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Bo Co Commission Minutes of Sept. 25
September 25, 2023 Monday, 5:30 p.m.
The Bourbon County Commission met in open session with all three Commissioners and the County Clerk present.
Mark McCoy, Emily Franks, Anne Dare, Kevin Davidson, Clint Walker, and Rachel Walker were present for some or all of the meeting.
Jim Harris opened the meeting with the flag salute followed by a prayer led by Mark McCoy.
Nelson made a motion to approve the consent agenda which includes approval of minutes from 9/18/23, approval of payroll totaling $338,719.44, and approval of accounts payable totaling $576,872.46. Jim seconded the motion, and all approved.
Clint Walker spoke of the recent passing of Bob Marshall and suggested the Commissioners lower the flag on Thursday to show respect for Mr. Marshall’s many years of service starting in the Marine Corps, serving the community and on various boards including FSCC, and his time as a Senator. Clint said Mr. Marshall would always talk to you no matter where you were and treated everybody with respect. Jim said they would take that into consideration.
Emily Franks, with Jarred, Gilmore, and Phillips, PA, presented the 2022 fiscal year audit. Emily went page by page explaining the information contained in the audit. Since the county spent more than $750,000 in federal funds there were federal requirements that they were obligated to follow to report and test for the single federal audit. Emily said the county has implemented changes and now reconciles and balances the accounts monthly to be in compliance which was an issue listed in prior audits.
Susan Walker requested a 10-minute executive session. Clifton made a motion to go into a 10-minute executive session under KSA 75-4319 (b)(1) to discuss personnel matters of individual nonelected personnel to protect their privacy to include all three Commissioners, Susan Walker, Jennifer Hawkins, and Justin Meeks and will return at 6:00. Nelson seconded the motion and all approved. Clifton made a motion to resume normal session at 6:00 with no action. Nelson seconded the motion and all approved.
Justin asked to amend the agenda for an executive session for attorney client privilege.
Clifton made a motion to amend the agenda to allow for an executive session for attorney client privilege. Nelson seconded the motion and all approved.
Clifton made a motion to go into a 5-minute executive session under KSA 75-4319 (b)(2) for consultation with an attorney for the public body or agency which would be deemed privileged in the attorney-client relationship to include all three Commissioners, and Justin Meeks and will return at 6:07. Nelson seconded the motion and all approved. Clifton made a motion to resume normal session at 6:07 with no action. Nelson seconded the motion and all approved.
The Commissioners discussed the health insurance benefits information that was presented last week while Nelson was out of town. Susan stated if they are going to leave the state pool they have to do so by October 1st. Jim asked if the opportunity to leave the state pool come up again next year and Susan said yes. Clifton said they will save more money in a year because we won’t have the penalty but they had a goal of having someone trained by now and $30,000-$40,000 would be burnt up quickly to hire a consultant to administer the plan. Clifton said personally he is in favor of leaving the state plan but it wouldn’t be much savings this year so we will probably have to keep what we have. Susan said the premiums for the state plan will not be changing next year. Nelson said it sounded like we don’t know enough to upset the apple cart with something as important as insurance. Clifton said the plan we would be going to is almost identical to what we have and after the penalty we would have approximately $58,000 in savings but we have no staff to administer at this point. Clifton said his goal would be to have the staff ready next year to administer. Jim said they have been talking of leaving the state plan for three years and asked why aren’t we ready after three years. Jim made a motion to leave the state employee health plan and go with a private carrier. Nelson seconded the motion with discussion. Nelson said our staff has indicated they can’t do it right now without hiring someone else and if we could do it without hiring someone else, he would be all for it. Clifton said we can point fingers but at the end of the day it would fall on Jennifer and Susan and in his opinion they have so much on their plate already they have been unable to do it. Clifton said it is not their fault why we are not ready. Jim said he is not blaming anybody but we should have done a better job in planning. Clifton said in his opinion they are doing everything they can in their power, we just had a good audit so thank you to Patty, Susan, and Jennifer. Clifton said the problems from they are dealing with from the past has kept them from other priorities that would benefit this county. Jim asked all in favor of his motion to leave the state employee health plan with the motion failing 1-2.
Eric Bailey, Public Works Director, said they lost a fence at the shop due to the windstorm over the weekend and there were several trees downed near the shop. Yale Road has been milled with only a one-foot strip left to be completed. Nelson said he heard about it all the way in South Korea. Eric said the company doing the work had a cancellation which is why the work was done on short notice. Eric said he has spoken to and emailed several residents in the area. Nelson said the concern of the residents is that we won’t get one mile of asphalt laid there next year. Eric said he can propose it and it is up to the Commissioners to make it happen during the hard surface road work session but he hopes to get to Eagle Road and one mile on Yale Road. Jim asked if it would be the east or west mile and Nelson said he would have to see what the residents want. Nelson asked when the work session would be for the hard surface roads and Eric said it is usually held in February or March. Nelson thanked Eric for responding to all the emails from the residents of Yale Road.
Justin Meeks asked for a 7-minute executive session for contracts. Clifton made a motion to go into a 10-minute executive session under KSA 75-4319 (b)(4) to discuss data relating to financial affairs or trade secrets of corporations, partnerships, trust and individual proprietorships to include all three Commissioners, Eric Bailey, and Justin Meeks and will return at 6:32. Nelson seconded the motion and all approved. Nelson made a motion to resume normal session at 6:32 with action. Jim seconded the motion and all approved.
Nelson made a motion to allow the County Counselor to re-write the contract at Beth Quarry. Jim seconded the motion. Clifton abstained. The motion passed 2-1. Clifton stated he has no benefit from this as it is his mother’s land and contract. Jim said we ran out of room to do more blasts and that is why we have to do this.
Justin Meeks asked for a 20-minute executive session. Clifton made a motion to go into a 20-minute executive session under KSA 75-4319 (b)(2) for consultation with an attorney for the public body or agency which would be deemed privileged in the attorney-client relationship to include all three Commissioners, and Justin Meeks and will return at 6:55. Nelson seconded the motion and all approved. Clifton made a motion to resume normal session at 6:55 with no action. Nelson seconded the motion and all approved.
Clifton made a motion to go into executive session for 10 minutes under KSA 75-4319(b)(2) for consultation with an attorney for the public body or agency which would be deemed privileged in the attorney-client relationship and will return at 7:07. Nelson seconded the motion and all approved. The County Clerk asked who would be included in the executive session so Clifton made an amendment to the motion to go into executive session to include all three Commissioners and County Counselor Justin Meeks. Nelson seconded the motion stating the 10-minutes would end at 6:08 now and all approved. Nelson made a motion to resume normal session at 7:08 with no action. Clifton seconded the motion and all approved.
Clifton made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 7:08. Nelson seconded the motion and all approved.
THE BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
OF BOURBON COUNTY, KANSAS
___________________, Chairman
___________________, Commissioner
ATTEST: ___________________, Commissioner
Jennifer Hawkins, Bourbon County Deputy Clerk
10-2-2023 Approved Date
Obituary of Danny Fewell
Danny Maurice Fewell, age 58, a resident of Ft. Scott, Kansas, passed away early Monday, October 2, 2023, at the Pittsburg Care & Rehab Center in Pittsburg, Kansas. He was born January 29, 1965, in Ft. Scott, the son of Charles Eugene Fewell and Katherine Lee Nelson. Danny grew up in Ft. Scott and graduated from the Ft. Scott High School with the Class of 1983. He served for six years with the Kansas Army National Guard. Over the years, Danny had worked at Mid-Continental Restoration, Valu Merchandisers and Key Industries until ill health forced his retirement. Danny loved football and was an avid fan of the San Francisco ‘49ers. Danny never missed his sons’ football games or wrestling matches.
Survivors include his two sons, Zarek McKhale Fewell of Salina, Kansas and Cayman Lee Fewell of Ft. Scott. Also surviving are his mother, Katherine Hopkins of Ft. Scott, his father, Charles Fewell of Springfield, Missouri, two brothers, Shawn Brown and Brent Fewell and a sister, Becky Brown, as well as several aunts, uncles, nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his stepfather, Rev. Earis B. Hopkins, Sr.
Rev. George Proctor will conduct funeral services at 11:00 A.M. Tuesday, October 10th at the Cheney Witt Chapel. Burial will follow in the Evergreen Cemetery. The family will receive friends on Tuesday from 10:00 A.M. until service time at the Cheney Witt Chapel. Memorials are suggested to the American Diabetes Association or Care to Share and may be left in care of the Cheney Witt Chapel, 201 S. Main, P.O. Box 347, Ft. Scott, KS 66701. Words of remembrance may be submitted to the online guestbook at cheneywitt.com.
Perry’s Open an RV Campground in Bronson
Thaddeus and Kelly Perry have added another business in Bronson.
Perry’s Park RV & Campground, opened October 1 at 702 Pine Street in Bronson, which is on Hwy. 54 that runs through the small town in western Bourbon County.
“We purchased a big chunk of land here in Bronson from the corner of Pine Street to the city limit signs on the west side of town, it’s a lot,” she said. “We can mow it for the rest of our lives and do nothing; instead, we wanted to do something to use the land.”
So they devised a plan.
“A few RV hookups made sense to us,” she said. “It will hopefully give back to our business for several years and generate tax revenue for the city and county and hopefully more visitors to the area.”
“We can only hope campers will stay here, buy their grocery goods here, and eat at our local Chicken Shak while in town, and for the hunters they can easily get their deer processed a block away at the Bronson Locker! It’s a win for all of us in my opinion.”
“We have a great little community that has good-hearted people,” she said. “Those people have friends and family that often visit the area for hunting, fishing, ATV or rock climbing, and with the new state park announcement in Iola and the construction on Hwy. 7 and of course the Wolfe Creek project, we anticipate the four little spots we have staying full… or at least that’s our hope.”
“We currently have 4 hookups for RV’s,” Kelly said. “Each hook-up has a sewer, water, and electric 30amp/50amp/110v at each site. Wi-Fi within walking distance. Trash pick up. Full grocery, beer, ice, deli, and diner on-site. Pull through parking. We are still in the process of adding the firepits, and picnic tables per site as well. The last portion will be the playground and BBQ Grill area for the campers.”
“We have nightly and monthly rates available,” she said.
The cost is $40 per night, $175 per week, and $475 per month.
“We have an ADA-compliant unisex bathroom inside of our storefront 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday for the visitors to use if needed,” she said. We will eventually have a full coin laundry facility on-site for campers and the community. However, that will be a few years because we simply have a lot on our plate at this time.”
“We specifically worked with small businesses to build the RV Park to feed back into the local economy using Bandara Stone for our rock; Brandon Krebs with Rocking K Construction for groundwork, Matt Kelly with Kelly Electric for the hookups, Eric Stewart with C&S Contracting for our plumbing, and Adam Arnold and Cory Chandra with Deep Roots Lawn Care for all the final touches.”
To reserve a spot, contact the Kelly’s at: 620.939.4300.
Medicare Prescription Drug Costs Hard to Swallow?
Medicare Prescription Drug Costs Hard to Swallow?
Did you know that you can review and change your Medicare Prescription Drug Plan annually? Medicare Annual Election Period, running from October 15th-December 7th, is the time to do just that!
On Tuesday, November 14th, from 9:00am-2:00pm, at 735 Scott Avenue, Fort Scott; area Senior Health Insurance Counselors for Kansas (SHICK) will be available for you! Call 620-244-3826 to schedule an appointment.
Even if you have been happy with your plan in the past, plans and your medications do change! It is a good idea to compare options to see what meets your current needs. Last year, area helped beneficiaries save on average $918.00 per person changing plans.
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Kansas State University Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension Service
K-State Research and Extension is an equal opportunity provider and employer. Issued in furtherance of Cooperative Extension work, acts of May 8 and June 30, 1914, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Director of K-State Research and Extension, Kansas State University, County Extension Councils, Extension Districts.
Oct. 12 KDOT Meeting: Focus on Transportation Priorities
KDOT to host Local Consult in Iola Oct. 12
Meeting will focus on transportation priorities in southeast Kansas
The Kansas Department of Transportation is hosting nine meetings in October as part of the Eisenhower Legacy Transportation Program (IKE) Local Consult process. KDOT holds Local Consult meetings every two years to discuss regional transportation project priorities with Kansans.
The sixth meeting will be in Iola and focus on transportation in southeast Kansas (KDOT District 4). It will take place on Thursday, Oct. 12, from 9 a.m. – noon, at the Bowlus Fine Arts Center in Iola.
Those who attend will have an opportunity to share their region’s transportation priorities, hear about more investments being made in transportation and learn about various grant funding programs available through KDOT. The meeting is open to the public.
This event in southeast Kansas is part of the series of meetings being held across the state and is an important step in collecting public input for the IKE program – the state’s current 10-year transportation improvement program.
The remaining Local Consult meeting locations, dates and times are:
- KC Metro – Tuesday, Oct. 17, 1 p.m. – 4 p.m., Lenexa Hyatt Place Kansas City/Lenexa City Center in Lenexa.
- Wichita Metro – Wednesday, Oct. 18, 9 a.m. – noon, WSU Eugene M. Hughes Metropolitan Complex in Wichita.
- Virtual Meeting – Tuesday, Oct. 24, 5 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. For those unable to attend an in-person meeting, they may attend a virtual meeting on Zoom. Please register here https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMvf-uppjMsHdaOpjIXnRlJQV-xQrcEpb1A
More information about the Local Consult process is available online at: ike.ksdot.gov/local-consult-process.
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Chamber After-Hours and Ribbon Cutting for Mill Creek Veterinary Clinic On Oct. 19
Chamber After-Hours and Ribbon Cutting Event for Mill Creek Veterinary Clinic
Thursday, October 19th, 2023
5:15 pm to 6:30 pm
The Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce invites members to a Chamber After-hours & Ribbon Cutting Event to celebrate the opening of Mill Creek Veterinary Clinic! The event will take place on Thursday, October 19th from 5:15 pm-6:30 pm with the remarks and ribbon cutting starting at 5:30 pm. After the Ribbon cutting and remarks, everyone is invited to come and go to see the business, enter the drawings, and enjoy refreshments.
Opened on January 16, 2023, and located on the corner of 13th and National; Mill Creek Veterinary Clinic is a new addition to Fort Scott, however, Dr. Amanda Brown and her husband are natives to Fort Scott. Dr. Amanda and the staff at MCVC are kind and efficient while providing clients and their pets an affordable modern approach to preventive care as well as managing acute and chronic illnesses. Mill Creek is a small animal-focused clinic, but has the ability to provide large animal services on the farm. MCVC has the capability to perform a full diagnostic workup due to in-house Idexx laboratory equipment, in-house digital X-ray, and Butterfly ultrasound.
Contact the Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce for more information at 620-223-3566 or [email protected].
COVID-19 Supports for Kansas Kids Dropped Poverty and Food Insecurity
Data Shows Pandemic-era Supports Drove Down
Child Poverty, Food Insecurity among Kansas Kids
TOPEKA, KAN.
— Poverty and food insecurity rates among Kansas children dropped significantly in the early years of the pandemic, according to the
2023 Kansas KIDS COUNT® Data Book, which analyzes child outcomes in economic well-being, education, and health indicators. The
Data Book was created by Kansas Action for Children, which collected state and county data from national and state sources.
Kansas children living below the poverty line (or a household income of less than $26,500/year for a family of four) decreased from 101,000 children in 2019 to 92,000 children in 2021. And
kids experiencing food insecurity (or not having enough to eat for every meal) decreased even more significantly from around 120,000 kids in 2019 to about 94,000 in 2021.
These improvements correlate to early pandemic-era supports targeting kids and families, such as increased food assistance benefits, no-cost school meals for all children, the temporarily
expanded federal child tax credit, and other measures that helped relieve financial burdens for families living on low- or middle-incomes.
Additionally, more Kansas kids became enrolled in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), reaching a combined peak across the last decade of nearly 300,000 children accessing
some type of coverage through KanCare, the state’s Medicaid program. This number is in stark contrast to a combined total of about 271,000 kids enrolled in 2019.
Due to the public health emergency, KanCare enrollees did not have to submit paperwork with the state to determine continuing eligibility, and enrollees were able to keep their coverage for
prolonged periods. However, with the public health emergency ending in May 2023, those redeterminations are underway, and thousands of kids are losing coverage.
“The data is clear that measures implemented during the early years of the pandemic helped families make ends meet,” said John Wilson, President and CEO of Kansas Action for Children. “But
with those programs having ended, advocates are concerned with the data trends we are likely to see in 2022 and beyond.”
He continued, “We can build on the success of pandemic-era programs by ensuring families can achieve financial security. Expanding Medicaid, implementing a state child tax credit, breaking
down barriers to food assistance, and raising the minimum wage are all solutions to make that a reality.”
Other notable data shifts highlighted in the report include:
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Income statuses of families in Kansas have been on a constant incline since 2011, but there are still large discrepancies between racial groups. For instance,
Asian American/Pacific Islander households made around $102,100 in 2021, while American Indian/Alaskan Native households were at $32,400.
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Fewer young children were enrolled in early learning programs. From 2019-2021, about 54% of Kansas 3- and 4-year-olds weren’t in nursery school, preschool, or
kindergarten. This is about a 2-point increase from 2017-2019.
·
Basic reading and math proficiency continued to trend downward in the last decade, following trends across the country. Reading proficiency has dropped about
10 percentage points since 2015 (80% vs. 70% in 2021). Math proficiency decreased even more significantly, seeing 8th graders drop from 71% in 2019 to 61% in 2022 and 4th graders drop from 79% to 75% across the same period.
·
Low birth weights are statistically much higher among Black newborns compared to every other racial/ethnic group. In 2021, around 7% of all Kansas newborns were
born at less than 5.5 pounds, but Black babies were twice the state average at 14%.
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Racial disparities were also present in infant mortality rates. While the overall state rate is 5.9 infant deaths per 1,000, around 16.5 Black infants per 1,000
died in 2021.
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Children without health coverage stayed steady at around 5%. With KanCare redeterminations currently occurring, this number could increase in future years.
Downtown Meet and Greet is Tuesday Oct. 3
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The Bourbon County Sheriff’s Office Daily Reports Oct. 2
Ocotober Tiger Newsletter
–by Pam Hutchison
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…
How To Kill Anything by Carolyn Tucker
Keys to the Kingdom By Carolyn Tucker
I was shopping in a very small store out of town and overheard two friends talking. Both ladies knew I was there and obviously didn’t care. “Betty” asked “Susan” if she had quit coming to church. Susan answered, “No, not yet anyway.“ After a few more exchanges, Susan said, “Well, I’m a good person, I don’t go out and sin, I don‘t…blah blah blah.” Then both women proceeded to criticize and complain about the worship music that they hated. Then they began to tear down the young pastor. They freely talked as if I wasn’t there hearing every word. I assure you, God heard every word too.
As I was subjected to this negative barrage of words, I became disheartened and greatly saddened. I realized that both of these dear ladies had no idea what God thought of their conversation. Although Susan considered herself to be a forthright individual, she was completely clueless that God was offended and displeased with her conversation. God is all about love because He is love. He is full of mercy and lovingkindness, and I heard none of those life-giving attributes in the words being uttered. The young pastor needed their prayers, support, and encouragement — not their criticism and judgment. Like an F5 tornado, these destructive attitudes and words will kill anything in its path.
I have the capacity to be just a hop, skip, and a jump away from doing the very same things that annoy the socks off of me. So every day I need to be purposely mindful of that unruly member of my body (the tongue). “With our tongues, we bless God our Father; with the same tongues we curse the very men and women He made in His image” (James 3:9 MSG). “And so blessing and cursing come pouring out of the same mouth. Surely, my brothers and sisters, this is not right!” (James 3:10 NLT).
It’s human nature to look at ourselves through rose-colored glasses. “…I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves” (Romans 12:3 NLT). Like a gunnysack full of rattlesnakes, I want to stay away from being proud and holier-than-thou. Jesus opposed the attitudes and actions of the “religious” people because of their pride and self-righteousness. “There are people who think they are pure when they are as filthy as they can be” (Proverbs 30:12 TEV).
“Then Jesus told this story to some who had great confidence in their own righteousness and scorned everyone else: Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a despised tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer: ‘I thank you, God, that I am not a sinner like everyone else. For I don’t cheat, I don’t sin, and I don’t commit adultery. I’m certainly not like that tax collector! I fast twice a week, and I give You a tenth of my income.‘ But the tax collector stood at a distance and…prayed. He beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ’O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.’ I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted” (Luke 18:9-13 NLT).
I must keep a critical mouth closed and a loving heart open. Let’s always take the high road and choose love because Jesus said it wins. And the apostle Paul said love was the greatest of anything.
The Key: Let’s use our mouths to speak love and life because we don’t want to kill anybody around us.