By Haylee Pence
TROY – The Miami County Commissioners met with Troy Rotary this week to present their “State of the County.”
To begin the presentation, the commissioners introduced themselves and the offices they are responsible for, which include the Animal Shelter, the Department of Development, the Department of Job and Family Services, the Sanitary Engineering/Solid Waste Department, the Human Resources Department, the 911 Communication Center, Emergency Management Agency, Operations and Facilities Department, and the Transit Department with a combined total of 200 team members.
The Department of Job and Family Services assisted with 502 child abuse/neglect investigations, 66 children in foster homes, and 58 protective supervision cases. They helped with 7,633 cases of child support which was a total of $17,818,375. The department had 19,124 cases for public assistance (Medicaid, childcare, cash, and food).
The Miami County Sanitary Engineering Department currently serves 2,430 customers by operating and maintaining water and sewer systems. The Transfer Station is one part of the Sanitary Engineering Department and processes over 100,000 tons of trash annually. They offer recycling and waste reduction educational programs.
The Operations and Facilities Department maintains 32 buildings and structures, including the Courthouse. This includes lawn maintenance and snow removal.
The 911 Communications Center is responsible for all 911 calls received within Miami County. The department has 17 full-time dispatchers, five supervisors, and one director. The dispatchers are responsible for alerting all police, fire, and emergency medical services.
The Emergency Management Agency is responsible for providing management during emergency hazards and disasters. The Emergency Management Agency was instrumental in the county’s management of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Public Transit Department provides transportation to the residents of Miami County. The rides have flexible hours and are safe and reliable. In the first quarter of 2022, there were 4,891 workforce related rides, which was 50% of the rides utilized.
The Animal Shelter is a no-kill shelter and handles hundreds of pets and adoptions each year.
The Department of Development strives to enhance business development, business attraction, business retention and expansion, and workforce development.
The Human Resources Department is responsible for helping other departments with recruitment and retention of employees through job evaluations, pay structure reviews, new recruitment material, and other resources.
The Miami County Commissioners partnered with the Veterans Services and the city of Troy to host the 9/11 Mobile Exhibit in 2021. Veterans Services purchased a Mobility Assistance Vehicle to help transport veterans to medical centers.
The 2022 General Fund Operating Budget for Miami County is $41,850,280.61, and the Total Operating Budget and Appropriations for all County Funds is $117,606,884.38. Miami County received $20,780,970 from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Funding. A committee was created to determine the best usage of the funds by examining applications for requests. The areas that the commissioners would like to focus on using these funds include childcare, transportation, housing, broadband access, and infrastructure (water, sewer, stormwater).
The Miami County Commissioners have four major projects, the Historical Courthouse HVAC upgrade, One Stop Center building (Commerce Center), and the Fairgrounds Administration Building and Grandstand and Infrastructure improvements.
“There will be no increase in taxes to help fund any of these projects,” commented Commissioner Wade Westfall.
