Adapted from official minutes recorded by Shanci Dorius

At the outset of the regular meeting, Commissioner Lewis asked for a moment of silence for Rauhn Panting, former Oneida County Extension Agent who recently passed.

ATC Phones

More information for the phone system proposal from ATC was presented by Kyle Redman and Dave Perry. ATC proposed the one-gigabyte business internet plan, which is significantly more than what the county currently has (an average of 250mbps). The cost for this service, would be a little less than what the county is paying now. If the county opted to purchase the phones instead of leasing them, the monthly cost would go down further. The commissioners requested a quote for the cost to purchase thirty-nine phones versus leasing those phones. Another consideration with any phone system proposal is the approximately $18,000 cost to fully digitize the Solacom E911 system from analog, an inevitable cost as the nation is moving from analog to digital already.  The discussion was tabled.

AirMethods MOU

The AirMethods Memorandum of Understanding was discussed. Previously, John Williams with Oneida County Hospital wanted to get flight times testing done, and there is no word on this yet. Questions around the purpose of the memorandum were discussed. Chesley Lewis, a life flight pilot with the Portneuf Air Rescue, was invited to comment. Air Rescue in Pocatello is approximately 42 nautical miles from Nell J. Redfield Hospital, which is a flight time of 18-20 minutes. Air Rescue took over the AirMethods (Poctatello) contract about 6-years ago.  Air Rescue is a non-profit, which means that patients will not be left with a large bill. This is due to the Balanced Billing /No Surprise Act that states life flight agencies will not bill above and beyond what the insurance company is willing to pay. Mr. Lewis explained the AirMethods memorandum being discussed doesn’t give AirMethods exclusivity. The law dictates that if no one is available, they are required to call the next available or closest flight group.

Commissioner Lewis, in reviewing the AirMethods memorandum, questioned what “scene flights” meant in section 2C of the contract. Mr. Chesley Lewis ventured the possible meaning might be that the landing spot is not at a designated landing pad at the hospital. This would make the flight crew the highest level of medical care on-sceneand they would determine the care and destination location.

Attorney Lyle Fuller suggested leaving section C5 out or to amend it to reference Idaho law versus Colorado law.  The issue was also tabled.

RACOON CLUB

Bill Drury with the Racoon Radio Club came before the commissioners to report new information received from Kendall Anderson from the Idaho Military Division. Mr. Kendall emailed Mr. Drury clarifying the building has not been officially turned over to Oneida County as of yet and the building must be moved (this was not originally communicated to the county). Mr. Drury stated this leaves the two options regarding the building. First, the communications building must be moved to another location designated by the Bureau of Land Management and it must be on a cement pad (currently on skids). Second, if the building remains in the current location, there were several things that needed to be done such as a memorandum of understanding regarding entities that can be allowed on the site. Mr. Andeson said that more investigation is needed.

Mr. Drury with the Racoon Club stated there is no reason for the Racoon Club to continue to pursue a lease, noting the new information about the additional cost to move the building, as well as the approximately $4,000 cost to run power to the building. Homeland Security says the club needs to be out of the building by the end of the year. 

Other information shared during the meeting included questions for clarification. According to Mr. Drury, there is a maximum of 20 watt of power needed for the Racoon Club as they aren’t transferring much. Oneida County Attorney Lyle Fuller asked how to assess the state’s claim that the communications building is too close to the other one (from a technical standpoint). Mr. Drury stated that he believes they don’t interfere with the other building, but the Idaho Military Division may say different. 

At the end of the discussion, Mr. Drury withdrew the Racoon Club’s bid to lease the

building as it is too late in the season to complete all that needs to be done and he would like Danny Miller and Blain Newman with the Bureau of Land Management addressed the board of commissioners to clarify items of confusion regarding the communications building. Phone calls and emails from the clerk’s office and commissioners to Blaine Newman and Danny Miller with the Bureau of Land Management have not been responded to as of yet.

4 County Alliance

Molly Besaris with the Four County Alliance appeared before the board of commissioners to discuss the previously approved grant application through the Rural Idaho Economic Development. The commissioners approved the application in May, which was approved in late July 2024 by Tom Kealey, the Director of the Idaho Department of Commerce. The contract presented to the board of commissioners is to accept the approved grant money. Mrs. Besaris stated that the special conditions on item 28 have been removed, which were items that she had been required to complete.

The grant from the Rural Idaho Economic Development Professional Grant from the state of Idaho and authorized signature on that grant was approved.

The Idaho Department of Commerce requires approval on a grant draw twice a year in July and January to execute half of the draw. One requirement is that a representative needs to sign the invoice prior to submitting it. Molly Besaris requested commissioner approval to invoice for both the July draw and upcoming January draw, so that when  Molly makes the request in January, the invoice is already signed and prepared and would eliminate the need to come before the commissioners again.

Commissioner Jeppsen motioned to authorize signing invoice EDPRO-25-001 for $15,000 as well as invoice number EDPRO-25-002 for the remaining $15,000 to be paid in January 2025. 

Printing bids

Bids for the printing of emergency preparedness guides (handouts) for October’s Town Hall meeting on Emergency Management was discussed. A bid from Idaho State University for 200 copies totaled less than $994.00. A bid from the Idaho Enterprise is pending. Most of the cost will be covered through available State Homeland Security Program (SHSP) funds and the remainder would be paid using Emergency Management Performance Grant (EMPG) funds.

Commissioner Jeppsen motioned to approve up to $994.00 for the printing of the emergency preparedness guide using the lowest bid between ISU and Idaho Enterprise. The invoice will be paid using the available funds in the State Homeland Security Program (SHSP) funds and the remaining balance will be paid from Emergency Management Performance Grant (EMPG) funds.  Motion carried.

Amended Development Code

The third amendment of the development code (ordinance number 2022-08-01) was presented to the commissioners for signature after the document was updated and verified by Oneida County attorney’s office (Fuller and Fuller). Commissioner Eliason motioned to sign the third amendment of the development code which was amended on July 8, 2024 and published in the paper on July 18, 2024. Motion carried.

Aircraft registration for drone

Aircraft registration application paperwork was presented to the board of commissioners for approval. This is a requirement for the new weed spraying drone the county purchased earlier this year.

Commissioner Eliason motioned to sign the aircraft registration application for Oneida County Noxious Weed department, as well as the affidavit of ownership of unmanned aircraft. Seconded by Commissioner Jeppsen.