County approves purchases from bio-terrorism funds
'Use it or lose it' policy guides purchase of items
Following the dictates of a "use it or lose it" grant policy, Marion County Commission gave the go-ahead Monday to purchase items using federal bio-terrorism funds.
Commissioners approved the purchase of a $2,499 LP 500 Projector and a $439.99 Sony DSC-971 cybershot digital still camera from Sunflower Office Products, Newton. The projector includes free warranty for an additional third year.
Marion County Health Department Supervisor Jan Moffitt said she needed to spend federal bio-terrorism money, and needed to spend some of it within the first quarter of the year, or would have to send it back.
Moffitt said she planned on purchasing both a projector and camera and had included that in budget information sent to the state. She said the two items could also be used by other Marion County departments.
Moffitt asked commissioners to attend a Thursday meeting which will discuss other purchases which should be made with the bioterrorism money. Commission Chairman Howard Collett said he would attend, although he was previously scheduled to attend a road and bridge meeting in Dickinson County that day. Commissioners Leroy Wetta and Bob Hein will attend the road meeting.
Moffitt said she would be inviting approximately 25 Marion County emergency workers to attend a regional training session in late May. Marion County is a member of the South Central Metro Region, SCMR, which also includes Harvey, Reno, Sedgwick, Butler, Harper, Sumner, and Cowley counties.
The SCMR was established to provide a regional response to handling bioterrorism, communicable disease, or other mass care situation.
She also noted that an area would need to be established where individuals could be quarantined if necessary. Moffitt questioned whether the empty nursing home in Florence might be used. Commissioners told her to check with the City of Florence.
Commissioners also:
— met in a 15-minute executive session with Michelle Abbott-Becker, director of communications and emergency management, to discuss courthouse security. Returning to regular session, Abbott-Becker asked commissioners to send notices to all Marion County employees directing them to have their ID cards available and accessible at all times.
— approved giving the Juvenile Justice Authority (JJA) $187.20, which is the county's portion of a matching grant. The match money is being paid by the four counties within the Eighth Judicial District. The $187.20 portion paid by Marion County represents nine percent of the total. Geary County is responsible for 56 percent; Dickinson County, 28 percent; and Morris County, seven percent.
Mike Wederski, representing the JJA, said the grant has been reduced to $18,720 this year from $22,435 due to federal money being diverted to new expenditures including the war.
Wederski said the JJA was looking at cost-cutting measures including alternate ways of delivering services. By reducing employees from full-time staff to part-time, $15,000 to $20,000 can be saved in benefits throughout the Eighth District, he said.
In a related action, commissioners appointed Pam Loewen to serve on the JJA Advisory Board, replacing Cheri Ochs-Wheeler.
— approved three changes in the Articles of Incorporation for the SCKEDD (South Central Kansas Economic Development District).
Bill Bolin, SCKEDD executive director, met with commissioners earlier this year and said the organization was planning on reducing its number of board members from 83 to 30. The changes in the articles of incorporation were precipitated by the change in the number of members.
Susan Cooper, Marion County representative to the SCKEDD board and Marion Economic Development Director, said the changes would make the board more equitable and give smaller counties like Marion a more equal playing field among larger counties like Sedgwick.
Bolin explained that in the previous board setup Sedgwick County had 60 percent of the vote. Under the new setup, that county will have 16 percent.
In a related matter, Cooper said she would like to remain on the SCKEDD board, but said if any other member of the Marion County Economic Development Council would be willing to serve, she would have no problem with that.
— approved the annual noxious weed management plan to be submitted to the state. Bill Smithhart, noxius weed and hazardous household waste director, said it needed to be submitted by June 1.
Smithhart also said he planned on opening his department two Saturdays each month for hazardous household waste to be deposited.
— heard from Gerald Kelsey, road and bridge supervisor, who said he planned on submitting the county's five-year federal bridge plan as is with no changes. However, because of possible changes in federal funding, Kelsey said he would wait until after hearing what was said during a special road and bridge meeting Thursday in Abilene.
— agreed to donate two men and two machines from the county's road and bridge department to move dirt for a tree planting project at Marion Reservoir. Peggy Blackman, coordinator of the Marion Reservoir Water Quality Project, said trees were being planted as a means of preventing shoreline erosion. Initially, trees will be planted immediately west of the Corps of Engineers office, "an area that can be seen from the dam," she said.
Blackman said area farmers have said they do their part in trying to stop erosion, but the shoreline area was washing. "There's nothing there to stop that properly," she said.
Twenty-one students from Marion High School ag classes, along with some students from Hillsboro, will do the heavy manpower needed to help anchor the trees, Blackman said.
"We'll need to do 1,600 cubic yards of dirt work," Blackman explained. "You'd need two men and two machines out there to move the dirt."
Trees to be planted include water willows, black willows, cottonwoods, bald cypress, and sycamores.
