Fiscal Court

The Clark County Fiscal Court districts will remain the same until the next U.S. Census. During Wednesday’s meeting of the court, the three county commissioners agreed to maintain the current districts because the district populations are still within 10 percent each other. In May, a three-person reapportionment committee was created with community volunteers Doug Oliver, Charlie Blair and Jean Logsdon to review the 2010 Census numbers and make a recommendation to the county. The largest district, District 3, has 12,258 people, compared to the smallest, District 1, with 11,346 people, creating an 8 percent difference.

Jessamine County Fiscal Court's 11th annual Circle of Giving wreath display and annual tree-lighting ceremony will give residents the opportunity to enjoy the 2011 holiday season to the fullest by accomplishing three popular holiday “to do” list items: help others, decorate, and get in the holiday spirit. The 11th annual Circle of Giving wreath display begins Nov. 28. During the event, visitors may stroll through the Jessamine courthouse hallways and view donated wreaths and holiday decorations that are up for bid. The funds raised during the auction will support the efforts of local charities such as Community Action and the Wilmore-High Bridge Community Center to provide food and gifts to needy residents during the holiday season.

The Jessamine County Fiscal Court recently approved an Employee Assistance Program that will give the county 5 percent off its worker compensation premium. The cost of the program is $2.75 per employee. It offers employees drug/alcohol support services, counseling for marriage, grief/loss, financial difficulties, terminal illness and other work-related issues. Supervisors will be trained to recognize behavior and “warning signs” in employees. This program is part of the Drug-Free Workplace Program already in place.

The Lincoln County Fiscal Court failed to pass an ordinance Tuesday that would subject the owners of any livestock to the same restrictions the state puts on cattlemen. The ordinance was written by County Attorney Daryl Day in response to repeated complaints about horses running loose on Spice Ridge Road. Day said that Kentucky law requires cattlemen to fence their cattle, but the laws don’t extend to other livestock. When he wrote the ordinance, Day said he simply expanded the state law to cover animals other than cows.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet's William Lucas briefed the Lincoln County Fiscal Court Tuesday about their plans for $1.4 million in Rural Secondary Road Program funds. Lucas said that the cabinet plans to resurface 5.3 miles of KY 643, also known as Chapel Gap Road, and 4.2 miles of KY 3244, or Chestnut Ridge Road. Lucas said the state estimates the cost at between $90- and $100,000 per mile. After those projects, magistrates will have around $265,000 in flex funds to use on other portions of road in the county.

The Jessamine County Fiscal Court has the budget on the back burner for now but was able to cross off a few items and consider other issues during Tuesday night's meeting. One budget item that will remain the same is the contract with Transportation Task Force supervisor Nancy Stone. She had originally proposed to take on additional work, but the court chose to only renew her current contract. Another item the court took care of was to approve the 20-year lease of the John Preece Sports Complex to the Kentucky Pro Football Hall of Fame Facility Board for $1. The lease is a part of several requirements the nonprofit needs in order to apply for federal and state grants in its pursuit to build the first pro football hall of fame in Kentucky.

The Jessamine County Fiscal Court approved repairs and resurfacing to roads throughout Jessamine County at its Oct. 5 meeting. Drainage structure repair on Newman Road and John Watts Road was approved with $85,000 from the Rural Secondary Program. The following county roads will be resurfaced costing $250,000: • Lock 8 Road from Sugar Creek Pike extending southerly for .95 miles to end of county right-of-way • Kelly Lane from Collier Lane extending northwesterly for approximately .18 miles to the end of pavement • Collier Lane from Ky. 1268 extending southerly for approximately .5 mile to the end of pavement • Sugar Creek Pike from Fort Bramlett Road extending southerly for approximately 2.5 miles to the end of county maintenance • Brumfield Lane from Ky. 1268 extending northerly for approximately 1.2 miles to Hickman Creek • John Watts Road from Ky. 1541 extending westerly for approximately 1.76 miles to the end of pavement

STANFORD — As the Lincoln County Fire District plans for its future, it is looking to the past in terms of funding it used to receive from Fiscal Court. The district on Tuesday asked magistrates for $21,000 for its share of the tax the county collects from landfill use. The fire board decided seven years ago it didn’t need the money because it was financially flush back then, but times have changed, said district secretary Les Richey. “At one point, we had several CDs (valued at more than $300,000)

A proposed ordinance to reduce the number of farm animals running at large in the county brought out a strong contingent of Lincoln cattle farmers to Tuesday’s regular meeting of the Fiscal Court. Two weeks ago, County Attorney Daryl Day presented a draft ordinance that would allow the county to assess fines for farm animals, other than cattle, that begin a nuisance on public or private property. The ordinance will also empower the county to capture at-large animals and charge their owners with the cost of capture, feed and medical care if required.

The Clark County Fiscal Court is considering an ordinance that would limit when and what employees could post on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. The measure was discussed at Wednesday's regular meeting, but a first reading was not passed after concerns were raised about privacy invasions. “We're having issues with people while they're being paid by the county posting to their social media sites,” Clark County Attorney Brian Thomas said. Clark County Judge-Executive Henry Branham said Thomas approached him about putting the ordinance before the Fiscal Court because similar ordinances have been passed in several counties, and state officials are already subject to a stringent social media policy.

Soon, businesses operating in Jessamine County that try to skirt paying their net profit or county payroll taxes might have a harder time getting away with it. The county fiscal court voted June 4 to enter into agreements with Fayette and Woodford counties to share information regarding business filings. County tax administrator Cindy Tudor said the county hasn't really had much of a problem with businesses failing to report business activity, but she thinks the agreements will help prevent it from happening.

STANFORD - Lincoln County magistrates have approved a contract with a utility-bill-savings company that's estimated to save the county as much as $16,278 over three years. AIO Recovery found potential savings of about $616 per month by auditing the county's utility bills and proposing changes like switching long-distance carriers and altering cell-phone-bill setups, said Lee Ann Smith, finance officer for Lincoln County Fiscal Court. By permitting AIO to audit the county's utilities, the county also agreed to give AIO 40 percent of any realized savings for the first 24 months, Smith explained.

LANCASTER - Garrard County Fiscal Court approved to allow Judge Executive John Wilson to negotiate a land purchase during Monday night's fiscal court meeting, held at the Lancaster Grand Theater.  Following an executive session, magistrates voted to purchase the seven acres for about $37,500. The property belongs to the Industrial Development Authority, and sits just off of Ky. 52. The county plans to build a new Emergency Operations Center, also using part of a Chemical Stockpile Emergency Preparedness Program grant, on the property, which will “vastly improve our readiness and ability to respond in the event of a disaster,” Wilson said.

During Tuesday's Boyle County Fiscal Court session, Sheriff Marty Elliott again expressed his belief that his department is dangerously understaffed. The sheriff's comments came amid discussions by magistrates, Judge-Executive Harold McKinney and Treasurer Mary Lynn Conley. For at least a year, the sheriff and magistrates have differed on whether the department is adequately staffed. All county departments using part-time employees must keep each person's weekly hours to less than 30. Otherwise, Boyle officials must pay $750 per month for health insurance for each employee who works at least 30 hours weekly.

LANCASTER - While Garrard County Fiscal Court voted unanimously Tuesday to approve first reading of the 2013-14 budget, there were a few contentious minutes near the close of the meeting. Judge-Executive John Wilson spent nearly two hours explaining each line of the almost $10.7 million budget. Wilson, along with Magistrates Joe Leavell and Fred Simpson, referred to the heated disputes that took place during the last budget cycle. Leavell, Simpson and Magistrate Betty Holtzclaw twice refused to pass first reading of the proposed 2012-13 budget because they believed Nathan Mick, the county's economic development director at the time, earned too much money.

LANCASTER - With a  July 1 deadline looming, some magistrates in Garrard County are concerned they haven't yet seen a preliminary budget for next fiscal year. This concern has prompted three magistrates, Joe Leavell, Fred Simpson and Betty Holtzclaw to call a special budget meeting, scheduled for 7 p.m. Tuesday, June 4.  “We are not trying to create a problem where there is not a problem,” Magistrate Fred Simpson said, but “It's time we saw a preliminary budget.”  He and Leavell stressed that there was no major conflict, they simply wanted to see the budget sooner, rather than wait, as “that's no position to be in,” Leavell said.  “We just want to make sure we're doing our job,” Simpson said.  A year ago, when the budget was being drafted for fiscal year 2012-13, the court became heated, as some magistrates did not agree with certain parts of the budget.

After six years of remaining stagnant, state funding for child support services in Jessamine County was increased for next year, which will allow for the hiring of a new full-time case worker. For at least a few years now, child support case workers in Jessamine County have carried hundreds more open cases at a time than they should.  The average child support case worker in Kentucky carries 450 to 500 open cases at a time, while the three full-time workers in Jessamine County have carried up to 900, county attorney Brian Goettl said.

Boyle County Fiscal Court will prepare a resolution to discontinue the White's Road right-of-way in Perryville. Duane Campbell, Boyle County engineer, said after reviewing the right-of-way May 2, it was decided the cessation would not be an issue. “We have determined that discontinuing the use of this right-of-way by the Boyle County Fiscal Court will not present an inconvenience to adjoining property owners,” Campbell said. Campbell added “no public need is being served” by the right-of-way and “no necessary access is being provided for a private person.” The road and right-of-way has not been maintained or policed by the county in the past three years, he added.