GREENVILLE — The Darke County Board of Commissioners met Wednesday afternoon to discuss fund transfers, the public defender’s commission, and the purchasing of a new maintenance truck for the county maintenance department. Commissioners Matt Aultman, Mike Stegall, and Larry Holmes were all present.
To begin, the commissioners approved a motion for Resolution (R-8-2021), which includes vouchers dated Jan. 13 for county bills. From the general fund, a total of $92,073.42 was transferred, and from outside general funds, $262,728.96, for a total of $354,802.38.
The commissioners next addressed appropriation transfers throughout the county. The Darke County Airport received $876.28 in total for utility payments, the County Engineer’s office received $20,000 for parts and maintenance, the County Auditor received $5,000 to cover the electronic monitoring of defendants in place of jail time, the County Recorder received $150 for due increases in 2021, and Darke County Common Pleas Court received $57,408 for a full time salary position. The court is currently waiting on a grant approval from the state, which has been delayed due to COVID-19 “work-from-home” measures.
Resolution (R-10-2021) was approved. This resolution funds the Public Defender Commission for 2021. It was brought about in conjunction with the prosecutor’s office and the state of Ohio. The county partly funds the public defender commission, and the other funds come from the Indigent Legal Assistance Fund (ILAF) of West Central Ohio. The commissioners approved an agreement, separate from Resolution (R-10-2021), between the Darke County Pubic Defender Commission and the previously mentioned ILAF. Darke County agreed to pay the ILAF monthly installments of $34,335, for a contact amount of $412,020.
Resolution (R-11-2021) was approved. This resolution is a yearly update that outlines the “indigent representative fee schedule” that is sent to the commissioners from the Darke County courts. The rates have not changed since 2019.
Moving forward, the board welcomed a representative from Palmer Energy who gave the board electricity supply recommendations. The board approved a motion to enter into a contact with Freepoint Energy Solutions through May of 2023 at a rate of $0.03469 plus capacity costs. This agreement will save the county an estimated $9,000.
The board reviewed their plans to offer up the county’s north farm, commonly known as Children’s Home Farm, for cash rent. The board will be receiving per acre sealed bids until 1 p.m. on Feb. 1. The contact will begin on Feb. 1, 2021 and end on Jan. 1, 2024. The farm is measured at approximately 93.7 acres.
Contract (C-2-2021) was approved. This is a contract between the county and Wayne HealthCare for tuberculosis screening. Wayne agreed to provide chest x-ray services required as a part of the treatment of persons with active tuberculosis as defined in Section 339.71 of the Ohio Revised Code or made at the request of the Darke County Tuberculosis Control unit. The commission agreed to pay Wayne HealthCare $75 per person that needs screening. This is a yearly contact that has been approved for many years in the past.
Commissioner Stegall praised Wayne HealthCare for its generosity to the county in this regard.
“I can’t thank the people at Wayne HealthCare enough,” said Stegall. “They have to eat some of the cost of TB screening, so for them to be this generous to the county, year after year, means a lot to all of us here and to the greater Darke County community.”
The board entered into Contract (C-3-2021). This is a contract between Aero-Mark Co. and the County Engineer’s/Commissioner’s offices for a number of roadway improvements throughout the county.
To conclude, the board made a decision to purchase a new maintenance van for the county maintenance department. In searching for a new van, the board identified three sellers to choose from, all selling slightly used vans that were previously used as rentals. The decision was made to purchase a van from Jeff Schmitt Chevrolet South in Miamisburg for $29,388. This choice was slightly more expensive than the others, but the choice van has considerably less mileage than the other two options.
