by Krempges from a resident in the northeast corner of the county to place more culverts to allow better flow in that area. No action was taken on that request. Other matters presented included updates on mowing, asphalt patching and chip sealing.
Review of the Miner County Courthouse Facilities Study. Custodian Colleen Arens joined the meeting. The board shared their ideas and the comments they had received from members of the public.
Roger Wentland stated he looked at the plan to develop a process to complete the renovations in stages/years. With the extent of work that must be completed it would be extremely difficult to do the project in stages. He stated he has received concerns from the public about spending approximately $3.5 million on the remodeling of the current courthouse -if that much must be spent, a new facility should be built.
Protsch commented that maybe the elevator would not be necessary and could be cut from the project; the possibility of adding a forced air furnace with exposed duct work throughout the courthouse; or if building a new facility, build an office type building.
Reisch has been asked if the Howard Hotel and Convention Center could be purchased and remodeled into a courthouse. The board had concerns as to the total cost of that idea.
Gassman was hesitant to remodel the existing courthouse. It will still be an old building with space restrictions and will continue to have issues going forward.
Before making a decision on whether or not to proceed with the remodel project, the board will schedule visits to the Hanson County & Hutchison County courthouses. These are new facilities constructed by Puetz Design Build. These visits will take place on July 21st starting at Hanson County at 1:30 p.m. On August 4th the board will review the information received concerning a new structure and the Miner County Courthouse Facilities study.
Emergency Mgt. Director/Weed Supervisor Kent Terwilliger gave an update as to matters within his departments. A Homeland Security grant has been secured to purchase radios for Carthage, Canova and Fedora Fire Departments; Carthage Ambulance Service and Emergency Mgt. All entities will be responsible for programming and installation of their radios. Other matters included: repair to the storage shed’s roof located by the dispatch tower; battery installation for the Fedora siren; and attendance at a State required class in Olivet SD July 28-30. He also reported that spring spraying of township roads has been completed but does have some spot spraying left, and needs to spray the 4-H grounds and county property. He asked if he needed to be present when Kingsbury County begins the DENR authorized plan of Lake Thompson vegetation & sediment removal. The board did not see a need for Terwilliger to be present once the work begins. DENR will have a representative present to assure compliance with the project.
Terwilliger requested a raise for his position. It was moved by Gassman, seconded by Reisch and carried unanimously to increase Terwilliger’s salary as of July 1st as follows: Emergency Management $27,300 and Weed Supervisor $14,700.
Director of Equalization Tami Severson presented the following plats for consideration.
It was moved by Gassman and seconded by Protsch to adopt the following resolution.
RESOLUTION 20-23
WHEREAS, it appears that the owner thereof has caused a plat to be made of the following real property: ZENS TRACT 1, IN THE N.W. ¼ OF SECTION 35, T105N, R57W OF THE 5TH P.M., MINERCOUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA, and has submitted such plat to the county commission of Miner County, South Dakota for approval.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that such plat has been executed according to the law and same is hereby approved. The county auditor is hereby authorized and directed to endorse on such plat a copy of this resolution and certify the same. Voting aye: Protsch, Gassman, Reisch and Wentland. Voting nay: none. Resolution adopted this 7th day of July 2020.
Roger Wentland, Chairman
Miner County Board of Commissioners
Attest: Susan Connor, Miner County Auditor
It was moved by Reisch and seconded by Gassman to adopt the following resolution.
RESOLUTION 20-24
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, the plat shown hereon and described as LOT 1 OF CHARLES 2ND ADDITION IN THE NORTHWEST QUARTER (NW ¼) OF SECTION TWELVE (12), TOWNSHIP ONE HUNDRED FIVE (105) NORTH, RANGE FIFTY-FIVE (55) WEST OF THE 5TH P.M. IN MINER COUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA, be approved and accepted by the Board of County Commissioners at its meeting of July 7, 2020 and the county Auditor is hereby instructed to endorse on such plat a copy of this resolution and to certify the same.
Voting aye: Reisch, Gassman, Protsch and Wentland. Voting nay: none. Resolution adopted this 7th day of July 2020.
Roger Wentland, Chairman
Miner County Board of Commissioners
Attest: Susan Connor, Miner County Auditor
Director of Equalization Tami Severson explained that due to the change in SDCL 10-6-35.2 as of July 1, 2020 Miner County Commission will need to adopt a new resolution pertaining to Miner County’s discretionary formula. It was moved by Reisch and seconded by Protsch to adopt the following.
Miner County Resolution No. 20-21
Discretionary Formula SDCL 10-6-35.2
WHEREAS, the County of Miner, State of South Dakota has deemed it in the best interest of the County to adopt a Resolution implementing a Discretionary Formula for the reduced taxation of new structures and additions and partially constructed structures pursuant to SDCL 10-6-35.2.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the following properties shall be, and hereby are, specifically classified for the purpose of taxation pursuant to SDCL § 10-6-35.2:
__ Any new nonresidential agricultural structure, or any addition to an existing structure, if the new structure or addition has a full and true value of ten thousand dollars or more (SDCL § 10-6-35.2(3));
__ Any new commercial structure, or any addition to an existing structure, except a commercial residential structure as described in SDCL § 10-6-35.2(5), if the new structure or addition has a full and true value of thirty thousand dollars or more (SDCL § 10-6-35.2(4));
FURTHER RESOLVED, that any structure classified pursuant to this Resolution shall, following construction, initially be valued for taxation purposes in the usual manner, and that value shall be referred to in this Resolution as the “Pre-Adjustment Value”; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED, that the assessed value to be used for tax purposes of any structure classified pursuant to this Resolution shall, following construction, be calculated as follows:
a. For the first tax year following construction, 20% of the Pre-Adjustment Value;
b. For the second tax year the following construction, 40% of the Pre-Adjustment Value;
c. For the third tax year following construction, 60% of the Pre-Adjustment Value;
d. For the fourth tax year following construction, 80% of the Pre-Adjustment Value;
e. For the fifth tax year following construction, 100% of the Pre-Adjustment Value;
and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Board of County Commissioners may, if requested by the owner of any of the above described property, not apply the above formula, in which case the full assessment shall be made without application of the formula. In waiving this formula for the structure of one owner, the Board of County Commissioners is not prohibited from applying the formula for subsequent new structures by that owner; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED, that for purpose of this Resolution, the assessed valuation during any of the five years may not be less than the assessed valuation of the property year preceding the first year of the tax years following construction; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED, that any structure that is partially constructed on the assessment date may be valued for tax purposes pursuant to this Resolution and the valuation may not be less than the assessed valuation of the property in the year preceding the beginning of construction; and be it
FUTHER RESOLVED, that following the five-year period under this section, the property shall be assessed at the same percentage as is all other property for tax purposes.
Approved this 7th day of July, 2020
Miner County Commission
By: Roger Wentland, Chairman
Attest: Susan Connor, Miner County Auditor
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act created a Coronavirus Relief Fund for the purpose of providing financial resources to state and local governments to respond to the COVID-19 public health emergency. South Dakota has received $1.25 billion from the United State Department of Treasury for expenses related to the Coronavirus. Governor Noem has directed that Coronavirus Relief Funds be made available to cities and counties to support reimbursement of allowable expenditures related to the public health emergency. On June 22, 2020, the Governor created the Local Government COVID Recovery Fund allocating $200 million to city and county governments from the State of South Dakota’s overall federal allocation. Miner County’s allocation is $146,388.
The Local Government COVID Recovery Funds may only be used to cover costs that:
a) are necessary expenditures incurred due to the public health emergency with respect to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19);
b) were not accounted for in the budget most recently approved as of March 27, 2020, for the government entity;
c) were incurred during the period that begins on March 1, 2020, and ends on December 30, 2020; and
d) have not been reimbursed or where reimbursement has not been requested from another source of funds including, but no limited to, other federal programs.
It was moved by Protsch and seconded by Reisch to adopt the following resolution.
Miner County Resolution Number 2020-20__
A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE EXECUTION OF CONTRACTUAL DOCUMENTS WITH THE STATE OF SOUTH DAKOTA FOR THE RECIEPT OF CARES ACT FUNDS TO ADDRESS THE
COVID-19 PUBLIC HEALTH CRISIS
WHEREAS, pursuant to section 5001 of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, Pub. L. No. 116-136, div. A, Title V (Mar. 27, 2020) (the “CARES Act”), the State of South Dakota has received federal funds that may only be used to cover costs that: (a) are necessary expenditures incurred due to the public health emergency with respect to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19); (b) were not accounted for in the budget most recently approved as of March 27, 2020, for the State of South Dakota; and (c) were incurred during the period that begins on March 1, 2020, and ends on December 30, 2020; and
WHEREAS, Miner County acknowledges that the State of South Dakota, in its sole discretion, may retain full use of these funds for the purposes delineated in the CARES Act; and
WHEREAS, Miner County acknowledges that in order to provide financial assistance to counties and municipalities in South Dakota, the State of South Dakota, in its sole discretion, may allocate CARES Act funds Act on a statewide basis to reimburse counties and municipalities as delineated herein; and
WHEREAS, Miner County seeks funding to reimburse eligible expenditures incurred due to the public health emergency with respect to COVID-19; and
WHEREAS, Miner County acknowledges that any request for reimbursement of expenditures will only be for expenditures that were not accounted for in the budget for Miner County most recently approved as of March 27, 2020; and
WHEREAS, Miner County acknowledges that it will only seek reimbursement for costs incurred during the period that begins on March 1, 2020, and ends on December 30, 2020;
NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED by the County Commission of Miner County that the chairman of the Miner County Commission may execute any and all documents as required by the State in order to receive CARES Act funds.
It is further
RESOLVED that any request for reimbursement will be only for those costs authorized by the State that: (1) Are necessary expenditures incurred due to the public health emergency with respect to COVID-19; (2) Were not accounted for in the County budget most recently approved as of March 27, 2020; and (3) Were incurred during the period that begins on March 1, 2020, and ends on December 30, 2020.
It is further
RESOLVED that the County will not request reimbursement from the State under the CARES Act for costs for which the County previously received reimbursement, or for which the County has a reimbursement request pending before another source.
Approved and adopted this 7th day of July, 2020.
Roger Wentland
Miner Commission Chairman
Miner County, South Dakota
ATTEST: Susan Connor, Miner County Auditor
It was moved by Gassman and seconded by Reisch to authorize Chairman Wentland to sign the State of South Dakota Local Government COVID Recovery Fund Reimbursement agreement and the State of South Dakota Bureau of Finance and Management Sub-recipient Responsibilities Annex between Miner County and the State of SD.
The 2021 budget was handed out and reviewed by the board. Continuation of planning for the 2021 budget will take place at the July 21st meeting.
Having no further business, the meeting adjourned until July 21st. Dated this 7th day of July 2020.
Roger Wentland, Chairman
Miner County Board of Commissioners
Attest: Susan Connor, Miner County Auditor