By Eamon Baird
TROY — The Miami County Commissioners acknowledged two grants for the county board of elections at their meeting on Tuesday, July 9.
The first was a 2024 readiness grant from the secretary of state for $10,348. This grant will be used for election preparation, including the cost of programming the ballot and the creation of ballot proofs, paying seasonal staff to assist with conducting logic and accuracy testing.
The second was a 2024 Poll Worker Training Grant of $9,550. This grant will be used to pay the cost of printing training manuals, Sli-do and Canva software for training materials, de-escalation training support, and PEO training pay.
Laura Bruns, director of the Miami County Board of Elections, and Christina Panagouleas-Stephens, deputy director addressed the commissioners during the meeting.
“These are all costs that we would have had anyway. This grant will just help us cover the costs,” Bruns said, adding these grants are generally only used during presidential elections.
Any unused funds from each grant must be returned to the Ohio Secretary of State by Jan. 1, 2025, including any accrued interest.
The commissioners also approved the 2025 tax budget for Miami County and the Troy-Miami County Public Library.
According to Section 5705.30 of the Ohio Revised Code (ORC) and the order of the Board to file a copy of the resolution with the County Auditor, a hearing was held on July 2. The 2025 budget must be approved by July 15 and submitted by the county auditor on July 25.
The commissioners also held the second public meeting regarding the increase in Miami County sales of one fourth of 1% for every retail sale in the county, except for watercraft and outboard motors that require a title and the sales of motor vehicles.
William Lutz, of Troy, asked the commissioners what the extra funds would be used for.
“Is this a specific project or is this just general funds?” Lutz asked.
“It’s general funds but the majority of it goes to 911,” Commissioner Greg Simmons replied, adding that Miami County continues to have the lowest tax rate of any county in the area.
In other business, the commissioners authorized or approved the following resolutions:
• To sign a contract with Sirens for Cities Inc., of Jonesboro, Georgia for the purchase of a new tornado siren for the city of Fletcher for $13,848.93. The costs for the siren will be paid from Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Housing Program funds.
• To set a date to receive bids for the village of Potsdam’s West Cross Street sidewalk improvements project.
• To sign a change order number one to the agreement with Brumbaugh Construction Inc., for the Lostcreek-Shelby Road Bridge No. 11 Replacement Project for an increase of $1,555, which reflects a change in quantities and materials for said project. The total cost now is $427,949.
• To authorize the release of $20,000 from the financial guaranty for the construction of the Emerson Crossing Subdivision. This release is a partial reduction for the referenced escrow agreement which is now $720,900.
• To sign an agreement for the capital improvement funds for $350,000 for the replacement of the Kessler-Fredrick Road bridge project.
• To sign a change order for the Swailes Road waterline loop project with M&T Excavating, of Bradford. While reviewing the final invoice from M&T it was determined there were charges for a pre-construction video and tracer wire station that weren’t provided by the contractor and resulted in a cost reduction of $2,776. The revised total of the contract is now $453,897.
• To submit an application to participate in the Ohio Public Work Commission (OPWC) State Capital Improvement, and execute contracts as required for the Evanston Subdivision Private Lateral Replacement Project Phase II, as requested by the sanitary engineering department.
• To authorize and sign a Waste Management Services Contract with Rumpke Inc., of Greenville, for waste management services at the Miami County Department of Job and Family Services. The monthly charge will be $156. There is also a one-time delivery fee of $50 per container.
• To authorize and sign an amendment with Keefe Commissary Network LLC, as requested by the Miami County sheriff. The amendment to the contracts will allow the sheriff’s office to accept credit card payments through Keefe kiosks for concealed carry licenses, web checks, ink-rolled fingerprints, and sex offender registrations.
• To acknowledge the Sheriff’s monthly expense account for the period ending on June 30, as prescribed under Sec. 325.07 of the Ohio Revised Code (ORC).
• To authorize the Miami County Family & Children First Council (FCFC) to submit the Operational Capacity Building Funds grant application request of $30,750, which will be used for fringe benefits for FCFC personnel, parental involvement, administrative report, training, and consultation.
• To authorize and sign an early intervention service coordination grant agreement with the Miami County FCFC and the Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities for early intervention service coordination services. The total grant amount is $379,775 from July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2025.
• To amend a resolution as requested by the Miami County Juvenile Court for the Samaritan Behavioral Health Inc., agreement for conflict management curriculums and approve the correct amount of $9,600 per year plus a $300 one-time set-up fee.
• To authorize a memorandum of agreement with Recovery and Wellness Centers of Midwest Ohio and the Miami County West Central Juvenile Detention Center (WCJDC), to provide one part-time counselor for the provision of onsite mental health services, to include assessment, crisis intervention, and counseling services to residents detained at the WCJDC. The costs are $37,200 annually with an annual increase of 5% for the period end of July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2027.
• To authorize and sign the following employment verifications in the Miami County Department of Job and Family Services: Kyndra Ball as a full-time social services case aide at a pay rate of $17.82 per hour, starting on July 15; Joseph Gibson as a full-time child welfare caseworker at a pay rate of $25.37 per hour, starting on July 15.
• To authorize the following employment requisitions: A full-time transfer station operator II in the department of sanitary engineering at a pay range of $20.50 to $21.50 per hour depending on qualifications (DOQ) due to the departure or Trenton Houschel; a full-time social services supervisor in the department of job and family services at a pay range of $26.25 to $37.39 (DOQ) due to the departure of Kasi Farris.
The commissioners announced they will be attending the NACO Conference & Exposition in Hillsborough County, Florida from July 12 to 15.
Additionally, the next two regularly scheduled Board of County Commissioners meetings for Thursday, July 11, and Tuesday, July 16, are canceled.
