By David Heiller
Argus News Editor

Houston County commissioners approved a 2007 operating budget of $21,365,546 at its December 19 meeting.

The amount collected from county property taxpayers will be up 8.9 percent to $6,917,500.

Expenditures in the budget are $21,606,990, which means the county is projecting to have expenses exceed income by $241,444.

ìWeíre hoping that we can probably save enough during the year that we donít have to cut into the fund balance,î auditor Pete Johnson told The Argus on December 21.

The county has a fund balance of about $5 million of undedicated funds, he said.

Johnson said at the meeting that this yearís budget is almost the same as the 2003 budget, which was $21,522,786.

Commissioners also approved a 2007 budget of $1,587,535 for human services.

Computer system approved

In other business, commissioners approved a two part computer system for the sheriffís office from Police Central, Inc., in Atlanta, Georgia. The total cost will be $79,803.

Phase one is for jail management. It will cost $34,593, with the sheriffís department paying for $24,593 and human services paying for $10,000.

Phase two will be used for E911 incident reporting, criminal warrants, and civil proceedings. Its $45,210 price tag will be covered by the E911 budget.

Jail administrator Mark Schiltz and information services director Lindsay Pierce recommended the purchase. It is user friendly, and technical assistance will be available 24 hours a day, Pierce said.

It will put things like booking, medical, and financial information into one data base, Schiltz said. Incident reports, citations, and sex offender information will all be in one program, he said.

Data will be sent to the state automatically, Schiltz added. ìMy statistics will be more accurate than they are right now,î he said.

A four-day training session on it will take place in January.

County Road 29 settlement

The board approved a payment proposal for the County Road 29 project in La Crescent.

County engineer Marcus Evans said he worked on it with the City of La Crescent and engineering firm Yaggy-Colby of Rochester. Some decisions about ìtopsoil borrowî and using an erosion control blanket didnít follow the plans and were made without the cityís input, Evans said.

City officials felt they should have been aware of the changes, and that if they had been, they would not have made those decisions, Evans said.

The costs for the work will be divided with each of the three entities paying $5,300.

Larry Graf supported the compromise. He noted that the project lacked continuity and had oversight from three different county engineers. He commended Yaggy-Colby for ìstepping up to the plate.î

Intersection lights

Evans also updated the board on said a proposed agreement with Minnesota Department of Transportation regarding the signals and intersection lighting that will be installed with the bridge construction project in La Crescent.

The DOT will be responsible for repairs if the poles are hit by a vehicle and for the timing of the signals, Evans said. The county would have to change bulbs and overhead lights, paint the fixtures, and supply power.

A bucket truck will be needed for replacing bulbs, he said, so the county would have to contract for that service since it doesnít have such a truck, Evans said.

Maintenance supervisor Tom Molling said the county should have a contract drawn up ahead of time so that problems can be fixed right way.

Evans said he will bring the topic back to the board at a future meeting.

Other business

ï Wetland update: Zoning administrator Rick Frank said a wetland permit for Jon and Jeannie Colsch of Hokah is on hold because the property may be located on a floodway. Their application has been extended to mid-January while they consider their options, Frank said. If it is in the floodway a FEMA map amendment would be needed, which is an expensive process, Frank said. The Colsches want to fill in some property to build a house.

ï On sale license: The board approved a 3.2 on sale beer license for Lawrence Lake Marina in Brownsville.

Frank resigns; board approves process for new chief deputy

The Houston County Sheriffís Department will have a new chief deputy in 2007.

County commissioners accepted the resignation of current chief deputy Ken Frank at their December 19 meeting. Frank has held the position since 2003 when he was appointed by then sheriff Mike Lee. His last day will be December 29; he has worked for the county since 1981.

Personnel director Tim Comstock said that incoming sheriff Doug Ely has selected a new chief deputy candidate. The person is not currently employed by the county, so he or she will have to submit to a background search, interview with the board, and other Peace Officer Standards and Training requirements, Comstock said.

ìThis proposal is similar to hiring any new peace officer,î Comstock said.

The board voted to hire William Everett Law LLC of Buffalo, Minnesota, to do the background checks on the candidate. Comstock said the firm could begin the work immediately. The cost will be $100-$150 per hour. The background work should be done by mid-January, after which the interview could take place, Comstock said.

Other personnel business

The board approved two other personnel items.

One was to allow the highway department to hire a summer helper as a temporary employee for up to 100 days.

The other was a one year contract to Barb Kirchoff of Hokah to manage Wildcat Park in Brownsville. She also did it in 2006, which was a successful season, Comstock said. The park opens May 1 and can run until October 14. Kirchoff cleans and maintains the park and takes fees and reservations. She receives 50 percent of all gross receipts. The county buys supplies and mows the park, which is owned by the U.S Army Corps of Engineers and leased to the county.