A representative of Skillman Corporation out of Merrillville will be in attendance at the Starke County Commissioners meeting tonight. After listening to a presentation from Scott Cherry last week, the Starke County Jail Committee voted to invite him to the Commissioners’ meeting to discuss jail construction and remodeling. Cherry oversees all operations from the Merrillville office.
Miguel Salazar, from First Source Insurance, appeared before the Starke County Commissioners this week to bring them up-to-date on health insurance costs for 2012. Even though premiums are going up, Salazar pointed out how employees can reduce their co-pay by accumulating wellness points.
Salazar pointed out the importance for the employees maximizing their total points to reduce their premium.
Saying they had heard some complaints from the community, the Starke County Commissioners yesterday voted to have County Attorney, Marty Lucas, create a draft of an employee nepotism ordinance. When passed, the ordinance would spell out that no employee could work directly under a relative in any office.
The ordinance will make it clear that no parents, grandparents, spouse, children, grandchildren, brothers, sisters, uncles, aunts, nephews, nieces, or adopted relatives could be given employment where they work directly under, or having reporting responsibilities, to the supervisor or department head.
Starke County Councilwoman, Judy Benninghoff, still believes that the errors reported in the Treasurer’s office by the State Board of Accounts are actually errors in the Auditor’s office. In a release to WKVI, Benninghoff said that is backed up by an official in the State Board of Accounts.
“I called the State Board of Accounts and I spoke to Debbie Gibson, and she told me that the paragraph that was inserted in the Treasurer’s audit had nothing to do with the Treasurer,” said Benninghoff. “That pertained only to the Auditor. So, where it says that ‘beginning in March 2010 and continuing through 2011, there was a failure to post the entries pertaining to the remittance of various payroll withholdings’, that was true. That withholding fund is with the Auditor’s office, not in the Treasurer’s office.”
The Starke County Commissioners are trying to decide on a snow emergency policy involving employee pay if the county is under a no travel order due to snowy conditions. The Courthouse had to close once in December of 2010 and again in January of this year because the county roads were closed due to snow. A funding mechanism was in place through the state and federal governments where the county could get funding to make the roads passable if an emergency is declared in the county.
The discrepancies in the Treasurer’s office have almost been solved. It was reported at this week’s Starke County Commissioners meeting that the Treasurer’s balance, and bank balance were in sync within pennies. The figures came from the monthly 47TR report given to the commissioners.
“The 47TR form is basically the form that compares our Treasurer’s balance to the bank balance to the Auditor’s balance,” explained Commission President, Dan Bridegroom. “The Auditor’s balance will be somewhat different than the Treasurer’s because of how the funds are received. In the bottom line, that form out of the Treasurer’s Office should balance with our bank. That is where we had the huge discrepancy of almost $900,000 and that’s what led us to where we are today. As of Tuesday of last week, the Auditor, Kay Chaffins, and Casey in the Treasurer’s Office have got that down to somewhere around $.33 and they will find that portion of that also.”
Starke County has been recognized as showing the greatest improvement in the EMA Office in the state. EMA Director, Ted Bombagetti, received the award in Indianapolis recently.
“All of the Directors of the EMAs throughout the state work off the state’s rating system where we do specific projects for our county, classroom participation and a host of other items,” said Bombagetti. “We get a report card on it at the end of the year and fortunately, my department was able to score enough points and we received an award from the state for the most improved county.”
Starke County officials are being faced with a philosophical dilemma. They are being asked to either reduce the sheriff’s road officers or keep the jail understaffed.
“I’m here to let you know that I’ll do whatever the Commissioners and Council ask me to do, but I do want them to understand is that in order for me to eliminate two road officers, I would have to lay them off,” said Sheriff Cowen. “I can’t just place them down in the jail and subtract their pay to jailer’s pay. I can put them in the jail, but I would have to pay them officer’s pay.”
After several months of discussion, and a rejection of at least one draft ordinance, the Starke County Commissioners passed the Dog Kennel Ordinance with a unanimous vote.
A simplified explanation of the ordinance is that it will regulate dog kennels in the county and provides the language for creating and operating a kennel.
The ordinance was written after much work by Plan Commission President Butch Richie, Director Bruce Williams and a committee of dog enthusiasts. Commissioner Kathy Norem, who with her background of breeding show dogs, was also helpful in comments made from her position as a Commissioner.
How much would you think Starke County has in assets? If you guessed $41 million, you would be close.
That figure was revealed at this week’s Starke County Commissioner’s meeting. The county is required to do a capital assets report each year to update records. Bill Nielson of Government Fixed Asset Services, Inc. said that the assets are unbelievable.
Officials from IU Health Starke Hospital appeared before the Starke County Board of Commissioners and County Council last night to request permission for IU Health LaPorte Hospital to purchase the facility, equipment and property here in Knox.
Starke County government officials endorsed a comprehensive jail review last night that will end with a decision on what to do about the 33-year-old facility.
Commissioner Kathy Norem presented to the county officials in attendance findings from a recent jail conference attended by a five person committee from Starke County. Norem said this is a thorough review of all of the options available.
Starke County EMS Director Paul Mathewson informed the Commissioners this week that he is getting everything ready to switch the county from Basic Life Support Service to Advanced Life Support Service as soon as possible.
Today he will be meeting with state regulators to get the ambulances licensed for Advanced Life Support service. Mathewson was asked why the change in licensing for the vehicles is necessary.
The Starke County Commissioners received the “47TR” figures from one of the interim employees in the Treasurer’s office this week. That report is sent to the state each month showing that the figures balance with the bank receipts.
In an answer to a question from Commission President Dan Bridegroom, Casey Clark stated they still are not balancing, but “they are working on it.” By working with the Auditor’s office, the monthly figures are now balancing, but they are still off $46,000, according to Clark. That figure is a combination of money that is unaccounted for in 2010, and what she has found back to May of 2011
Sixth District State Senator, Jim Arnold, paid a visit to the Starke County Council and Commissioners this week. Arnold, who was assigned parts of Starke County in a new district, paid a courtesy call on both governing bodies, saying that the members can call him if they need help in any way. If elected in the 2012 election, Arnold’s new district will take in Davis, Oregon, Washington, Center, and Jackson Townships. Senator Ed Charbonneau will be left with only Railroad, Wayne, California, and North Bend townships.
Members of the council mentioned two topics they will be interested in during the 2012 legislative session. Those topics are the 9-1-1 and Police Pension Fund financing.
The Starke County Commissioners are getting together in Executive Session this afternoon to analyze the 2010 Treasurer’s audit released this week by the State Board of Accounts.
Although the report pointed out that there were hundreds of thousands of book-keeping discrepancies, all but $21,906 has been found. When granted access to the county’s bank account statements and depository records, County Auditor, Kay Chaffins, was able to investigate the material.
Starke County Community Corrections Director, Robert Hinojosa, presented his annual calendar year report to the Starke County Commissioners this week.
Hinojosa talked about the three components of Community Corrections. Those are Home Detention, Community Service, and the Community Transition Program. He talked about the Community Transition Program.
“The offenders who have been sentenced to the Department of Corrections from Starke County all get released back with little or no services available to them so what we’ve chosen to do is provide services in the last 30 to 60 days of their sentence to transition them back,” explained Hinojosa. “We know that if they are unable to access services, they will fail, they will get rearrested, they’ll go back to the Department of Corrections and it’ll be a never ending cycle.”
The Indiana State Board of Accounts has completed the 2010 audit of the Starke County Treasurer’s Office. Starke County officials have been anxious to receive the report that will complete the most recent bookkeeping activities in the Treasurer’s Office that the Board will audit. The report is now in the hands of county officials.
Treasurer Linda Belork was removed from office by the County Commissioners after irregularities in the 2009 accounts were reported by the State Board of Accounts. The Commissioners also removed the deputies from office and named Casey Clark and Michelle Snowdon to handle the day-to-day activities in the office until the matter is straightened out.
Brian Horvath of Weaver and Boos Consultants gave a report to the Starke County Commissioners yesterday that indicates that they are getting closer to closing the old Starke County Landfill. Gas probes were installed over the summer and the Commissioners received a report this week of what information the company has gotten while monitoring the probes.
Horvath was asked what the next step is in getting the landfill closed.
Starke County Highway Superintendent, Steve Siddall, and Engineer Ken Minot approached the Starke County Commissioners yesterday to give them an update on three bridge projects.
Siddall was asked if Bridge #156, which is located at Range Road and 400 North, is moving on schedule.
“With what the Commissioners want for fall harvest, we’re right on time,” replied Siddall. “Hopefully, the weather cooperates.”
