A local state senator and representatives attended a legislative breakfast held Saturday morning at Mercy Hospital, answering a variety of questions raised by concerned citizens attending the event.

District 2 Representative Adam Lusker, District 4 Representative Trevor Jacobs and District 12 Senator Caryn Tyson were present for questions, while District 13 Senator Jake LaTurner was absent due to illness.

“We want to make sure you have an opportunity for questions,” moderator Mark McCoy said to the audience.

One of the first topics of interest addressed the issue of taxes, specifically House Bill 2178, the largest tax increase for the state which increases taxes retroactively for owners of smaller businesses, requiring them to pay that increase starting from January 2017. Governor Sam Brownback vetoed that bill in the past week, with the senate upholding the veto, while the House of Representatives voted to override that veto.

Jacobs said he voted against the override because of his promise to supporters that he would not support tax increases. Tyson said she does not believe the logistics of the bill are what the state needs, although she said changes do need to be made in order to improve the state’s budget.

“We’ve been working very diligently in the senate on tax,” Tyson said, adding there will be a number of tax bills addressed this session and that she believes there needs to be a single tax code for all businesses. “We need a fair tax structure.”

Lusker said he voted for the override, saying the state needs to increase its revenue in order to improve the state budget so further cuts need not be made.

“Fixing our state budget is our job,” Lusker said.

Jacobs said the state spending needs to be addressed before the state begins to increase taxes.

“The government needs to learn to do some squeezing,” Jacobs said, adding he believes limits need to be set. “We have to go by boundaries.”

The issue of the increase of Medicaid in Kansas also came up—which Tyson said may not be a good idea currently since the federal administration is reconsidering the Affordable Care Act, which Jacobs referred to as a “sinking ship.” Lusk said he believes such an increase is vital for rural hospitals.

Other concerns raised addressed topics such as cuts to education—which Tyson said she believes will not happen at this time, but added she cannot guarantee that; and the Highway 69 project, with Jacobs saying the Bourbon County phase is scheduled to begin soon and be completed by the end of 2018.

“It’s not easy to do what they do,” McCoy said of the Bourbon County representatives. “And I commend them for that.”

See the following link for more information about House Bill 2178: http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2017_18/measures/documents/hb2178_00_0000.pdf

After months and even years of concerned comments from constituents, the Bourbon County Commission decided Tuesday to demand an audit from Rural Fire District 2, or the Garland Fire Department.

Township trustees Dwayne Allen and Don Banwart presented their request to the commission, saying the fire department in the past year had refused to give the township board details concerning finances and fire district administration, even going so far as to get a restraining order against the township.

“This is unnecessary; it’s a waste of taxpayers’ money,” Banwart said of the injunction that has cost both parties large sums of money due to lawyers’ fees. “Our hands are basically tied.”

County Commissioner Jeff Fischer, who is familiar with the fire district and has attended meetings on the subject, said the lack of transparency with the fire department began as far back as four years ago, when some of the staff such as the chief were released and money seemed to disappear without the knowledge of the township board, which is supposed to have authority over the fire board.

Banwart said an audit would help clarify some of what is occurring in the fire district and give them guidance moving forward, saying their chief concern is the safety of the Scott and Drywood township residents in that district.

A report concerning the four Bourbon County fire districts and their effectiveness was presented to the commission January 17, and showed that in 2016, the Garland department only responded to about 77 percent of the calls. Banwart said he believes the department is down to only three firefighters.

In March 2016, District 13 Kansas Senator Jacob LaTurner successfully created a bill that was passed by the senate, giving county commissions the authority to demand an audit from fire districts at the request of the townships.

Under that new ordinance, the Bourbon County Commission unanimously voted to act by pursuing that audit. The audit, which in this case may reach as far back as five years, will be paid for by the townships.

Initially, county treasurer and CPA Rhonda Dunn had said she could do the audit, but Tuesday advised they use a third party. The commission said they would move forward immediately, finding what the cost of such an audit would be as they decide how far back to go in the district’s finances.

About half of the jail cell pods arrived at the site for the Bourbon County Law Enforcement Center Tuesday morning, with the remainder scheduled to come in next week.

The pods, which each include eight cells, with two beds in each, arrived already fabricated and ready to put in place. Their complete installation including welding is expected to be accomplished by the end of next week.

The pods will provide beds for 76 inmates, but the original site plans included a place for one more pod that would provide 16 more beds. During the Bourbon County Commission meeting Tuesday morning, Sheriff Bill Martin encouraged the commission to consider going ahead and getting that pod while the building is still being constructed.

Martin gave a report on the responses he got from surrounding counties he had contacted about housing their inmates. Many showed interest, including Wichita’s Kansas Department of Corrections, while other counties said they were too far away to transport inmates to Bourbon County.

Martin said he also spoke with counties that recently constructed or added on to their own jails, and those corrections departments shared advice that Bourbon County not be conservative in their number of beds, since even their newer and larger facilities are filling up.

Housing out-of-county inmates could bring in an additional $35 per inmate per day, and the excess number of beds would also insure that Bourbon County would not have to pay other counties to house local inmates.

Martin said now may be a good time to go ahead and get that pod, since the space is available and it would be easy to put in while the building is still open and other pods are being placed. Once the building is complete, it would be more expensive and difficult to open the building back up in order to install it.

The commissioners said that decision would be made based on the available funding.

After about a year of discussions on the topic, and with a case making its way through the court, the Bourbon County Commission decided Tuesday to just do away with the vicious dogs policy that had been written in 1987.

The commissioners, along with members of the Sheriff’s Office and county attorney Justin Meeks, determined that even updating the policy to better define a vicious dog would not solve the problem since the county does not have the employees to enforce it.

“If you don’t enforce a policy, why have it?” Meeks asked.

Under the previous policy, it was left to the sheriff’s deputies to answer calls concerning vicious dogs, but that department does not have the manpower or the equipment to respond to such calls or handle the animals, even if they are able to catch them.

Undersheriff Ben Cole said even having a deputy focus full-time on vicious dog calls would not be sufficient, and would also be expensive due to the deputy’s wages, a kennel and other equipment and mileage from traveling through the county. He added it is up to the county to prioritize what they want to accomplish and devote county funds to.

By dissolving the policy, circumstances involving vicious dogs become a civil issue. Pit bulls are also no longer banned in the county, though Meeks pointed out some homeowners’ insurance policies have their own restrictions on owning such dogs.

In the past month, the Bourbon County Courthouse has had an unexpected, feathered visitor on its lawn and even inside the lobby.

Around the holidays, Christopher Petty of the Kansas State Southwind Extension Office and other county employees and courthouse visitors noticed a rooster and hen lingering around the courthouse property. While the hen has not been seen of late, Petty said the rooster is still seen frequently.

“The rooster, he seems to stick around,” Petty said, saying they believe it is owned by one of the residents of the homes to the west of the courthouse. “He wanders around the courthouse quite a bit.”

While the rooster occasionally makes visitors nervous when they see it walking along the sidewalk, Petty said the bird has been calm instead of aggressive as many roosters are. When the rooster found its way inside the courthouse one day, Petty said a commissioner was able to pick it up and take it back outside without any trouble.

“He’s pretty tame,” Petty said, adding that he is also likely tough, as it seems to thrive in an urban environment.

Until the courthouse rooster decides to spend his time elsewhere, visitors to the courthouse may be able to spot him wandering around the parking lot, lawn and sidewalks of the county property.

Taking advantage of the warm and dry weather, the Bourbon County Law Enforcement Center project continues to move forward, as a steel structure appeared on the property over the past week.

The Bourbon County Commissioners and members of the Sheriff’s Department met Tuesday with engineers and architects involved in the project to receive an update on what has been accomplished and what steps are coming up in the process.

Earlier in January, the concrete foundation was laid. As of Wednesday, January 25, the steel frame of the building had also begun to be put in place at the piece of land just east of the Briggs Auto Group. The steel building is expected to be up entirely by the end of February.

The site’s utilities are also being installed, although that step is progressing at a slower pace because of the rock. The cell pods are to be delivered and set the week of February 13, with the stairs and mezzanines being delivered the following week.

Other equipment is set to arrive in March while others, such as the kitchen equipment, are scheduled to be on site in July.

“It’s all falling together,” Kevin Rost, of Goldberg Group, Inc., said during the meeting.

Project manager Gary Walker, of Universal Construction Company, pointed out that, although the building seems to be moving quickly now, it will soon appear to be moving slowly once the exterior is complete. But in those months, he said work will be accomplished inside the structure and out of sight.

After his first three weeks in office as the Bourbon County District Two Commissioner, Jeff Fischer continues to learn about his new role as well as look for ways for the county to have success.

Born and raised in Hammond before leaving in 1995 for Arizona and then Florida, Fischer moved back to the area in 2005. A licensed professional engineer, he spent time working in Kansas City before tiring of the long commute. Fischer serves as a pastor at the Fort Scott Apostolic Christian Church, but now leads in the county in a different way after being elected in 2016.

“A neighbor called and asked me if I’d do him a favor,” Fischer said of how he first entered the race for Bourbon County Commissioner of District Two. “And without knowing what the question was, I answered yes.”

Fischer said part of the logic for his campaign was because of construction projects happening in the county and his experience in contracting. Fischer added he sees a number of other concerns in the county including dropping population leading to a shrinking taxpaying base, high taxes discouraging new industry and the need to leverage resources available.

“For me to earn a living, I had to drive to Kansas City or Joplin,” Fischer said. “And that’s what our kids are facing, too. There needs to be more economic development activity.”

Fischer said one of his first goals in his new position is to compare Bourbon County to other counties as benchmarks, to see how they are successful and if there are ways Bourbon County can follow their example.

Already, Fischer said he has learned a great deal about what he is able to do as a commissioner as well as what is not allowed, such as meeting with a fellow commissioner outside of a scheduled meeting, even if only for a casual conversation.

After weeks and months of campaigning as well as months of sitting in on meetings before finally being elected, Nick Ruhl is settling into his role as Bourbon County District Three Commissioner.

Ruhl has lived in Bourbon County all but five years of his life, serving the Fort Scott Fire Department for 20 years and owning a construction company for eighteen years. But at the request of friends, he decided to serve the community in a different way.

“A lot of people came to me and asked me to run,” Ruhl said, saying he knew something needed to be done to keep from spending too much money while bringing in other funds for the county at the same time.

Ruhl said he is looking forward to finding ways to invite new businesses, such as by not driving them away because of high taxes.

“I hope we can build a reserve back into the county and have some extra money,” Ruhl said. “That’s what I’m really looking forward to trying to do.”

Since filing as a candidate in spring of 2016, Ruhl said he has probably missed only six of the bi-weekly county commission meetings. After those months of hearing about the issues and concerns of the county, Ruhl said he is excited and ready to take on the new position.

“We’ve got to have a place for our kids to grow up,” Ruhl says. “I don’t want my grand-kids to move away and I don’t want their kids to move away…we’ve got to do something.”

Since being sworn into office on January 9, Ruhl and fellow new commissioner Jeff Fischer have attended training from the state and have heard a number of reports concerning county resources and other concerns.

In recent years, Bourbon County received a Blue Cross Blue Shield grant for $500,000 as part of the Pathways to a Healthy Kansas program, to be used to improve the health of county residents by various means.

Jody Hoener of Mercy Hospital, who also works with Pathways and the Healthy Bourbon County Action Team met with the Bourbon County Commission January 17, and shared the needs of the program and how the commission could be involved.

Hoener said, since 2012, Bourbon County has ranked in the bottom 10 percent of Kansas counties concerning the health of its residents. Out of the 101 counties recently ranked, Bourbon County has been ranked as high as 97^th in health, including factors such as level of activity, access to healthy food and tobacco use.

The commissioners agreed to cooperate and meet with Hoener and other team members as the county forms a Bicycle and Pedestrian Transportation Plan, to do an inventory of the trails and sidewalks available to the community. An assessment will also be made to see how accessible healthy food is for county residents as well as how the Highway 69 corridor can be used to promote activity and good health such as through bicycle lanes.

“Not only is the transportation plan important, but the access to healthy food is important, too,” Hoener said.

The commission would be consulted as the plan is formed and as priorities for the county are developed. The opinions of the county residents are also considered through the use of surveys and public meetings.

The study of the county’s needs and creation of the plan, with the assistance of the PedNet Coalition – Pedestrian and Pedaling Network, will cost about $55,000, paid for out of the Pathways grant. Uniontown will have a separate plan to help meet their specific needs.

“I think it’s a good solution,” commission chairman Lynne Oharah said of the plan and the teamwork between the county and the Pathways teams.

Bourbon County is also looking at becoming involved in the WorkWell Kansas program, promoting worksite wellness at businesses by providing incentives up to $10,000 per participating business.

By promoting wellness in the workplace, Hoener said employers can decrease rates of illness, injury and absenteeism among employees, such as by decreasing the sedentary rate, the amount of time employees spend sitting at a desk each day.

Each participating business will have a team of representatives that will attend workshops and form a plan for their businesses.

The county commissioners voted to be involved with the Pathways program by being members on some of the boards, which included focuses such as schools, worksites, food and retail, restaurants, community policy, healthcare and resident community well-being.

Commissioner expressed the importance of promoting health in the county and taking advantage of the grant while the funding is available.

Per request, Correctional Center Major Bobby Reed gave information to the Bourbon County Commission Tuesday morning concerning the wages of the different positions at the Sheriff’s Office as compared to surrounding counties.

In recent weeks, new Commission Chairperson Lynne Oharah had asked Reed for the report, after hearing that the local Sheriff’s Office had lost deputies and staff to other counties and departments because of the low wages.

Reed reached out to six counties for the information, including Linn, Crawford, Neosho, Allen, Anderson and Cherokee counties. When compared to these counties with similar demographics, Bourbon County frequently ranked below average.

“In my opinion, we are low,” Reed said of the wages, while Sheriff Bill Martin pointed out most of the staff are 25-30 percent underpaid compared to other similar positions, while some are as much as 80 percent behind.

Since 2011, Reed said the correctional office, which has 19 staff at any given point, has lost about 44 people because of the non-competitive wages. Undersheriff Ben Cole said the Sheriff’s Office has lost a total of at least 33 employees in that same time, with many of them citing pay as the reason.

Reed and Cole both said retention is a problem at the Sheriff’s Office, as deputies come for training and experience, only to move on to a county or position with higher pay.

“We are basically a training ground that we’re paying for,” Cole said, with training often costing at least $3,500 per officer.

Director of Security Alvin Metcalf said there are also intangible, negative aspects to that attrition and turnover as well, including low morale, lack of experience and the question of safety as deputies have to regularly get accustomed to new fellow deputies.

Oharah said some of the Sheriff’s Office positions no longer compete even with Walmart and other businesses in Bourbon County, with benefits not adding much incentive. The commissioners said they will continue to consider ways they can support the Sheriff’s and Correctional departments to help attract quality deputies.

“This is not an easy process,” county attorney Justin Meeks said. “It can’t happen overnight.”

See below for comparisons of the actual hourly rate of certain positions according to a state-wide study done in 2015.

Undersheriff: Bourbon $16.57, Neosho $23.40, Allen $21.35, Anderson $18.58, Cherokee $18.77

Deputy Sheriff: Bourbon $13.15, Neosho $19.03, Allen $15.30, Anderson $15.92, Cherokee County $10.25

Correctional Center Supervisors: Bourbon $12.21, Allen $18.83, Cherokee $10.50, Crawford $17.86

Corrections/Detention Officers: Bourbon $10.39, Neosho $12.02, Allen $10.50, Anderson $14.78, Cherokee $10.50