Lynne Oharah’s concern about the county declaring Unique Road open was the first item of business the commission handled after opening its meeting with regular county business.

Oharah wants the portion of Unique Road that adjoins his land to be declared open by the commission. He says that the procedures for closing a road, per KSA68102 or 102a are “very specific on how roads are closed,” and that the road portion he is concerned about has not been officially closed by the county.

He wanted to address an issue he said should be uniform throughout the county. He mentioned three roads (Quail and two sections of Unity) that the county stopped maintaining during his tenure as commissioner. He says they were arbitrarily closed and had their signage removed.

“You can’t do that. That’s not in the KSAs,” he said.

He referred to a certified survey from 1973, which he provided to the county commissioners, saying that the pins on the survey denote there is a 40 foot right of way between the two fences, which is the county road Unique.

“I don’t care what GIS shows. The pins don’t lie,” said Oharah.

He wants the county to direct the clerk to update its records, as the county is responsible for providing an accurate map of the county to the state. He said the title company would not accept the survey without the county also declaring the road to be open.

He says there is a discrepancy between the 2011 map and the 2012 map, which is what the public works director at that time “ran with.”

Beerbower said that because Oharah’s neighbor had his lawyer contact the county’s counselor, they couldn’t discuss the matter in an open meeting.

“Part of that land is mine, so I am requesting — I am not represented by legal counsel — I’m requesting that my portion of this road be opened,” said Oharah.

“Time is of the essence. Because I’m down to the wire,” said Oharah, referring to his efforts to sell some of his land.

He said that the commission didn’t need legal counsel to make a decision.

“We’re going to seek advice before we proceed any further,” said Beerbower, referring to the fact that they were dealing with the actions of past commissioners.

Oharah asked the commission to consider holding a special meeting if something were to happen that would jeopardize the sale of his land.

Tri-Valley – Bill Fiscus

Fiscus thanked the county for its support of Tri-Valley over the years. At the last meeting they spoke of a missed payment for Tri-Valley from 2024 for $13,750. The current agreement is for $55,000. They have also requested $55,000 in 2026.

He asked if they would receive that missed payment and how will it affect the 2025 and 2026 allocations.

County Clerk Susan Walker said the carryover from the missed payment was taken out of the budget in the last county commissioner meeting. She said a normal levy for Tri-County is 0.3 and the county is now levying 0.26.

The commission opted to discuss it during budget discussions later in the meeting.

Derek Raines

Raines spoke of the problems his family is having with EvoTech, a bitcoin company, which put in natural gas generators 172 yards from his house about 18 months ago. They run the generators continuously, 24/7. Inside the house, it’s 59-61 decibels, 54 dB in the back porch, and 73-74 on the front deck. He said the hum is constant in the house and they cannot open the windows.

The Raines had lived in their home for five years before EvoTech moved in and started running their generators.

Raines said he contacted the undersheriff who guided him to McCloud, in Jefferson County, KS. He then spoke to Doug Walbridge, who offered his assistance to the Bourbon County Commission to get this issue regulated.

“It’s just overbearing. We moved to the country from town for the peace and quiet,” he said. It’s bringing their property value down.

He said his parents can hear it 2 miles away.

He offered to get a petition signed or whatever else might help.

“It’s messing up our little piece of heaven,” he said.

He said he spoke to his state representative today as well, and plans to speak to KDHE also.

He mentioned that he pays more taxes to the county than EvoTech.

Tran asked what would need to happen to make it work for the neighborhood. Raines said it needs to be made so they can’t hear it.

Beerbower said the commission was looking into all the options and would keep working on the problem.

Sheriff Bill Martin & Ben Hart

Enterprise Fleet Management – Kenneth Olsen

Olsen represents Enterprise Fleet Management, which is working on an allocation for Chevy Tahoe police vehicles to replace vehicles in the sheriff’s current fleet.

Commissioner Mika Milburn asked how it would affect the 2026 budget. Olsen said they have a five-year plan to replace all the sheriff’s department vehicles for an average of $163,000 per year.

The funding for the new vehicles would come from the jail sales tax. Walker handed out a budget spreadsheet showing how the sheriff’s department budget would work.

Beerbower was in favor of adopting the leasing plan from Enterprise.

Tran expressed concern about the issue of balancing budget creep with the need to provide the sheriff’s department with reliable equipment.

Olsen said his company wants to create a partnership with the county. The county isn’t locked into the five-year plan Enterprise has proposed, but a flexible relationship bringing good data to the county to help them make wise decisions about vehicles going forward.

“This is a hard pill to swallow, but this is a pill we are going to have to swallow,” said Tran. He also asked that Ben and County Counselor Bob Johnson look over any contract before the county signs it to be sure there’s no fine print that will cause the county problems going forward.

Olsen also asked about getting a contract to work with the Public Works department, as his team prefers to have two departments involved. He said their vehicles’ average age is 2008.

Public Comments for Items Not on The Agenda

Susan Walker, County Clerk, corrected a statement she made at the previous meeting that commissioners must make $5,000. That’s not by statute, but a necessity to qualify for KPRS.

She also wanted to respond to comments Milburn made that Walker felt were directed at her. She was getting $6,500 to administer the county’s payroll, but that job is being transferred to an outside company, PayEntry.

Walker also said that the clerk’s office never handled HR issues, just activities and job descriptions. Bourbon County was lacking an HR department to handle disciplinary issues. She welcomes having someone from outside the county handle those issues. In the past, those issues were handled by the commission and the county counselor as the de facto administrators. “That was not something that was handled in the clerk’s office,” she stated.

“To say that I was the one directing the budget and the budget decisions is a misstatement,” she said, referring to Milburn’s commissioner comments in the last regular meeting.

The county had been paying her $3,500 to enter the budget numbers given her by department heads into the county’s budget document. The auditor offered to do it for $6,500.

Walker also expressed concern about PayEntry. There are several factors she was hesitant about in the process, and wasn’t consulted or allowed to ask questions during the meeting when it was discussed.

The kickoff meeting to transfer payroll to PayEntry was last week. One county employee took a whole day taking screen shots to give them data that could not be pulled from the system. PayEntry will charge $40 per pay period for those employees that are asking for paper checks. The county can require them to take pay cards or direct deposits instead.

PayEntry will only support child support garnishments, but there are other garnishments that the county will have process.

There are several exceptions to the rules that must be set up including grants that are used to make some parts of payroll.

Oct. 3rd is not a reasonable timeframe to be able to start up.

“What I have essentially come down to is: What we are doing, is we are paying a company to cut payroll checks and file federal and state taxes for us and that’s probably the easiest process for us to do,” she concluded. Her office will still have to do the benefit reconciliations, which is the most challenging part of the county’s payroll process. If she had been involved in this process from the beginning, the county might not be in this situation.

Milburn replied by saying that her comments were “a complication of a lot of things that needed addressed.”

The Bourbon County commission meeting opened to a full house for the budget hearing. The hearing began at 5:35p.m. with public comments.

JD Handly began the public comment section by acknowledging that the county is not in good financial condition. He asked that the commissioners consider their positions as public service and be willing to forego their salaries completely, noting they are not immune to the financial problems that the county currently has.

Joe Smith also spoke. He was a member of the budget advisory committee. He said the budget they presented to the commission was feasible and seemed good to them at the time. He then said that the commission had added things to the budget that caused it to exceed what the committee recommended.

“There seems to be an attitude by the commission that excessive overspending is correct,” he said. Citing the commission’s decision to remove the IT personnel and replace them with a service based in Missouri, which cost the county “nearly a mill” in tax dollars, he said the commission had created an unacceptable state for the people of Bourbon County. He also said they had added a financial advisor who is cutting the county clerk out of her job as the financial advisor to the commission.

“You have overspent by about $345,000,” according to his understanding of the budget. That did not include the money spent on Stronghold (IT Department).

Diane Brillhart spoke on behalf of the Bourbon County Fair Association, asking them not to cut the fair’s budget by half. She said that the county’s allocation is appreciated and needed and has been unchanged for the last 10 years. She emphasized the fair’s service to the youth of Bourbon County and the statute that requires the county to pay for judges and premium amounts, which “well-exceed $10,000.” The utilities alone run $17,000 per year, and insurance is $6,000. They work hard and try to host lots of events for the area. She asked them to reconsider the fair’s allocation.

Lynne OHarah, said it was hard to make a budget, as he remembered from his time as commissioner. He disagreed with the idea of commissioners working without pay, saying it would lead to the need for a county manager to cover what they would no longer have time to do if strictly volunteers.

He then spoke on behalf of seniors and those in lower income brackets, saying they want to stay in Bourbon County, but their income stays the same as the taxes go up. He asked the commission not to raise their taxes.

Clint Walker agreed with chairman Beerbower that the county needs a maintenance program for all their vehicles and they “have missed the boat” in that regard thus far. He said it would save the county a great deal of money to do that.

Anne Dare offered appreciation to the commission for serving. She then asked for confirmation of her understanding of the current mill levy situation. Currently it is 59.9. To stay revenue neutral, they would have to reduce it to 57.55. She confirmed that liability insurance and health care benefits costs for the county have increased.

She asked if the 59.936 mill rate covers the increased insurance costs? A commissioner answered that it does not, and will cause the reserves to be even more depleted. Dare said it doesn’t seem to be possible to go revenue neutral in light of that increase.

She asked that they be very deliberate in how they carry out the numbers and remember the people that live in Bourbon County and want to stay here and how it affects them.

Susan Walker, County Clerk, made the comment that the commissioners are required by statute to be paid a minimum of $5,000. She also, confirmed that the insurance increases are accounted for in the current 2026 budget document.

She wasn’t as involved in the budget process as in the past and has real concerns about cash reserves. “Because if revenues don’t meet their targets then you don’t meet those cash reserves,” she said.

The commissioners closed the hearing at 5:52.

Mapleton City Council – Redfield Road

Ron Burton, mayor of Mapleton, spoke to the commission about the road, saying it is becoming impassible and that the county has historically maintained it. The city cannot afford to fix it. He is concerned about the safety of the road and may have to close it or give it back to the county.

Mike Houston, city council member for Mapleton, also asked for the county’s help. Historically, it has been considered a county road linking the south and north ends of the county.  He pointed out that the county maintains the portion of Yale Road that is in Mapleton city limits. He also mentioned that the road needs maintenance as a mail and school bus route.

Houston said that if the city must fix it, it will no longer be a truck route as a city street. This will remove it as an option for county trucks coming through to maintain Yale Road, as well as for all other truck traffic.

“It would pretty well shut off the north end of the county if we make it a city street,” said Houston.

Beerbower asked how long it had been since the county had worked on it. Houston said it has been years, aside from salting it during an ice storm.

Melissa Bazone, representing Timber Hills Lake Ranch and Mapleton Cafe, which just reopened, said, “The road really is becoming impassible.”

“It would be a huge loss to us to not have that,” she said, referring to the loss of business if the road is not repaired.

Houston asked if the county would just make it drivable, not necessarily re-asphalt it at this time.

Jennifer Williams, Mapleton City Clerk, said that several county trucks have come through and bottomed out.

“It’s just cost-effective” to fix those holes, she said.

Mr. Handly said the road is classified as a rural secondary road,  giving it priority over other county roads. “That road needs immediate attention, like this week,” he said.

Sheriff Bill Martin also chimed in and said it needs work to be safe.

Commissioner Samuel Tran concurred after driving it himself recently. He also mentioned the recently approved interconnecting link for Uniontown, which connects Maple Road to Hwy 3 through Uniontown.

He said the KDOT map classifies State Road 125, going from Highway 54 to Highway 31, as a major collector.

It will cost the county about $32,000 in materials and $2,200 in labor to fix it.

“I think we should fix it, and I think we should memorialize this so that this does not come up again,” said Tran. He said it is hard to find information on what has been done historically.

“I feel very strongly that we need to put this back in our fold,” he said. But he doesn’t think they have the manpower to take care of it this year. However, they can patch it now to reduce the safety issue and add it to the asphalting plan for next year.

Beerbower agreed that the county should take care of it going forward.

Tran made a motion to accept responsibility for the 2226 feet of the road in Mapleton, that the county will maintain it going forward, and that public works make a plan to add it to their asphalt plan in the future.

They also decided to create a resolution to make it a matter of record.

Former commissioner Brandon Whisenhunt spoke up, saying maybe they should create a list of all the heavy traffic roads throughout the county that run from highway to highway and do the same with them. The commission agreed with his suggestion.

Lynne OHara said there was a major lawsuit about who owns the roads in the county, which affects what roads the county is permitted to maintain. Tran said he understood that inter-connectors must be done by the county. Beerbower said they would refer it to counsel and get it in line with the law

Misty Adams – Fulton City Council

Adams, mayor of Fulton City, spoke to the commission about recent repairs Public Works had done to Old 69 Highway (206th St) from the flood damage. She said they didn’t resurface it fully as they have in the past, and she was told it was because of budget constraints. She asked the commission to remedy the situation.

She also said that the county’s culvert across from the RR crossing on 215th needs to be cleaned out for proper water drainage. The RR mowing tractor got stuck in the water there. They also have a major mosquito problem because of all the water.

She also said the ditches on 215 are overgrown causing visibility issues for drivers.

Tran will follow up with public works regarding mowing and the culvert clearing.

Road Concern –Lynne O’Harah

O’Harah spoke with the commission about the road, which was called 352. It runs from 95th St. passed 75th St. Terrace. The land it crosses has been in their family since the late 1800s. It has been abandoned but not legally closed. There are procedures that must be followed to close a road and there’s no record of those procedures ever taking place, per his research.

From 1936 to 2012 a short portion of that road still showed as an open road. He wants it recognized as open by the county for 1056 feet so he can sell a portion of the land and have access to it.

Laura Holdridge, Register of Deeds, said this has been brought up several times. The 1989 map shows it as a driveway.

O’Harah is opposed to getting a permanent easement because it has never been legally closed.

Tran said he drove out and researched the subject and spoke to the family. The county recently graded 1056 feet of the road, there’s a culvert there for property access that O’Harah paid the county to have installed, and a recently installed a 911 sign.

“You don’t put culverts on private property,” said O’Harah.

Milburn said GIS said it doesn’t appear to be a road. The last map it existed on pre-dates GIS. The county still maintains the road, which is listed as a road on the 2011 map.

Beerbower said he would like to visit with counsel about the legal situation.

O’Harah said the situation has been drug out for 4 years, and he’s in danger of losing his contract to sell the property.

Beerbower made a motion to add to the agenda an executive session with county counsel to discuss the matter. Motion carried.

The executive session failed because they couldn’t reach the county counselor on the phone to discuss the matter. It has been added to a later county commissioner meeting.

They then closed the subject.

Department Updates

Sheriff – Bill Martin
TUSA – Radios

The Sheriff’s department has decided to hire TUSA to do a study to determine what kind of radio system Bourbon County first responders should change to. They are required to change to an encrypted system. This will also apply to Fort Scott Police, EMS, Rural Fire, Fort Scott Fire, and all other first responders in the county.

Martin showed a video taken during the Jan. 2024 ice storm that shut the county down for a few days. He encouraged viewers to use their phone’s stopwatch functions and played the video of a Bourbon County officer who slipped and fell, hitting his head. He was unable to grab his radio because of his injury and lay on the ground for nearly one and a half minutes before his partner realized he was down and came to help him.

Martin asked the commission to consider what would happen if an officer were down for that long due to being shot when approaching a car in rural Bourbon County. He then went on to say that the new generation of radios is able to tell when a radio is horizontal and in less than a minute, will open the channel and turn on his mic so dispatch can check on him and he can get help.

Martin asked how the commission would like him to pay for the first phase of the study with TUSA to start the process of upgrading the radio system. Phase one will cost $32,600. He said their price is most reasonable for the product they will receive. Others they checked with don’t offer services that are as complete. The contract was reviewed by the sheriff’s office attorney and okayed.

Representatives of the various first responder departments in Bourbon County agreed that TUSA is the best choice for doing the study.

The second phase, at a cost of $47,000, is the vendor sifting and selecting phase, conducted by TUSA.

Milburn wants to take it out of the jail sales tax fund.

Susan Walker, county clerk, said they need to look at the long-term and their increasing debt service.

“If I were to make any recommendation, it would be out of the sales tax fund,” she said. She projects there will be $2 million in that fund, which she says is a conservative estimate.

Tran asked how much of the cost would be covered by other entities that will be involved. Martin said he was expecting the city to chip in, but he needs to do the upgrade whether they contribute or not.

Tran said that in this instance, he wants to support his sheriff. He also suggested the county might have to pay for the service over time, rather than up front.

Tran asked for suggestions from the sheriff’s finance advisor. The advisor said there are a number of ways to make it work and that having debt service over time is probably the best way.

Beerbower moved to take $80,540 from the jail sales tax to fund the contract with TUSA to upgrade the radios system for Bourbon County First Responders.

Tran said he had no issues with the project, but he had reservations about funding it completely. “I would feel much more comfortable about funding phase 1,” he said.

Beerbower said the phases are connected. The motion died.

Tran made a motion to fund the sheriff’s department completely for phase one from the jail sales tax. Beerbower seconded, and motion carried.

Crawkan – Phone & Internet

Martin said the former county IT department has historically taken care of the phones, but now the Sheriff’s department needs direction from the commission on how to fund it.

Martin also said the server that services their phones needs to be replaced, as it isn’t allowing them to make calls consistently. Crawkan wants $10,000 to update the entire phone system.

Sheriff asked where to pull the funding from. He suggested using the jail sales tax to fund it.

Beerbower made the motion to allow the sheriff $10,884 from the jail sales tax to upgrade his phone system. Motion carried.

Vehicles

The Sheriff revisited the plan of leasing his department’s vehicles from Enterprise. Eleven vehicles for $132,000 is the current plan. It will not start until January 2026, however, the portal to order cars is available for a limited time frame.

The department has 15 cars, and they are planning to lease 11 and get rid of 11, keeping the fleet number the same.

The current budget does not allow for any new vehicles.

Martin said his department operates under statutes, and the county is required by statute to provide vehicles for the sheriff’s department.

Tran asked how much it will be in the future.

Susan Walker said she will have more information on the debt service cost at the next meeting.

Public Comments for Items Not on The Agenda

Michael Hoyt

Hoyt asked what the justification was for the $8,000 paid to a law firm at the beginning of the meeting when the commission approved the payment of budget items. Beerbower said it was paid to progress a civil case between the county and a plaintiff. Hoyt said that the amount was not mentioned in the motion, which makes the payment illegal.

“We’ll take that up with our counsel,” said Beerbower.

Old Business
Budget Discussion & Approval of Final Budget

Milburn suggested tabling this item until the Sept. 22 meeting. Tran asked to meet in a special meeting and keep cutting the budget and not push it off another week.

They decided to hold a special meeting Tues. Sept. 16 at 5 p.m.

Liaison Procedures & Assignments

Beerbower read a statement apologizing to the public and to his fellow commissioners. He also said the authority of the commission is collective, and they are stronger when they are together than when they fight.

Mid-Year Valuation with Appraiser

Commissioner Milburn read a portion of a letter from the county appraiser explaining the valuation situation in Bourbon County.

Every year the state of Kansas does an evaluation of each county to see if it is in statistical compliance and following the guidelines the state laid out. The evaluation is based on property sales. Ideally, the valuation should be within 10% of the value the property sells for. Last year, Bourbon County appraised values were at 72.8% of the amount the properties sold for. Halfway through 2025 they were at 81.74%. They are still appraising for less than the market value.

“90 to 100 (percent) is where we want to be,” said the appraiser’s statement.

Courthouse Elevator

The county needs to either fix the elevator or apply for a variance per the Department of Labor, or risk a fine from the Fire Marshall.

Tran advised modernizing the whole elevator system. “Replace the whole thing,” he said.

Milburn moved that they give the clerk the authority to apply for the variance to continue current operations and report back to the commission if there’s a variance fee.

Network Real Estate, LLC – Approval of Letter

For AT&T,  a letter stating that the county currently has no codes or zoning.

It was approved.

The sheriff said that some counties have agreements with tower builders allowing the county to add its first responder equipment to a portion of the tower.

Claim for Windshield Damage

A county truck threw a rock and broke a citizen’s windshield. The cost of the damage is $381.57. Rather than submit it to the county’s insurance with its $500 deductible, the commission voted to pay the repair costs.

County Clerk
CIC Payroll Conversion & PayEntry Contract

Walker pointed out some potential problems with the PayEntry contract, which requires the clerk to be the primary contact and take care of all the housekeeping items. There is also an $85 per hour charge, per payroll, depending on how many hours it takes them to process the payroll, per the provider addendum, and a $2 per print for W2s.

Milburn said she would talk to the company representative.

Road Records will now be handled by the clerk, since Laura Holdridge will no longer be doing them.

The commission also moved to take back the culvert approval from the consent agenda and set it aside to be brought back Sept. 22.

Commission Comments

Tran announced they have successfully hired a Director of Public Works, Kenneth Allen, who will start Sept. 22.

Milburn read a statement saying that outsourcing IT services has saved the county money and allowed it to keep up with industry standards. Also, the outsourcing of payroll services did not add new costs to the budget. The commission’s decision to engage an HR firm to help them deal with HR matters was necessary to create consistency. She also asked if the budget should be overseen by a single individual or by a governing body of three.

Commissioner David Beerbower started the September 8 meeting with a discussion of meeting limits. He addressed the issues of establishing a protocol for setting a time limit on their meetings and work sessions because “marathon meetings” work against the democratic process when they cause the desire to get done to become everyone’s goal. He proposed stopping the meetings 2 hours in and then reviewing where they are on the agenda, moving remaining urgent items forward, and tabling the remainder. He also said that anyone who has traveled a distance to address the board should be moved to the top of the agenda following the approval of consent agenda items.

County Clerk Susan Walker addressed concerns with the agenda and getting it finalized and accomplished in a timely manner.

Tran said that it was important for commissioners to have all the information needed for making decisions ready at each meeting, rather than treating the meeting at the work sessions.

“If we’re going to put something on the agenda, we should have the supporting documentation with it,” agreed Beerbower.

Beerbower moved to adopt the procedure outlined initially as well as setting the preliminary agenda for the next meeting at the end of each regular meeting. The motion carried.

Consent Agenda

Approval of 09.05.25 Accounts Payable Totaling $308,641.44

Approval of 09.05.25 Payroll Totaling $326,473.16

Salary Resolution, 3125

The County Clerk, Susan Walker, said the resolution reduced the county clerk’s pay by $10,000 and the register of deeds by $5,000.

Milburn said it was being done in according with the vote from 8/11.

Walker noticed the addition of a finance person for $25,000, which job she was doing for about $3,500, and a new administrative assistant position for $35,000. The $35,000 they were spending was to keep Jennifer in house to assist the clerks office as well as to learn some of the treasurer’s duties, which was a one-time thing.

Walker also said that she didn’t receive the information in the resolution ahead of time.

“My job duty as clerk is to be secretary to the board,” per state statute, she said. She is to record their proceedings and shall keep the receipts and expenditures of the county, entering them by fund. Despite the job of payroll being transferred to another entity, she is still responsible for recording payroll and benefits.

She asked the commission to reconsider the outsourcing of payroll even though they are currently in the process of making that change over.

She also compared Bourbon County pay to that of similar counties. Bourbon used to be the lowest, but she has received additional pay for preparing the budget, which most counties don’t do, but hire an outside firm. Average pay for a county clerk is $72,000, so she doesn’t feel that Bourbon County is out of line with other counties. She acknowledged that it was a big jump in pay this year, but said that there had been no consideration for several years prior to that.

Beerbower amended his motion to pay the consent agenda and discuss the resolution separately.

Milburn said that historically, when a resolution is approved at a previous meeting, as resolution 3125 was, it is moved to the consent agenda at a following meeting, once the resolution itself has been prepared.

Beerbower assented and the board approved the new salary resolution unanimously, along with the remainder of the consent agenda. The resolution will go into effect Jan. 1, 2026.

Lora Holdridge, Register of Deeds-Budget Question

Holdridge said her department’s been cut more than $25,000 and is down to one full-time and one part-time person.

“A part-time person does not care about what is very important for my office to be correct,” because they don’t get the benefits that full-time employees get, she claimed.

Holdridge said that the title companies are catching several mistakes from previous part-time employees.

“I can’t run my office on the amount that you’ve cut me,” she said.

Commissioner Mika Milburn said that they were taking her back to the 2023 budget situation.

Holdridge said she could make up the difference in salary from her department’s budget and asked the county to cover her benefits from the general fund.

The commission decided to move the discussion into an executive session at their next meeting so the employees wouldn’t be identified.

95th Street South of Unique

In July of 2021, the county public works director said that the county would maintain a portion of the drive to help the other landowner get to his field. Title insurance can’t be issued based on the minutes of a meeting, but needs a resolution that the commission will do the maintenance, or will not.

County Attorney Bob Johnson asked for the reason the commission needs to make a resolution. Milburn explained that one property owner wants to sell the back half of their lot and wants to make sure it’s not landlocked. Holdridge left in the middle of discussion as Milburn and Beerbower talked it over.

The commission agreed that it was not in the best interests of the county to make the resolution.

Executive Session: Pursuant to KSA 75-4319 (b)(1) to discuss personnel matters of individual non-elected personnel to protect their privacy. Tran requests the meeting with the three commissioners and counsel for 25 minutes.

The commission returned to session with action. Tran made motion to engage Dr. Cohen on the issue for administrative action and the motion carried.

Public Comments for Items Not on The Agenda

An audience member gave a shout out to the mower at the corner of 135th and Poplar Road. He did an outstanding job and it was greatly appreciated.

Old Business
Mapleton Road

Union Street runs north and south, connecting HWY 31 to 125th in Mapleton.

Public comments from Mike Houston at an earlier meeting asked the county to maintain Union Street, which the county has historically done. He said that the town no longer has the grant they had used to fund the maintenance of the road, so he asked if the county could take it back over.

Commissioner Samuel Tran went to see the road and spoke with Public Works personnel.

“It needs help,” said Tran. He said when he asked, records show it hasn’t been maintained by the county in recent history.

Tran’s information said it would cost the county $36,729 to pave Union Street in Mapleton from Hwy 31 to 125th.

He compared it to the paving of Maple Road from where it enters Union Town to where it hits Hwy 3 because it’s an interconnecting road, like Union Street.

Tran advocated for the county to do the patching of the road. He also warned that requests like this should be taken on a case-by-case basis, but he also said that it is important to leave the county better than they found it.

Beerbower said that this road is not on the current asphalt plan, but could be reviewed next year when the commission reaches 5 members.

Milburn asked how the small municipalities patch their roads. “They don’t” was the short answer.

Audience member, Mr. Walker, said it’s a highly traveled road and also a school bus route.

A representative from EMS also spoke up and said they use it to service the EMS needs of the county too.

Tran asked for permission to tell public works to do it if they have the time and resources to get it done this year, and also talk to the city of Mapleton about possibly paying for the materials.

The issue was tabled until next week

Software program

Beerbower received an email from Diligent offering digital services for government use, including streaming and agenda building. The cost, starting at $8,500, is prohibitive for the county at this time.

Tran said they should hold off due to current projects with Stronghold. “We have a lot on our plate and we still have a budget to get done,” said Tran.

Susan Walker said that the Adobe agenda she sends out allows you to jump to attachments. The SharePoint platform the county uses offers agenda building already. She also cautioned that putting all of their agenda and minutes on the website causes the website to run out of space, leading to frequent archiving.

Beerbower said he would reach out to Diligent and tell them the county cannot use their services at this time.

Hospital Equipment Update

Beerbower said there are three unsold lots from the govdeals auction program. The commission decided to list them a third and final time and dispose of the items if they don’t sell in the next auction cycle.

Security Cameras

Beerbower asked if the county has a security camera policy in place.  He wants to make sure that the policy doesn’t violate employees’ privacy. He will talk with Dr. Cohen, the county’s HR department, and bring it back in two weeks.

Craw-Kan

The commission decided to have counsel look at their contract with Craw-Kan so they can add an exit clause for the county.

Elm Creek Quarry

Tran, commission liaison to the public works department asked if the commissioners would approve the opening up of a quarry at Elm Creek Lake, which was directed by the board of commissioners two boards ago. The original plan was to have been executed in May of 2025.

Beerbower said he was a part of that commission and approved the initial proposal after assurances were made to citizens in the area regarding noise and dust control. He then stated that he has been opposed to the county owning its own quarry since he campaigned for office. He has doubts about the viability of the quarry and its benefit to the county. He asked for a comprehensive cost and environmental analysis to determine if it would benefit the county.

Tran said it would remove the competition with the private sector, providing 45+ years of rock. He also said that the county has all state-required documentation and engineer approval.

Beerbower expressed concerned about the impact on the usability of the lake.

“I’m going to keep opposing county-owned rock quarries until somebody can show me numbers from a third party that isn’t biased towards one way or the other,” he reiterated.

Tran said the possibility of losing the two quarries they currently lease (one of them may be played out soon) means the county should at least consider the Elm Creek Lake option.

Beerbower said he understands wanting to have the county own the quarry so they can’t be burned by leasing them. He asked if any counties in their area own their own quarries.

Mr. Smith, former licensed professional engineer in the audience, asked who the approving engineer was. He said it should not have been approved without an economic discussion for the county and an environmental discussion for the state.

He also announced he would be running for county commissioner in the upcoming election as a write-in candidate.

Mr. Walker, who lives next to a rock quarry, thinks people overblow the traffic and noise caused by quarries. He said they are a sign of improvement for the county. He also said the roads have improved tremendously under the previous public works director, and expressed concern that the county is going backwards without access to enough rock.

Tran said he wants to table the issue indefinitely and get more information.

Freeman Agreement

Beerbower made a motion to approve the second amendment to the Emergency Department Funding Agreement, amending the agreements from Dec. 5, 2024 and May 12, 2025. Quarterly itemized accounting will be provided to the county by Freeman and some of the information will not be able to be released to the public as the hospital is now operating, and that information will be about private individuals.

It was approved.

Act/Web Page Access

Milburn said the county web page has a single administrator and needs another. She said the county also needs another account holder for CrawKan and Verizon, as well as another administrator for the county’s Facebook page.

She asked if Beerbower was willing, then moved to make him a full admin of those accounts. Motion carried.

New Business

Freeman/EMS

Milburn explained that when Mercy had a hospital in Fort Scott, it also managed the EMS department. Freeman is willing to talk with Bourbon County about doing so as well.

Tran asked what the end goal of moving EMS over to Freeman is. Milburn said if the financial burden on the county can be lifted and the services provided to the citizens maintained, it would be good for Bourbon County to transfer the burden to Freeman.

Tran asked what would happen if Freeman went “belly up.” Milburn said the county would take it back on. Tran asked if it would be painful to do so.

“Nothing’s painless…everything here is painful,” said Milburn.

Milburn said she’s asking to continue to have conversations with Freeman and wants to know if the commission will listen. Tran said he would listen.

Beerbower said he is not in favor of it. One reason is that the hospital just opened and it’s premature to ask them. EMS isn’t a burden, nor a tax-levy-funded department, and their income will go up due to an increase in transfers from Freeman. He wants to wait another year to see how things are going. He doesn’t want to have to start all over again with the county running EMS.

“I think we’re rushing it,” said Beerbower. He advocated for waiting until they had five-commission board.

“You’ve already crossed the line,” he said, when Milburn asked if wanted her to stop gathering information to bring to the board. He said that as the liaison to Freeman, a management method recommended by county HR director, Dr. Cohen, he should have been asked to work on the issue.

“So you want me to ask for permission to find ways to save this county money?” asked Milburn.

“I want you to not step on somebody else’s toes doing it,” replied Beerbower.

Tran stepped in and asked everybody to step back and take a deep breath. He claimed to understand each of the other commissioner’s position. He said they need to remember to work as a team.

He agreed that it is premature to hand over EMS to Freeman.

He also said that the reason Freeman is willing to talk is because Milburn is a sitting commissioner, but that they have taken on more monetarily than is currently known.

Greg Motley said he had spoken to Freeman about this issue, but they really don’t have any interest in taking on EMS right now. “They are sinking big money into this project,” he said of the hospital, and they have fewer personnel than Mercy had. The correct timing of this discussion should be after they get their cash flow up and running.

Anne Dare spoke up and said the commission should stick with the liaison positions and stop confusing the county. The commission should also watch how they treat each other. “I would really like for you to get back to those responsibilities,” she said.

Terry, EMS director asked: “Where has EMS cost the county money outside of what you subsidize?” She said she saved the county $165,000 in grants in the last year. The county is required by state statute to subsidize anybody, whether the county or Freeman. Last year it cost $212,000. When Mercy was in charge of EMS, the county subsidized them by almost $350,000.

Milburn said she couldn’t see why people were so offended by the topic. She claimed that she brought it up multiple times in past meetings, and the purpose of the conversations is just to explore options.

Tran said that change scares people and brings out their defensiveness.

“The bottom line is this: that you had a liaison process that you overstepped and you’re going to try to justify it saying that you brought it before this board before,” said Beerbower as Milburn interrupted, saying she wouldn’t accept his comment.

“As far as I’m concerned, we’re done,” said Beerbower.

No further action was taken.

190th Street – Milburn

Milburn said a taxpayer reached out to her, asking that the county consider creating a benefit district to maintain the private road he lives on. He and the other three homeowners would pay the county for the maintenance. County Counsel will advise, Sept. 29

Planning Commission Selection Process

Beerbower asked if the other commissioners were ready to make their selections. Per the resolution, each commissioner was to have two members and the commission as a whole would vote on the seventh member.

Milburn was not ready, as she had to check the districts of the people she wanted to appoint.

The item was tabled until the next meeting, Sept. 15.

Commission Comments

Milburn thanked her fellow commissioners and the citizens of Bourbon County for putting in the work to make necessary changes to improve the county.

County Commissioner Samuel Tran asked Chris Martin from Linn County to speak about the new radio system choices the county has and what’s associated with changing over to a new system. Martin has been with Linn County since 2009, starting as a sheriff’s deputy, he became IT director in 2015 and has managed the sheriff’s office radios since 2013 and the whole county’s radios since 2015.

He said that Linn is smaller than Bourbon County but has similar terrain to deal with when choosing a radio system. He pointed out that there is a big difference between frequencies and technologies and all digital modes have issues. Bourbon County is currently on a DMR system with two channels on one frequency.

Sheriff Bill Martin said that the current plan is to hire TUSA Consulting Services to do a study and make recommendations for a radio system to a collection of first responder leaders in Bourbon County. TUSA will then collect bids for equipment and services that meet their recommendations for Bourbon County.

One reason for the change over to a new system, in addition to fixing the issues with the current system is that the county must begin working towards encryption per new FBI regulations.

Stronghold Discussion

Stronghold Technologies representatives came to the meeting to discuss the scope of work from their recent assessment of the county’s technology.

Among other issues, they addressed the county’s firewall, the need for new VLANS, cleaning up the user accounts, and organizing the wire and fiber within the county.

The report says that the county’s firewall is a very good one but needs to be reconfigured for best use. The county’s internet system also needs segmentation and dedicated lanes for information transfer. Stronghold would like to install new VLANS, but not new servers at this time, as well as create a plan for replacing hardware as it becomes outdated.

Organizing the wire and fiber by tracing and labeling will reduce the time taken to troubleshoot when issues arise. The goal is to create documentation and a complete map of the Bourbon County network, laying the foundation for their infrastructure.

Another goal in their scope of work is to eliminate the congestion in communicating with the Sheriff’s department.

They also proposed checking the current phone system for correct configuration.

The Bourbon County Commission August 25 meeting began with a public hearing regarding the county’s decision not to remain revenue neutral in the 2026 budget.

The public comment section of the hearing began with Angie Kimmer, a Fort Scott resident since 1998, when her property taxes were about $1300. In 2025 they will pay about $5,200.

“It’s a huge increase…if my husband didn’t work outside of the community we wouldn’t be able to afford our home,” she told the commission. “The solution can’t be to just raise the mill levy.”

“You’re going to tax people out of your community,” she said, comparing property taxes in Fort Scott to those in Navada. “I don’t know why anyone would choose to live here.”

She acknowledged that change within the county is needed, but expressed concern about trying to get money that isn’t there through higher taxes

Mr. Kimmer also spoke, saying that the block they live on has improved, but they haven’t made major improvements to account for the jump in valuation.

“I want to make my house just as pleasant looking as anybody else, but raising property taxes isn’t going to help,” said Debbie Buckley, who moved to Fort Scott last year. She expressed the desire to improve her home, but questioned the affordability of such a decision in light of increasing taxes due to higher property valuations.

Jim Hollisy said that everyone’s property values went up last year, and the county gave raises. He said they need to consider lowering the benefits and the amount of money the county gives to entities throughout the county.

“It’s going to get worse,” he said of the shrinking population of Bourbon County, if they don’t change their tactics. He said taxes are also going up elsewhere, but not as much as in Bourbon County.

County Clerk Susan Walker asked to address the misconception about the Revenue Neutral Rate (RNR) statement. She said it sets the maximum levy for all entities, but, “That doesn’t mean that’s where your levies are going to end up.”

She said that the Fort Scott Recreation Commission received a beating on social media because they format their budget document differently than other entities, which made it appear that they would tax at their maximum allowable amount, but they are only increasing by about a half a mill over last year.

The RNR statement limits the highest rate that any taxing entity can go. These entities are not all Bourbon County proper. The county doesn’t control everybody’s budget.

Bourbon County Counselor Bob Johnson said the county tax on a particular piece of property is only 30% of the total property tax collected. The rest is the state, community college, and other entities.

Walker also said that sending the statements costs the county $12,000 in addition to the cost of publishing it in the paper. This time the cost is reimbursed by the state, but that may not always be the case. She suggested voters reach out to their legislators about doubling up on the work and cost as the state has required.

Joyce Flanner, a 50 year resident of Bourbon County, said that because of the increase in taxes and valuation on a home she paid off years ago, she has had to postpone her retirement to be able to pay her tax bill. That bill has gone from $1800 eight years ago to $3400 this year. She acknowledged that the county is not responsible for all of it.

After Flanner, no further citizens chose to speak and the hearing was closed. Then the commissioners gave their comments.

Commissioner Samuel Tran said he has spent weeks analyzing the increased cost of housing and identifies with those who spoke. He is a four-year resident of Bourbon County, and his taxes have gone up each year.

“This is not a Bourbon County issue. This is an issue with our nation,” he said. People are being priced out of their homes and the ability to retire.

He said that if the county doesn’t increase taxes, services will be cut. “We need to lobby our legislators,” he said.

“I need to figure out how to fix this or at least soften the blow,” he said. “Hopefully, what we do here tonight will help out the vast majority of the people in the county. I promise you it will not help out all of you,” but he needs to take care of the majority.

Commissioner Mika Milburn reiterated that not going revenue neutral does not mean the commission is raising the mill, it means they aren’t lowering the mill to adjust for the increase in valuation of properties. That increase in revenue is going to go toward an increase in employee benefits and insurance costs as well as other costs beyond the county’s control.

She doesn’t want to increase the mill but let the valuations compensate for the costs.

Commissioner David Beerbower had high hopes of lowering the mill when he ran for office, and of making Bourbon County a lower property tax county.

Since taking office, two commissioners have resigned and there’s been a great deal of turnover in the county’s departments.

They are now trying to make up for previous year’s high spending which has caused the county’s cash reserves to be depleted.

“We need a strategic plan, and we needed it yesterday,” he said. We can’t continue with the same old, same old.

You either raise taxes or cut services, he said. It may be in 2027 that we have to look at cutting services.

Milburn thanked the City of Fort Scott for working with the county on 911 services, because if not for that, “we would be raising the mill, for certain.” She also said that they would continue to work to reduce the budget and encouraged the audience to keep coming to hearings and meetings and telling the commission not to increase the mill.

“If things go the way I hope they go tonight, I am going to push the five of us to come up with a strategic plan,” said Tran of the future County Commission. He said they owe the people of this county that plan. Taxes will go up, but the citizens need to have faith that the money will be spent beneficially for the county.

He thanked those who worked on the budget, including the City of Fort Scott and elected officials, and the budget advisory committee.

Milburn read the motion to approve to exceed RNR. The resolution does not set the mill, but allows the county to raise the rate.

The commission then set the Budget Hearing for Sept. 15 with the publication date of September 3. They also set a special meeting for Aug. 29 at 4 p.m.

Brad Matkin, Ft. Scott City Manager, address the Bourbon County Commissioners regarding a number of items including the county’s taking on of providing E911 service, asphalt production for the City of Fort Scott and the cancellation of the IT agreement the city had with the county.

There has been no update from the budget committee regarding the E911 agreement yet.

Matkin said that Ft. Scott wants to purchase asphalt from Bourbon County, as the city now has equipment to lay it themselves. “We would like to purchase asphalt in the county to keep the money in the county,” said Matkin. He said they would need about 2,000 tons in 2025 and more in 2026.

Commissioner Mika Milburn expressed concern about how the workload of the county’s public works department would be affected and wants to recheck the cost of production.

Matkin pointed out that it would be another revenue source for Bourbon County, and that the city would communicate with Public Works regarding how much and when the asphalt was needed.

“Bottom line: looking out for the tax payer in Bourbon County,” he said.

Commissioner Samuel Tran asked for the details of the job, pointing out the county needs to have enough raw materials and the manpower to create the asphalt. He also asked for another look at the interlocal agreement between the City of Fort Scott and Bourbon County.

Milburn suggested that the city crews might be able to help the county with the county’s asphalt laying. Beerbower suggested that city workers might help county workers in the asphalt plant.

Tran was concerned about liability and tax laws and wants to, “take it one step at a time.”

Matkin asked them to discuss and gather the information they need and he will come back in a couple of weeks.

Finally, the city cancelled its Memorandum of Understanding with Bourbon County for IT Support for the City of Fort Scott. It had been in place since 2023.

Bob Guilfoyle and Justin with Craw Kan Internet and Telephone

The county has been on a month-to-month agreement with Craw Kan for internet service for the last three years.

Guilfoyle brought two separate proposals. One with the county on one big network for $1,100 per month, which wouldn’t change anything with how the network is set up, but is at a lower cost than the current $1,400 per month the county is paying.

Craw Kan was in the process of talking with the Sheriff’s Department about separating it’s network from the rest of the county. “This network is huge,” said Guilfoyle. It’s one of the biggest networks Craw Kan has.

Craw Kan’s second proposal for $1,220 per month, would upgrade the county system to a gig for the courthouse and a gig for the sheriff’s department. The Sheriff’s department would then need to get it’s own firewall, since it wouldn’t be using the one at the courthouse.

Tran asked Guilfoyle to take the numbers back to his manager and see if he can get a lower price.

Separating the internet also means separating phones from the County.

Craw Kan representatives said they need better direction from the county to know what information regarding costs and services they offer.

The commission decided to table the decision until August 25, so they can run the information by the county counsel and collect more information.

Department Updates
County Clerk Susan Walker

An RNR hearing is set for August 25 and a budget hearing needs to be published too. Dates need to be picked based on when the paper is published.

The budget advisory committee plans to present a budget document to the commission for them to alter as they see fit. The committee head, Greg Motley, wants to protect the volunteerism of the committee members and not have all of them come to the budget work session the commission has planned for 5:30, Aug. 21.

The commission will choose a date for the budget hearing after that work session.

Election update: Tuesday, Oct. 14 is the deadline to register or update registration. On Oct. 20, early voting begins at courthouse. Nov. 4 is the general election.

Walker advised Bourbon County voters to check their new voter registration cards for voting locations. If the information is incorrect, return to sender through the postal system so the clerk’s office can receive it. Do not bring it into the courthouse.

Walker offered a session to go over financials with the commission.

RNR Hearing letters were mailed out and published in the newspaper. This year the county will be reimbursed by the state for that cost.

Walker also thanked WardKraft and the city of Fort Scott for their help, “in a pinch.”

County Appraiser Matt Quick

The state of Kansas has declared the appraiser’s office to be in compliance. This is based on statistical performance and accuracy of valuations. Smaller homes are one of the big categories that are undervalued in Bourbon County. This is all determined by the market, not county or state officials.

Tran read statistics about the taxes paid in the county and surrounding counties.

Old Business
Benefits Committee Bylaws – Commissioner David Beerbower moved to rebuild the committee per the bylaws, getting one employee from each of the categories of coverage options. He suggested getting lists of who is in each of those groups and asking for individuals from them to volunteer for the committee. The motion carried.

Hospital Equipment

The sale is underway on govdeals.com

Casey Brown Letter of Support

Motion to sign the letter of support for the rides at SEK-CAP with no monetary contribution was approved.

Planning Commission Creation Resolution

Michael Hoyt spoke to the commission about the updated resolution edited by the county counsel. He said the document only lists KSA 12-744, which must be incorporated with all the other state statutes that apply.

Hoyt says the county doesn’t have the right of home rule, cited in the second paragraph of the current resolution, per the KSA regulation, thus those words should be removed from the resolution.

The commission voted to table it until county counsel can look it over.

Payroll Discussion

Milburn said there’s been a lot of discussion about use of payroll service. She said the commission has received emails from the company being considered and that they will handle the payroll needs of the county, freeing up county personnel.

Susan Walker, County Clerk, said that the current software company has said they will loose all their historical data in the conversion, so all those records will have to be printed or stored some other way for access. Payroll records have to be kept forever, per the Kansas Historical Society. The payroll company representative said he didn’t think that was necessary and that they should defer to Dr. Cohen, the county’s HR provider.

Walker disagreed, expressed that she doesn’t feel like she or her deputy clerk are being heard when they express their concerns to the commission about the costs and difficulties of the transfer. She was also adamant that she cannot run her office if the commission cuts a person from it.

Walker said that in the past, the county’s benefits were administered by the state of Kansas and when the county “left the state of Kansas” all that work came to the clerk’s office.

“I feel like I have given a lot to this organization with my experience and I feel like it’s retaliatory,” said Walker. “If you cut my pay, I don’t know that we want to do these services in our offices as before.”

Milburn said that her office had always been doing these services. Walker disagreed and said that they are doing a whole lot more work now than in the past. That was why the commission voted to pay her extra for her payroll duties in January.

Milburn moved to go with Emerson and Company for Payroll. Motion carried.

108 W 2nd Street

Milburn had conversations with the driver’s licence office and they want to move to the courthouse. She discussed how this could save the county money and consolidate services for county residents. The commission decided she should go ahead with the work and keep reporting back to them.

Budget Discussion

Milburn questioned the amount being paid for budget, payroll, benefits and road records.

Beerbower asked about the election budget. Walker said they were going to be short by $1,500 of the costs for elections this year.

Beerbower said he was not for resolution 1425 in January and thought it went through too fast, but he also doesn’t want to handicap the departments the money went to. He suggested reviewing it in January, 2026 when the salary resolutions are voted on.

Walker asked if they don’t want her doing budget next year either.

Milburn made a motion to repeal resolution 1425, 1225, and strike the chief operations officer for $88,616, extra assigned duties budget payroll and benefits officer for $10,000, and road records officer for $5,000.

The extra assigned duties budget payroll and benefits officer was paid to the clerk for the extra duties, but there’s also an employee in her office who does that work under her supervision.

Tran asked what happens if we remove it. Beerbower said that because it’s incorporated into payroll, a new resolution with the new salary amount will need to be passed by the commission.

“If we’re taking some of that work away, then I don’t see why it’s unreasonable,” said Milburn.

The motion passed.

New Business

Insurance Meeting Request

Milburn asked for a meeting with the county’s insurance broker, Don Doherty on Aug. 22 to educate the commissioners.

Commission Comments

Tran: “Tonight was tough,” he said. He thinks that the three commissioners will need to come to a consensus at the budget work session regarding the mill level.

“We have to be professional…that’s the only way we’re going to get through this,” he concluded.

Milburn: The tax sale has been sent to the law firm as of 8/8/2025.

She also wanted to inform citizens that the property tax rate is based on the market and is out of the commission’s hands. The only thing the commission controls is the mill levy.

“I don’t want to burden the tax base. We don’t have a lot of ways we can not do that, but we have to try,” she said.

Beerbower: “This isn’t something that’s going to get solved year one,” he said of the budget issues. He said they need to make good decisions with the tax payers money.

“Mission first, men always,” you have to take care of your people, he concluded.

07.28.25 Agenda 2nd Revision

Brandon Mann, VP for Loss Prevention, and Monte Parrish, Safety Consultant for the Bourbon County region, both employees of KWORCC, the county’s workman’s comp insurance carrier, came to the table to talk with the commission about safety in the county, especially in the Public Works department.

Commissioner Samuel Tran answered Mann’s question about the issues with Public Works, saying, “There seem to be too many accidents that are happening out there….I would like to see us go out there and really build a safety program.” He expressed concern about the ability to get the employees to buy in on a new safety program and ultimately be accountable for the work they are doing. He gave an example of equipment that was broken last week and no one reported it.

“We need to get in there and make sure the people in Public Works have the best that we can offer them in terms of safety and equipment and a good environment to work in,” said Tran.

“We don’t do safety from behind a desk,” said Mann of KWORCC, which is a workman’s comp insurance pool for government entities in the state of Kansas.

They offer free in-person training, in defensive driving, forklift operation, and flagging and workzone safety. All these are free, in-person certification classes. They also offer safety inspections 3 times per year on county facilities, after which they generate a report per OSCHA regulations. While OSCHA cannot cite the county, the Kansas Department of Labor can cite the county, and they follow OSCHA regulations.

Commissioner Mika Milburn said they want to do preventative work to be sure the county is not in violation.

KWORCC helped with the creation of a safety committee within Public Works.

Mann said the information the commission gave him indicates a lack of policy and procedure in the Public Works department.

Tran said he is trying to take ownership of the problem, and he wants the county to be prepared for the new public works director.

“There’s nothing wrong with our current director. He’s not defective. You can go in and help our current director set up a program for the new one,” said Milburn to Mann.

Mann asked if he would get push-back from the current director and nine supervisors. Tran said he didn’t think so, but it would come back to the commission if he did.

Mann then suggested that the commission bring in the supervisors to the county commission and pass a resolution that they support the safety program KWORCC is creating.

Mann said he would lead that charge for the commission if they so chose. He asserted they would start from scratch with a safety committee. Parrish suggested designating a safety point person.

County Clerk Susan Walker mentioned that in previous years, KWORCC recommendations have come before the county commission, but they were overlooked by the commission at that time.

Implementing KWORCC’s recommended policies will also help with the county’s insurance premiums.

Mann and Parrish set up a meeting with Tran and the Public Works department to start assessing the situation.

Beerbower said they would set up a work session after that meeting.

Public Comments for Items Not on The Agenda

Charles Gentry, member of the Emergency Room Sales Tax Monitoring Committee, who serves with Dr. Randy Nichols and Craig Campbell, was appointed by the previous commission at the time that the special purpose sales tax was taken up for the establishing and operating of an Emergency Department for Bourbon County.

Gentry said the committee’s jobs are to make sure the sales tax remitted to the county is used to support the emergency department, and to verify as best they can how Freeman has applied those sales tax funds to the establishment and operation of an emergency room.

He knows they are establishing it and are working on getting approval so the ER can open. “So we know that things are on track,” he said. They are spending more to start it up than they have received in sales tax thus far.

The contract the county has with Freeman calls for the tax to actually be remitted to Freeman within 30 days of the county receiving it each month. The county normally receives the tax dollars from the state around the 25th of the month. Freeman reports quarterly on the spending of the tax dollars, so the county can expect a report for the third quarter in mid-October.

“I’m here to ask some clarification and some authorization,” said Gentry. The latest reports show that Freeman is spending more money than they are receiving in tax dollars, “So that allowed us to give thumbs up for what will be the third quarter,” said Gentry.

The current liaison with Freeman is Commissioner David Beerbower.  Gentry asked that the county be sure to give his committee the report in a timely manner. The commission must authorize that the committee receives the report. “There seems to be now an issue that the commission by resolution offer the release of this information to us,” said Gentry.

Susan Walker, County Clerk, said that the administrator of Freeman is working to get a report that can be disseminated and doesn’t contain private information. “I just want to make sure that we’re not disclosing things that should not be disclosed,” said Walker.

Beerbower said he had a form provided by Gentry that should solve the problems. The issue will come when the hospital starts deriving income from non-tax sources. “We don’t care about that, we care about the spending of our sales tax money,” said Gentry.

The commission agreed to take the necessary steps to get the proper information to the committee.

Old Business
Tax Sale Update

“It’s going to be different than what residents are used to in the past,” said Jennifer Hawkins,  county Treasurer-elect. The commission has agreed to use Klinda Austerman to handle the tax sale process. Once a person’s name is on their list, he cannot get it off unless he pays all unpaid taxes plus court costs.

“I’m here to let people know, if you have taxes from 2020 or before, you need to pay those immediately; otherwise, you’re going to have to pay the total amount on your property, plus court costs,” said Hawkins.

There is no timeline in place yet, nor a list of delinquent properties. Once the information is given to the firm handling the tax sale, that firm will provide a list of tax sale-eligible properties.

“If you are concerned that you have back taxes, give us a call at 223-3800 ext. 803 and we can look that information up for you and let you know how much you need to pay to get off this immediate tax sale,” said Hawkins. She intends to continue with the process as Treasurer for 2021 taxes next year, so “heads up.”

Citizens who don’t redeem before their names are published will have to pay court costs in addition to taxes.

“Please pay them immediately. We don’t want to see anyone lose their homes,” said Hawkins.

She also said that 2024 taxes, are due by July 31, 2025. Delinquent taxpayers will be published in the newspaper and have the publication fees added to their tax bill.

“That was a courtesy update,” said Milburn.

Hospital Equipment

Beerbower is working with gov.deals, the auction company hired by Bourbon County earlier this year to auction off old hospital equipment currently stored on county property.

The Sheriff’s Department uses them to sell used vehicles. The sheriff was surprised because they haven’t had this trouble.

“All I’m saying is the moment they were hired, they should have been on it,” said Milburn, expressing frustration that the auction company hadn’t taken steps to sell the items yet..

Fence Viewing Liability Carrier Update

Walker spoke with KCamp, the county’s liability carrier, who recommended the commission follow the law regarding fence viewing.

Statute says the county commission shall be the fence viewers. “We’ll just have to do it,” said Milburn.

Those with requests for fence viewing should submit applications via the clerk’s office.

Withdrawal of Juvenile Detention Agreement

Bob Johnson, County Counselor, drafted a letter giving Girard Juvenile Detention Center notice that Bourbon County wants to cancel its contract. However, Milburn noted that the proposed agreement with Johnson County for juvenile detention services needs to be clarified.

Sheriff Bill Martin said a financial hardship letter should be submitted to the Girard Juvenile Detention Center.

County Clerk Susan Walker said there is a statute that allows a county to break its contracts due to financial hardship. She said she would get a copy for the commission to look at.

Tran sees the contract with Girard County as an insurance policy. He suggested saving in a CD and making money on the interest instead.

The commissioners said they would work with the lawyer to challenge the contract with Girard.

Resolution for Planning Commission

Commissioners discussed the number of members to serve on the committee and whether or not the county needs to hire a planning commission head.

Beerbower asked to table it and take it back to the county counselor for changes.

Court House Repairs

Tran reviewed the report he created after inspecting the courthouse with David Neville. They looked at the structural, infrastructure, cosmetic, and HVAC system.

Tran applauded Neville for his work throughout the courthouse.

The first two things that Tran prioritized for the courthouse are modernizing the elevator and redoing the tuck pointing of the exterior facade.

“We have enough money to do this,” said Tran.

For the elevator update, he suggested obtaining bids and giving weight to the response times each company offered, not just the prices, as the courthouse only has one elevator.

Other items on his list were roof repairs, installing new interior windows, replacing flooring on the third floor, creating a cyclical maintenance plan for painting and flooring throughout the building, and stripping, polishing, and sealing the marble floors.

He expressed some concern about asbestos throughout the building, cautioning that they need to test and be prepared to abate if they come across any.

In the next 10 years, the courthouse will cost close to $1million, according to Tran.

“The citizens should not allow us to kick that can down the road. You should bring it up to us as often as you feel the need to,” he said.

Milburn thanked him for his report.

New Business

Reorganization of Agenda

The new agenda format will move public comments in front of old business.

108 W 2nd Street Building – Milburn said this county-owned building is under-utilized, and they don’t make much rent on it. She wants to move the current occupants to the courthouse and let the building go.

Beerbower said it was worth looking into, and would make it convenient for citizens to have services now in the 108 W. 2nd building consolidated.

“It just costs money to have empty space,” said Milburn. “It wouldn’t cost us a penny to put them over here, but it’s costing us money to keep them over there, though.”

Tran suggested investigating what the lot could be used for. “They don’t make dirt anymore,” he said.

Casey Brown – Letter of Support

Brown provides transportation in Bourbon County. Tran said there are at least four entities that give rides in the county. The commission wants a list of the agencies that provide rides in the region. The letter was tabled until August 11.

Commission Comments

Milburn: Please, before you get carried away with the “what ifs” or “why-for” changes or lack of changes are happening in the county, call her at 620-215-5880. “I’d be happy to let you know from my observation, what Bourbon County stands to gain by the changes I introduce,” but keep an open mind and be polite.

Tran: it’s been a very busy week, but very rewarding. “There are some really, really good people in this county. I enjoy working with them.” Some people aren’t seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, but he does. “The budget is my biggest concern right now.” Thank you to all for their support and communication.

Agenda 2nd Revision 07.21.25

Bourbon County Commissioners considered using Emerson for the county’s payroll and benefits. Tim Emerson Jr. whose firm is in Kansas City, MO presented his company’s services and recommendations to the commissioners. This was done in response to the County Clerk’s office when they presented their 2026 budget request to hire another employee to deal with their work load.

Commissioner Mika Milburn said she wants to set up a sustainable process and create continuity so that the information needed for the payroll process doesn’t reside in one individual.

Emerson is from Ft. Scott originally and has worked with Dr. Steve Cohen, head of Bourbon County HR. Emerson recommends that each department submit time and attendance with final oversight by one person at the county level.

County Clerk Susan Walker had many logistical questions for Emerson about how the company he recommends to handle the county’s payroll would interface with the county’s current system. She also questioned the bringing in of Emerson in particular.

“Why are they not bid out like other things?…there could be other opportunities,” she asked. “Are we going to put these things out to bid, or are we just going to get one vendor out to look at it?”

“This would be an added cost, in my opinion, to the county. If my budget request cannot be funded, then that’s all you need to say…I was not consulted about any of this,” said Walker.

Commissioner David Beerbower wrapped up the comments in the meeting and said the process is just starting. No official decision was made.

Old Business

Hospital Equipment

Beerbower spoke with man from the gov.deals auction service. They are planning to be down during the week to get an auction date set and get the equipment out of the building.

Milburn asked to see the contract with gov.deals. The commission will address it in its July 28 meeting.

Fence Viewing

County Counselor Bob Johnson advised the commission to create a procedure for handling fence viewing requests.

“The biggest decision is whether you guys want to do it or whether you want to appoint someone,” he said. He also cautioned the commission about the liability they would be opening themselves up to if they got involved in fence viewing.

Beerbower asked how the state statute applies. Johnson said they should decide if they want to do the fence viewing themselves or appoint designees. He offered to get information from other Kansas county counselors, and Walker offered to get input from KCAMP, the county’s liability insurance provider.

The commission tabled the issue until the Aug. 17 meeting.

Termination of Juvenile Detention Agreement

The commission missed the July 1 window to end the current contract for Juvenile Detention services with the Girard Juvenile Detention Center. The county is unable to change services until 2027.

Beerbower moved to terminate juvenile detention services with the Girard Juvenile Detention Center for the 2027 budget year. The motion passed unanimously.

Public Works Safety Audit

The proposed public works safety audit is, “Just to clear things up and make sure we were up to speed, up to compliance,” said Milburn. The contractor will spend 2 days at Public Works at a cost of $1,500-2,000 and will deliver an analysis and plan to address the department’s safety.

Commissioner Samuel Tran commended the current safety program at Public Works. He said the audit is to make sure they are as safe as they should be by having another set of eyes on the program.

Walker suggested that they look into getting an audit from KWORKS, the county’s workman’s comp insurance provider.

The public works director agreed to do that and the issue was tabled until the July 28.

Commission Liaison Group

Tran wrote and read a letter to fellow commissioners stating that currently all commissioners are generalists needing to know everything about each department in the county. He proposed assigning specific functions within the county to each commissioner in order to focus each commissioner’s time, energy, and effort into improving these functions. He also acknowledged that with the expansion to five commissioners, they will have to reallocate those functions.

Tran made a motion to formulate the commissioner liaison group with himself caring for Public Works, Milburn caring for the courthouse and the county offices it houses, and Beerbower caring for the departments of the Sheriff, EMS, and Emergency Management.

His motion passed unanimously.

Zoning Discussion & Work Sessions

“We need to determine what we’ll do next,” with zoning, said Beerbower.

Milburn said it’s determined by statute.

County Counselor Johnson said the statute says the county needs a 5-9-member planning commission or zoning board, which would take the county commission’s recommendation and hold a public hearing, then they would report back to the county commissioners.

The next step is to draw up a resolution to establish a planning commission, which does not necessarily mean the county is zoned. The ultimate decision still rests with the commission.

Johnson will meet with the commission on Aug. 4 to discuss the resolution.

Hiring and Firing of Bourbon County Employees Memorandum

Beerbower brought a memorandum to the commission because of a lack in the current handbook. Termination is in the discipline steps of the handbook. The handbook also lacks job performance guidance.

The HR department is in the process of updating the handbook, but in the interim, hires and fires will be reported to the HR department and approved by the board of County Commissioners.

Tran expressed the desire to know the status of the various departments within the county. Milburn said she wants the departments to utilize the HR department for all hiring and firing, but that they should not necessarily require the approval of the commission.

Beerbower said he would bring a re-written memorandum to the July 28 meeting.

Public Comments for Items Not on The Agenda

Clay Campbell on Public Works

“I’m here right now to tell you guys that we have a problem at Public Works,” he said. “We’re in trouble,” because more people are leaving. “There is a morale problem out there (at public works).”

Campbell works 3 days a week as a mower for the public works department and offered to speak to the commission on behalf of his fellow department members. He expressed concern about the people trying to make a living by working for Public Works. There’s a pay issue and insurance issues, and rumors of more problems to come. “I don’t know how these young men working out there are supporting a family,” he said.

Even though free use of the landfill is a taxable benefit, removing it was “a slap in the face” to the public works employees.

“No matter how this goes down, we care,” said Tran. “Somebody spent a lot of money that we didn’t have, so now we have to pick up the pieces,” and the citizens and employees of the county will bear that burden.

Clint Walker: Budget and First Responders

Walker came with newspapers from surrounding counties to give to the commissioners to give them information. He referred to a sheriff that raised $1.4 million by housing prisoners.

Randy McNulty: Solar Farm

McNulty lives between Bronson and Uniontown north of 54 Hwy. He is wondering about the status of the solar farm going in across the road from his house. He knows the county had to sign off on the approval for it. The taxpayers didn’t know it was coming and it’s reducing his property values. He also expressed concern about the health ramifications of solar panels for his farm animals and bees. Gail George owns the land across the street from him.

“It’s hard to get any information about what’s going on,” he said. “I don’t know if anybody cares.”

Milburn said she was working on getting solar projects in the county mapped out.

Tran told him to keep coming to the commission meetings and keep after them to get the information and help he needs.

New Business
SEK Regional Planning Commission

Greg Motley spoke to the commissioner about the “Make my Move” program for helping those moving from a urban setting to a rural setting. The state of Kansas has entered an agreement witht he program providers, paying 80% of the costs.  SEKRPC will manage it for SEK. It would cost the county $12,500, which would get them onto the international website for people looking to move to a rural area, allowing them to design their web page and listing.

“I think our county has the best amenities of all the other SEK counties,” and can distinguish itself by showing them said Motley.  SEKRPC is the county’s economic development resource. He suggested approaching the city to pay part of the $12,500, since they have the main employers in Bourbon County.

No action was taken.

Dispatch/911

Brad Matkin, Fort Scott City Manager, Ben Hart, and Sheriff Bill Martin spoke with the commission about changing who is in charge of the E911 services in Bourbon County.

Fort Scott has been providing Bourbon County with E911 services for the last 3 years. The city receives 57% of the 911 calls serviced and the county the remaining 43%. The county pays $50,000 to the city for the service. The city also receives $90,000 in tax dollars to help fund the service. The city pays all wages, benefits, training, and upgrades to the department. Total operating budget for the E911 department is $550,000.

Matkin feels it’s time for the Bourbon County Sheriff’s Department to take over this service. Discussions with Sheriff Bill Martin and his financial advisor, Ben Hart, show them to be confident that it can be done financially, starting in 2026.

Bourbon County would receive a complete turn-key E911 communications department with a dedicated 8-member team, as well as all the equipment. Also $350,000 per year from Fort Scott for its share of the department in 2026 and 2027, with a planned adjustment in 2028 if the county’s financials would bear that. The county would keep the $50,000 they’ve been paying the City of Fort Scott, as well as the E911 tax of about $90,000.

“The county would need to budget $80,000-$100,000 for the department. This department is absolutely vital to our county as a whole, and it makes complete sense for the sheriff’s department to manage this department and eventually grow it into it’s own entity,” said Matkin.

“It spreads the expense more fairly if it’s a county tax,” said County Clerk Susan Walker.

“It’s coming out of taxes one way or the other,” said Beerbower.

Walker said that working out the logistics of this change will take its own work session.

“This is coming out of left field,” said Samuel Tran. “Either we grab a hold of it or shove it off until next year.” He was in favor of working on it in next year’s budget.

Tran asked what the biggest driving factor of asking for the change over is. Matkin said it will help the city’s budget and it makes sense to put it under the sheriff’s department.

Hart said that some of the sheriff’s revenue has increased and could be used to cover 911 services.

Matkin said he hasn’t come to the county for this until now because of the empty pond that the county has been, historically.

“I don’t think we have a choice,” said Milburn. “By statute, it’s ours and they’re giving it back.”

“Let’s see what we can do to make this work,” said Beerbower.

The commission decided to schedule a work session with the city and the county’s budget advisory committee.

Boards assigned to Commissioners

Each commissioner serves on a number of boards to represent the county. They decided that Beerbower will serve on the Juvenile Detention, Mental Health, and Health Department boards; Tran asked for the Rural Planning Commission, Area on Aging, and Bourbon County Senior Citizens. Milburn took Soil Conservation and the Fair Board.

Precincts Resolution 28-25

The commission approved the legal descriptions that will set up the precincts for moving from 3 to 5 commissioners.

Insurance Committee Guidelines Request

Milburn said that it is time to get letters of interest to create the advisory committee.

Two letters have been submitted so far. They are to keep the budget in mind, talk with other employees, and review recommendations.

Beerbower suggested sending out memos to the department heads. Kaety Bowers, parliamentarian, suggested asking department heads for their recommendations.

“I’d like the employees to have an input, so I hope they send in some letters,” said Milburn.

Open enrollment for insurance for county employees is in October, so there’s a limited time frame. The deadline for letters of interest is set for Aug. 4.

An audience member said it’s needed and encouraged employees to take part.

“If we’re going to formulate these committees, we’re not going to ignore these committees,” said Tran.

Marion Township Request

Tran heard from Steve Guyger, who requested a culvert across from the cemetery in Marion Township, asking for assistance with manpower to install it.

Tran said that the issue is not the cost but the precedent set for other entities. The plastic culverts the county has offered to install were used with the windmills when they were putting in temporary entrances and were given to the county after those entrances were removed.

“When you look at it in the broad scheme of things, it’s neighbors helping neighbors,” said Beerbower.

“The townships and cemeteries have very little funding coming in to them,” said Walker.

Tran specified that they will take requests like this on a case-by-case basis. He then moved that they approve Guyger’s request. The commission agreed.

Department Updates

Public Works

Public Works Director Eric Bailey said they have had Internet problems at Public Works and at the landfill, which takes down the credit card system. He expressed concern with the county’s new tech company being located in Joplin, not Fort Scott. Milburn said the kinks should be worked out soon.

Bailey also asked about the radio towers and the repeater. The county’s IT department has handled that in the past, but the repeater was down this weekend. Radios are essential for working in areas of the county that do not have cell cervice.

The Landfill Cost Closure Worksheet shows that $209, 017 must be set aside to close and reclaim the landfill. This must be turned in to the state to be in compliance. The commission voted to approve the worksheet and ensure that the needed funds are in reserve.

The five year solid waste plan needs renewal in 2028. Committee members need to be updated now, as all five that were on the committee in 2023 are not available to serve any more. Tran will work on filling that as the new liaison to the commission for Public Works.

Bailey updated the commission on the employee losses in Public Works, which will have no asphalt crew in two weeks.

“We will asphalt everything that we can asphalt with the crew that we have until we run out of crew members, but we’re not going to be able to get everything done that we said we’d get done,” said Bailey.

Tran expressed approval of allowing the current asphalt crew to work overtime for as long as possible to get as much asphalt laid as possible.

Commission Comments

 Milburn addressed the problems of rising costs and the need to cut budgets. She said the county can’t continue to spend as they have and cuts are coming. The county’s main priority is public safety. “What, where, and how do we reorganize in a way that best serves our taxpayers?”

Tran said he’s learned a lot in the last week, and he is so proud of the caliber of people in Bourbon County. He’s racking his brain to find a way to fix all this without raising taxes. He asked for patience as they change things and find what works. He expressed the desire to continue to hear from the citizens of Bourbon County.

At the end of his department update report to the Bourbon County Commission, Public Works Director Eric Bailey read his letter of resignation. Effective August 28, he will no longer be with Bourbon County. His assistant, Dustin Hall has also left the county’s employ.

“I just want to say publicly, ‘thank you, Dustin,” said Bailey. He also thanked Hall’s family for their sacrifice.

Bailey said he is committed to helping transfer the responsibility of his job to his replacement.

“With those two resignations, I am fearful for our public works department,” said Commissioner Mika Milburn.

Commissioner Samuel Tran said he is very sorry to see Eric and his wingman leaving. “I understand why they chose to leave. I’m not happy about it, but I understand,” he said.

Old Business

NRP Update

The commission voted to change the NRP from 10 years to five years for residential in the county. This does not affect the City of Fort Scott.

Budget Advisory Committee

Milburn moved to amend the bylaws for the BAC to say that a recommendation to increase the mil needs to be unanimous on the part of the committee.

Tran agreed and told BAC chairman, Greg Motley, “Based on the fact that your recommendation carries so much weight and it’s high-profile and we need your recommendation…I’m going to say ‘yes,’ it needs to be unanimous.”

The bylaw change passed unanimously.

Public Comments for Items Not on The Agenda

Michael Hoyt: Gave a copy of Rosenberg’s Rules, which is recommended by the Kansas Association of Counties to each of the commissioners, as well as copies of the US Constitution.

He also asked for clarification about the timeline of the changeover from 3 to 5 districts. He was also concerned about the township changes in District 3 going forward.

Greg Motley: On the Freeman Fort Scott Board of Directors, said that it was brought to his attention that the second quarter sales tax has not been paid to Freeman by the county. They are operating at a huge cost because they’ve already hired all the staff.

New Business

Commissioner roles and responsibilities

Commissioner Samuel Tran suggested the commissioners take on the role of liaisons to facilitate the commission’s helping of county department chairs. He offered to be the liaison for public works, suggesting Milburn for the departments housed in the courthouse, and Beerbower for emergency responders and sheriff’s department.

The goal would be for the commissioners to work to seek to understand what the department’s do and what the challenges are and be their voice in the commission. Commissioners would continue to help in all areas, but specify areas of focus.

“I’m agreeable to it,” said Beerbower. “I see the merits…”

“You wouldn’t be wasting your time if you drafted a proposal,” said Milburn.

Scott Township Appointment Recommendations

Jerry Johnson as Treasurer and Jeffrey Dailey as trustee for Scott Township were approved by the commission.

Enterprise Vehicle Leasing

Sheriff Bill Martin brought Kenneth Olson with Enterprise to talk to the commission about changing the way vehicle acquisition and maintenance is handled in the county.

Olson said that his company has the largest used vehicle inventory in the country and the largest dealer network in the country, which helps them in their work of getting vehicles for small to medium-sized government fleets.

At this time, the average age of Bourbon County sheriff’s cars is 2018. The current fleet cycle is 16 years, purchasing 2.7 vehicles per year. Olson’s company recommends a 5-year cycle, which he said would save the county in maintenance and fuel costs as well as reduce downtime. He recommended that the Sheriff’s Department lease 11 new vehicles.

“We know this is a big philosophy change,” from the 2.7 vehicles per year the county has been following, he said.

Sheriff Martin said that his department needs to create plans for vehicle replacement going forward.

“This is probably one of the best things that we’ve come up with,” said Martin. “I think it’s a win-win for everybody.”

Milburn expressed concern about having the money in the budget.

“The macro looks right…When it’s all said and done, it looks very, very good,” said Tran. H

Addressing the two other commissioners, Tran said, “Past commissioners have done what they’ve done. I refuse to do that. I refuse to have my decisions have these ramifications that are going to haunt us in the future.”

Greg Motley of the Budget Advisory Committee, said that leasing through Enterprise makes perfect sense as it has a built-in replacement plan. He offered to have the budget committee look at it and give their opinion.

“The commission has to avoid making decisions on how much money it’s going to cost them this month. You have to look at this program on a 4-6 year horizon and say ‘what’s it do over that period of time?'” said Motley. “We’ve got to start thinking long term for what’s best for the county and not what’s best for the county today or tomorrow.”

No decision was made.

Contractual services for payroll and benefits

Milburn said that a presenter will come on July 21st. The purpose is to provide continuity to the county, and to answer the Clerk’s office’s request to add another position to handle their workload in the next budget year, by taking this part of their job off their plate.

Beerbower said that if it will be beneficial to the county moving forward, he is in favor.

Commission Comments

Tran: He said that the county’s standards haven’t been clear and now “we have to form; you have the storm; then we’ll norm, and then perform…that’s how you build a team.” He said the county is in a storm now. He wants to find a way to give everyone who serves the county what they need to do their jobs well.

Milburn: “I’m not pleased with the current decisions that we are having to make on such short notice; however, I will not continue down this path to deficit,” she said of the budget-making process. Spending will be evaluated by the budget committee and the commission to find a way forward that is least abrasive to the citizens of Bourbon County.

County Commissioners heard from Greg Motley, representing the newly-formed Budget Advisory Committee about whether or not the county should choose to go revenue neutral in the new budget.

The commissioners had to decide this question and notify County Clerk Susan Walker as well as set budget hearings by September 20 and submit their final budget to the clerk by October 1.

Motley said the committee plans to have all the data that they need to make final budget decisions significantly before the hearing date deadline.

He said that thus far, the Budget Advisory Committee has been working on big picture stuff. They were awaiting the commission’s revenue neutral decision to dive into the details.

Almost everyone on the BAC has an accounting degree or other significant accounting experience. He said they have reviewed 6 years-worth of data on the county’s finances.

“I think we need to commend the people in this building, everybody contributes to that because our audits are absolutely clean, and especially the county clerk. She has delivered clean audit after clean audit after clean audit,” he said. “The integrity of the numbers is good and the committee has appreciated that.”

While the committee prefers the county be revenue neutral, or at least keeping the mill levy as low as possible, the reason they cannot recommend going revenue neutral is that the county is playing catch up.

“We’ve run down the cash reserves of the county,” he said. The current financial condition of the county would make bond approval very challenging, and if approved, the interest rates would be very high.

“We need to start building our cash reserves back to where they were several years ago,” said Motley, and it will take multiple years to do that.

“We’ve also robbed peter to pay Paul,” he said, “In that previous commissions had set a plan to do replacement reserves,” by transferring funds, but in order to balance the budget, they did not made those transfers to those reserves for equipment replacement.

The landfill has a sinking fund requirement by statute. The landfill needs to be covering that, not the public works department. The courthouse needs $1 million in deferred maintenance. Cost increases that are out of the commission’s control, including insurance costs, keep sky-rocketing across the nation. These are examples of why the county can’t go revenue neutral. Motley did say the BAC will be fighting to keep the mil levy where it is.

“We have interviewed virtually every department head and every elected official in the building,” and talked to individual employees besides that, he said. “The committee has been very impressed with the quality of the employees in this building. We have good people, and we have people that serve the public.”

The draft 2026 budget that the committee received calls for a 6 mil increase. The committee is not willing to go that high. After comparing all the data, the maximum that they can recommend is 62.5 mils compared to the current 59.9. Motley recommended they adopt that as the maximum rate and then work to lower it between now and Sept. 20 or Oct. 1 with the goal of not raising the mil at all and perhaps lowering it if we can, “But we’re facing a lot of headwinds.”

“We are going to be doing everything we can to make sure that rate is lower, but there’s a lot of things out of our control here, too,” he said. The problem didn’t start here, but with historical decisions by previous commissions.

“We have to find ways to save money,” said Commissioner Mika Milburn.

Commissioner David Beerbower said that the budget will require a lot of work.

“A budget is simply a spending priority and when you decide to spend less, something’s got to go,” Motley said. So the commissioners should be attending the budget advisory committee’s meetings and setting their priorities.

Commissioner Samuel Tran suggested telling department heads give the commission their top 3 priorities.

Beerbower moved that the commission extend the mil rate to 62.5 and set the hearing date for August 11 at 5:35pm.

The motion passed unanimously.