June 10, 2021 at 1:12 p.m.
Cass County 2017 state audit report finalized
Cass County received 46 percent of its revenue from property and other taxes in 2017, 27 percent from state and local, 12 percent from federal grants, 8 percent from fees/charges/other, 5 percent from miscellaneous sources and 2 percent from investment income.
Expenditures went 27 percent to street and highway, 22 percent to human services, 21 percent to public safety, 15 percent to general government, 5 percent to capital projects, 4 percent to sanitation, and 3 percent each to health and conservation of natural resources.
The county ended the year with $13,602,481 in the unassigned general fund, which largely is used to pay bills the first half of the following year until first half property taxes are paid in May.
Tuesday, the county board voted to increase from $1,300,000 to $1,500,000 the amount set aside for uninsured claims against the county. The new amount is the state Tort maximum.
The also increased the fund balance set aside for future out of home child placement costs from $3 million to $3.5 million. While budgeted amounts have covered those costs to this point each year, the county is concerned about unfunded state mandates leading to higher costs in the future.
In other county board action:
Tim Richardson, Central Services director, obtained board approval to hire Herzog Roofing to replace the county law enforcement center roof at Walker for $107,000, plus $1,700 per roof drain as needed and $1.25 per board foot to remove and replace any damaged or wet roof insulation. Richardson must approve the insulation, which cannot exceed $50,000.
He said he advertised and called several roofers to seek bids for the project, but most were too busy to submit bids this fall. Herzog's was the only bid received.
County Engineer Darrick Anderson reported Vercon's low bid approved in July for concrete work at $107,100 was only good at that price if Vercon also obtained the contact to build the steel building for the new highway and ambulance garage at Longville. They did not have the low bid on the building, so did not want the concrete contact at that price.
Tuesday, the board approved awarding the concrete contract to the next lowest bidder, Hy-Tec Construction of Brainerd at $115,500.
Cass County Planning Commission hosted hearings and approved three land reclassifications the board had referred for review. Tuesday, the county board approved the reclassifications.
They are for Craig Buscho for a 20-acre parcel from agricultural/forest to Rural Residential 10 in Meadowbrook Township, for Scott Sheldon from agricultural/forest to Rural Residential 2.5 in Pine River Township and for David Williams for 19.55 acres from water-oriented commercial to shoreland residential in Birch Lake Township.
Approved a contract with Minnesota Counties Computer Cooperative and 36 other counties and cities and Conduent State and Local Solutions of Germantown, Md., for Conduent to provide maintenance and support for a public health documentation system.
The counties and cities in Minnesota use the system to track health services they provide. Cost to the Minnesota counties using that system will be $810,714.71 this year and $835,846.83 in 2019. The contract calls for 1 percent per year increases in 2020 and 2021, with an option to continue through 2023 with annual 1 percent increases.
In addition to Cass, other area counties using this system are Beltrami, Morrison, Todd and Wadena.
Approved an agreement with family centers at Pine River-Backus and Pillager for the family centers to provide early childhood services for children ages birth to 5 and their families.
Approved an agreement with Mahube-Otwa Community Action Partnership of Detroit Lakes to administer a state grant for Cass, Wadena and Todd counties to provide pre-pregnancy family planning services.
Accepted a $10,000 state grant to enhance veterans services operations in the county. Veterans Services Officer Jeff Woodford said much of the grant to Cass goes toward paying for the veteran transportation services.
Authorized Land Commissioner Kirk Titus to award contracts to low bidders Todd Sawyer not to exceed $7,200 to remove fencing from four county-administered land sites in Moose Lake and Meadowbrook townships and to Holmvig Excavating not to exceed $2,950 to remove debris from county-administered land in Poplar Township.
The fencing includes three- and four-strand wire fence with steel posts. The debris includes a hunting shack, outhouse, steel gate, gate posts and other trash/garbage.
Authorized Titus to award a contract to low-bidder Sawyer Timber to repair a Bull Moose Township forest road with cost not to exceed $6,500 and to low-bidder Holmvig Excavating to repair a forest road in Crooked Lake Township with cost not to exceed $9,700.
Heavy rains caused the damage, so Federal Emergency Management Agency funds will cover 75 percent of the repair cost. State forest road maintenance funds will pay the remaining 25 percent.
Learned interest earned on investments hit 77 percent of budget expectations after only seven months of the year. The county earned $762,819.80 through July 2018, compared with $542,006.01 during the same period in 2017.
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