Welcome to Malad Advertisement

The Enterprise prints a map of Oneida County, which is sponsored by the county.  The total cost for the map is $600, which the paper generally splits with the county for advertising purposes.  The potential for any additions to the map was discussed.  The commission approved the funding of the map for the “Welcome to Malad” edition of the paper.  

Age Friendly 

Community

Molly Beseris spoke to the commission about the rural economic development program application.  The application for the grant must be submitted by the city or county as a designated entity.  Commissioner Jeppsen motioned to continue supporting the ED committee for $5,000 for 2024, and continue as the eligible applicant for the grant.  The motion was approved.

Beseris also presented the commissioners with a certificate from the AARP.

Jeff Richins

Representing the Malad Valley Theater Guild, Jeff Richins approached the commission about reinstating funding for the guild.  Richins explained that the Covid period had made raising funds more difficult.  Chairman Lewis expressed an interest in having more information about the financial information for the guild in order to move forward.  Colton suggested that a written request was generally a first step to receiving funds of that sort, and that Richins should draft something along those lines.  It was generally agreed that the guild would present such information for the next commission meeting.  Commissioner Jeppsen asked about the potential for any remaining federal Covid funds to potentially be directed toward the guild.  Molly Beseris suggested that she may have some possibilities for the particular situation.  Colton reminded Richins that tax exemption approval for 2024 can be done ahead of time.  The guild is seeking around $3,500.

Kerry Hong

Trial court administrator, responsible for non-elected trial court operations of District 6 Kelly Hong spoke to the commission. 

He spoke to the commission about an update of changes of how the courts are managed.  This it at state cost: 1) connecting every county to a state network; 2) Moving computer systems to cloud support; 3) moving employees to Microsoft office 365. This will create a more coherent network of saved information; 4) migrate email addresses to idcourt.gov addresses.  These changes are primarily security and efficiency driven.  Attacks against county networks and data traffic have been a concern in some counties, though the impact here was anticipated to be minimal.

Road and Bridge

Dianna Dredge spoke to the commission about road striping.  Commissioner Jeppsen asked about what it would take to redo the road striping in the county.  The paint lasts six to twelve months.  The cost was noted as $1,200 a mile.  A total amount was noted as $400,000 a year.  For a center rumble strip, $8,000 mile was listed as the cost.  Until the county has recorded more than 3,000 vehicles a day on local roads, the recommendation from the state is that center lines are not in urgent need of repainting.  The current traffic volume is 2,2000 cars a day.  Dredge stressed the importance of drivers taking the responsibility upon themselves to drive more carefully on local roads.  The county will be installing delineators along the roads through Stone up through the narrows in the upcoming months.

Commissioner Eliason discussed a road in Pleasantview, which is in disrepair.  From 5400 W. on 500 S. and 300 N.  It was determined that the speed limit signage was adequate, but that the situation should be further examined.

Airport Grant

Mike Hess and Roxanne Albretson spoke to the commission on the behalf of the airport board.  Hess reported that the funds for the seal coat and a security fence, as well as some other features of the airport infrastructure, have been applied for through a variety of grants.  Some of the grants cover 50% of the cost, while others potentially will cover the entire price tag.  The commission was asked to approve a range of grant applications for the airport board.  A motion to do so was approved.  

American Legion

The American Legion has requested a retail alcohol/beer license for bottled or canned beer to be consumed on the premises.  The license would run for six months.  The license was approved by the commission.

AEDs

The commission had requested four AEDs for county buildings.  AEDs are defribillators for emergency use in public places.  use Along with these, Chairman Lewis had also requested first aid kits.  

Chairman Lewis also asked the EMTs about the possibility for CPR training.  The EMTs are willing to provide CPR training to county employees.  Chairman Lewis proposed spending one time funds to provide CPR and First aid training to county employees.  The AEDs may not be able to be purchased under the grant funding unless they are stored in a location that is accessible only during community emergencies.  The commission determined that the AEDs were necessary, regardless of whether the SHSP funds could be used for them or not.  The commission discussed scheduling and arranging for class times for county employees.  Chariman Lewis motioned to provide CPR training to county employees, as well as pay them to attend.  The motion was passed.

DEQ

Katy Bergholm and Allan Johnson from the DEQ spoke to the county commission.  The primary purpose of their visit was to maintain contact with the county.  Bergholm shared a report on the state wide accomplishments of the DEQ so far this year.  The remaining ARPA funds are under consideration for the most efficient way to spend them over the next year or two.  Johnson stated that the engineering side of DEQ was primarily concerned with sewer and drinking water issues.  The department often deals with water quality questions related to new developments, which the commissioners mentioned has become an important issue for the counties.  Johnson clarified that state monies from the DEQ were primarily dedicated to planning, rather than construction, issues.  The commission had a number of questions about the involvement of DEQ in the county, including oversight of the IDAWY solid waster district.  

In Utah, there is a potential increase in Thallium levels in the Malad River, which has been tracked a mile or two into Idaho.  Thallium is an element that can be toxic in high concentrations, and the DEQ is investigating the situation further. 

Audit report

Searle Hart reported on the county audit.  They recommended that all contract arrangements be given to the clerk’s office in order to have the payment arrangements for any county expenses available to the auditors.  

Trends for the county have largely been consistent across departments.  

Some issues about some of the expense accounts for the county were clarified.  

The company found that the county’s financial reporting was clean, and transparent.  There was no risk of material misstatement found by the auditors.

Chairman Lewis asked about the hospital and IDAWY.  As a result of the county’s backing of the hospital’s line of credit, and arrangements with IDAWY, those two entities are covered by the county’s audit.