In other business Monday morning, the Barton County Commission:
• Approved bids for the replacement of the damaged communications tower east of Great Bend near Doonans.
The bids went to: For the tower, Hayden Towers of Topeka for $144,000; for the removal of the damaged equipment, Stone Waste Management for $2,800; for the new electrical service, Hammeke Electric for $2,500; and for the new fence, Little Giant Fabrications for $6,261.
The total was $155,561. The county received $93,517 from its insurance company.
In late July, the tower was destroyed by an agricultural spraying rig. After a review of options in September, the commission decided the tower, equipment building and other select items be replaced.
County Communications Director Doug Hubbard said the new tower will be better than the one it replaces.
• Heard a report from County Treasurer Kevin Wondra on the annual tax sale held Oct. 15 at the courthouse. At the time of the sale, 34 parcels of the original 180 listed remained.
Of the 34, 32 sold. All that remained unsold were two vacant lots in Pawnee Rock.
With Commissioner Kenny Schremmer donating his services at the auction, the county was able to sell all but two tracts and collected $75,011, with another $256 in filing fees. Of that, there is a possibility of $45,822.50 being returned as an overage. The overages – purchases more than taxes owed – may be redeemed by persons with an interest in the property sold.
If, however, a property sold for less than the taxes due, the county essentially writes off the amount.
• Approved the Kansas Association of Counties legislative platform. On Oct. 29-31, county officials will KAC annual conference in Wichita. The platform is an important part of that meeting. Member counties will be called to review the issues and determine the platform’s final form. It will then be utilized during the upcoming legislative session to promote issues related to county government. Each year, Barton County reviews and considers the KAC agenda and other initiatives that may have local interest.
It includes such items as the ability for counties to lobby at the state level, and continued state funding for mental health resources and community corrections.
• Approved a proclamation marking Breast Cancer Awareness Month. In 2013, in the United States alone, there will be about 300,000 new cases of breast cancer in women and men, with about 40,000 deaths, said Health Director Lily Akings. The causes of breast cancer are believed to be a combination of both known and unknown factors including genetics, lifestyle choices and reproductive factors.
To help reduce those numbers, the Health Department encourages all citizens to know their own personal risk of breast cancer; to get screened, including mammograms and breast exams; that each person know their own normal and to make healthy lifestyle choices, Akings said.
The State of Kansas owes Barton County $205,000.
That’s the county’s interpretation of a state statute governing the distribution of Oil and Gas Depletion Fund money. But, how Barton and 70-some other oil-and-gas-producing counties see the law is different from how the State Budget Office sees it.
For this reason, the County Commission Monday morning voted to join a law suit against the state to retrieve what it has coming. Officials hope, though, the state will settle the matter without having to go to court.
“Nobody wants to sue the state,” said commission Chairman Don Cates said. But, the fund is crucial to the county is worth fighting for if necessary.
County Administrator Richard Boeckman said the Legislature amended the distribution statute last year. The change altered the percentage counties received from the trust fund.
Taxes collected by the state from oil and gas producers in each county flow into this fund. Then, historically, the state would return 14 percent of each county’s portion back to the county.
However, to help offset budget shortfalls at the state, lawmakers dropped this to 12 percent for 2013 and 6 percent for 2014. The plan was to restore the 14 percent in 2015.
And here lies the conflict. Boeckman said the state’s budget director misinterpreted the new law to mean the 6 percent applies to 2013, meaning the counties received only about half of what they were owed.
In early October, the county received $192,104 from the state as part of the distribution. It should have gotten over $397,000.
This is a big deal, said Cates, who sat in on meetings over the issue with Boeckman. “We depend a fair amount on oil and gas money to support county operations.”
About 23 percent of the county’s tax revenue comes from oil and gas, Cates said.
Presently, Barton County has about $900,000 in its oil and gas fund. This would become a factor should such revenue dry up in the future.
The money could be tapped as an interim step to avoid property tax hikes while other funding options are discussed.
Boeckman said Topeka attorney John Frieden has been approached by other counties with oil and gas production in reference to a suit to recoup the remainder of the funds, with the cost and fees to be prorated among participating counties.
The county could do nothing and hope for the best, Boeckman said. “But we can’t count on the state to do the right thing.”
If such a suit was to be filed, the deadline is Oct. 25. This meant the commission had to act this week.
In order to receive any benefit from any recovery, each county had to join the action individually.
Boeckman said the matter came to his attention via communications with the Kansas Legislative Policy Group.
