East Washingtonian - Your Hometown News Source

POMEROY–The Garfield County Board of Commissioners (BOCC) approved an amendment to the Voluntary Stewardship Program (VSP) contract with Washington State Conservation Commission, a quote for a ballistic barrier for the judge's bench in the Garfield County Courthouse, and an emergency vacation cash-out at their meeting on October 10.

The approved amendment to the VSP contract provides Garfield County with an additional $47,000 to be used for monitoring water quality. According to board chairman Justin Dixon, the added money will likely be used to fund out-sourcing the monitoring work.

The commissioners accepted a quote from Herres Enterprises LLC of $4,194.72 to place a Kevlar ballistic barrier on the judge's bench in the Courthouse. The funding will come partially from an Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) grant and the other part from Local Assistance and Tribal Consistency Fund (LATCF) funding.

The BOCC also approved Resolution 2023-19, an emergency cash-out for accrued vacation time. The cash-out is a one-time allowance, due to a situation that arose from a man-power shortage in the employee's department. Any future requests for vacation time cash-outs will be addressed on a case-by-case basis.

The commissioners also met with Adam Hodges of Obenland & Low to discuss a facility review and recommendations from their liability insurance provider through Washington Counties Insurance Pool. The recommendations include a majority of minor changes, such as covering exposed wires, as well as some major changes. The BOCC made no commitments to follow the recommended changes at this time.