Cassia County | minutes | meeting 2026-02-23 | 2026_02_23 BoCC Recorded Minutes.pdf source: https://www.cassia.gov/media/Commissioners/Minutes/2026/2026_02_23%20BoCC%20Recorded%20Minutes.pdf Cassia County Board of Commissioners REGULAR MEETING MINUTES Monday, February 23, 2026 Cossio County Courthouse . Commission Chambers 7459 Overlond Ave . Room 206 . Burley lD 83i78 9:00 AM The Cassia County Board of Commissioners met today at the place and time as posted by agenda pursuant to ldaho code $ 74-204 for open Meetings Law. ACTION AGENDA ITEMS 1) 9:01 AM Call to order 2) Pledge of Allegiance and prayer 3) 9:03 AM Roll call Roll Call. Present: Leonard M. Beck - Chair, Kent R. Searle - Member, Bob Kunau - Member, Kerry McMurray - Assistant to Board (Not voting), Sharene Ahlin - Deputy Clerk (Not voting) 4) 9:03 AM Calendar, meetings, committee reports, and correspondence were reviewed 5) 9:08 AM Approve payables for 2/23/2026 9:12 AM Motion and Action: Approve payables in the amount ofS105,574.08 as presented on 2/2312026, Moved by Bob Kunau - Member, Seconded by Kent R. Searle - Member. Motion passed unanimously. 6) 9:13 AM Approvalof Clerk's Office recommendations regarding junior college Certificates of Residency 9:13 AM Motion and Action: Approve Clerk's Office recommendations to approve one junior college Certificate of Residency as presented, Moved by Bob Kunau - Member, Seconded by Kent R. Searle - Member. Motion passed unanimously. 7) Executive Sessions 12:26 PM Motion and Action: Enter Executive Session pursuant to ldaho Code 974-206 (1) (b) to consider personnel issues, ldaho Code 5 74-206 (1) (d) to consider records that are exempt from public disclosure, and ldaho Code 5 74-206 (1) (i) to communicate with risk manager/insurer regarding pending/imminently-likely claims, Moved by Bob Kunau - Member, Seconded by Kent R. Searle - Member. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 3). Yes: Kent R. Searle - Member, Bob Kunau - Member, Leonard M. Beck - Chair. CASSIA COUNTY COMMISSION REGUI.AR SESSION Monday, February 23, 2026 lnstrument # 2026000845 BURLEY. CASSIA. IDAHO i-to-zozs o2iogt27 Recorded for : CASSIA JOSEPH LARSEN l lPage Er-Officio Recodet ndet tol coMlvllssloNERs MINUTES 12:59 PM Upon exit of Executive Session, the board took the matter under advisement. 8) 9:15 AM Approve Frontier Community Resources invoice for dues a) Commissioner Kunau discussed that Frontier Community Resources was formerly known as Region lV Development. He explained that the county has participated each year. He noted that their assessment is based on the population of each of the participating counties. b) They were requesting S2,737.00 for FY2026 annual participation. 9:17 AM Motion and Action: Approve the payment to Frontier Community Resources in the amount of 52,737.0O, Moved by Bob Kunau - Member, Seconded by Kent R. Searle - Member. Motion passed unanimously. 9:21 AM Motion and Action: Approve the Burley Lion's Spudman Triathlon Special Event Resource Request as presented, Moved by Kent R. Searle - Member, Seconded by Bob Kunau - Member. Motion passed unanimously LLI 12:59 PM Consider seasonal comp time payout 1:00 PM Motion and Action: Approve seasonal comp time payout in the amount 52,377.81 as presented, Moved by Kent R. Searle - Member, Seconded by Bob Kunau - Member. Motion passed unanimously. l2l LO:32 AM Discuss current vehicle management vs. Enterprise Fleet proposal- Sheriff a) Sheriff Thompson presented his analysis of the Sheriff's Office vehicle replacement program. He noted that the county would save money if they continued to purchase vehicles outright as they have been doing. He estimated a total ten-year cost savings of 5910,635.00. b) 11.:4L AM There was additional discussion on the matter from Matt Pryor with Enterprise Fleet Leasing. He noted that their proposal would cost approximately 5500,000 to 5600,000 more over the course of a ten-year period. He stressed that they would be driving newer vehicles. c) lt was discussed that the Enterprise lease agreement would include interest to be paid by the county. The interest is based on the three-year T-bill rates, currently around 6.2%. d) Searle discussed the importance of being able to retain older vehicles for reserve deputy use. e) L1,:57 AM Sheriff Thompson stated that managing the fleet purchases in-house will be cheaper than leasing, by approximately $55,000 per year. f) 1:12 PM Commissioner Searle discussed that he did not recommend moving forward with the leasing proposal, noting that the Enterprise representative had admitted that over ten years that the cost to the county would be higher. g) Chair Beck recommended that the Sheriffs office work with Enterprise to see if there is another option. 13) 9:23 AM Discuss and consider plans for furnace units at the Assessor's Office - Kunau a) Commissioner Kunau discussed that three HVAC units on the Assessor's building are approximately 25 years old. There is a need for repairs or replacements in the coming season. b) He recommended that they have Ramsey's heating and cooling look at the units that were removed from the Public Defender's Office to see if they may be compatible to be used at the Assessor's Office. SCHEDUTED ACTION AGENDA ITEMS 2lPage 9) 9:18 AM Discuss and approve increased funding for Howell Canyon Road a) The Board is currently awaiting contract proposals from the Burley Highway District on the matter. b) Matter will be removed from the future agendas until a contract has been received. 10) 9:20 AM Review and approve Burley Lion's Spudman Triathlon Special Event Resource Request CASSIA COUNTY COMMISSION REGULAR SESSION Monday, February 23, 2026 14) 9:30 AM Discuss public lands impact on Cassia County with ldaho Business for the Outdoors - H Eastman a) Heather Eastman appeared before the Board to discuss ldaho Public Lands. She discussed that they are going to meet with all county commissioners in ldaho to discuss the impact of public lands. b) She stressed that they are not an environmental group and that they have mining and timber companies on their rolls. She explained that they need to look at the balance in the use of the public lands for the benefit of the residents as well as economic growth. They were noted to be concerned about any proposed sale of public lands. She explained that she is gathering information about the concerns and challenges each of the counties are facing. c) Commissioner Searle discussed the challenges of road maintenance across the public lands, in particular the Howell Canyon Road. Federalfunding was discussed. 15) 9:50 AM Schedule Tax Deed Hearing date and time for 2022 Delinquent Properties - Treasurer a) Treasurer Greener discussed that there are several properties on the delinquent list. b) The tax deed hearing was sched uled fot T /27 /2026 at 11:30 AM. 16) 9:53 AM Review and file Designation of Depositories Treasurer a) Treasurer Greener explained that the designation of depositories is done annually. b) Greener explained the various documents being presented to the Board for signatures. 9:54 AM Motion and Action: Accept the documents from D.L. Evans as a depository for Cassia County as presented, Moved by Kent R. Searle - Member, Seconded by Bob Kunau - Member. Motion passed unanimously 9:55 AM Motion and Action: Accept documents from Zions Bancorp as a depository for Cassia County as presented, Moved by Kent R. Searle - Member, Seconded by Bob Kunau - Member. Motion passed unanimously 9:56 AM Motion and Action: Approve the documents from Northwest Bank as a depository for Cassia County as presented, Moved by Kent R. Searle - Member, Seconded by Bob Kunau - Member. Motion passed unanimously 9:56 AM Motion and Action: Approve the documents from ldaho Central Credit Union (ICCU) as a depository for Cassia County as presented, Moved by Bob Kunau - Member, Seconded by Kent R. Searle - Member. Motion passed unanimously. 17) 9:57 AM Department Head Reports lncluding Budgetary Updates a) Reports were received from Treasurer Laura Greener, Assessor Mart Adams, SheriffJarrod Thompson, Undersheriff Kevin Horak, Coroner Craig Rinehart, Extension Educator Grace Wittman, Deputy Auditor Sharene Ahlin, Building and Zoning Administrator Kerry McMurray, Adult Misdemeanor Probation Director Amber Prewitt, Building and Grounds Supervisor Pete Hernandez, Noxious Weed Control Supervisor Michael Ottley, b) General matters were reported. ltems of note included: i) Treasurer Greener noted that the 2025 occupancy and sub rolls have been billed and will have a single payment d u e date of 6/20/2026. she noted that there were interest earnings for Ja nua ry in the a mount of s4!,315.17. ii) The Assessor's Office is accepting property tax reduction applications as well as requests for exemptions. Assessor Adams noted that they have seen problems with DMV software which has resulted in some limited office closures while they've worked on correcting the matters. CASSIA COUNTY COMMISSION REGULAR SESSION Monday, February 23, 2026 3lPage 18) 10:43 AM Executive Sessions pursuant to ldaho Code 574-206 (1)(b) to discuss personnel matters, (d)to consider records exempt from public disclosure and (i) to communicate with risk manager/insurer regarding pending/imminently-likely claim 10:43 AM Motion and Action: Enter Executive Session pursuant to ldaho Code 974-206 (1) (b) to consider personnel issues, ldaho Code 5 74-206 (1) (d) to consider records that are exempt from public disclosure, and ldaho Code 574-2OG (1) (i) to communicate with risk manager/insurer regarding pend ing/imminently-likely claims, Moved by Bob Kunau - Member, Seconded by Kent R. Searle - Member. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 3). Yes: Kent R. Searle - Member, Bob Kunau - Member, Leonard M. Beck - Chair. 11:25 AM Upon exit of Executive Session, the board took the matter under advisement 1:05 PM Motion and Action: Authorize the purchase of a 2026 Dodge Pursuit Durango for the Sheriff's Department, with a list price of 543,305.00 less a 59,000.00 trade in value for a balance due of S34,305.00 as presented, Moved by Bob Kunau - Member, Seconded by Kent R. Searle - Member. Motion passed unanimously. CASSIA COUNTY COMMISSION REGUTAR SESSION Monday, F ebtuary 21, 2026 4lPage 19) 11:25 AM Construction project status report and items for consideration - Gary Jones Construction a) Don Christopherson from Gary Jones Construction appeared before the Board to present the latest update- He explained that the compaction tests that have been completed and were successful, with additional compaction tests to be conducted today. b) Commissioner Searle mentioned that there may need to be some additional conduit included for lT when the building site work is being completed. 20) 11:28 AM Discuss available resources through localcongressionaloffices - Senator Risch Office a) Mike Matthews from Senator Risch's office appeared to provide an update on the services they provide. b) Samantha Marshall with Senator Crapo's office assured the Board that they will follow up with the agencies related to funding for weed control efforts. c) The funding for the Howell Canyon Road maintenance was discussed. Mathews discussed that he would take the concerns expressed by the Board for the road maintenance costs to the USFS and the BLM. 271 L2:05 PM Reports of USFS and BLM a) 12:05 PM BLM i) BLM field manager John Elliott introduced Birk Roseman as the new BLM Twin Falls district manager. ii) The separation of assets to the Wildland Fire Service from the BLM has occurred. The BLM and the Dept. of Interior will report to a geographic fire manager with fires and recovery efforts to be administered regionally. b\ 12:24 PM USFS i) Daniel Fisher, USFS recreational manager appeared to present an update to the Board. ii) He noted that there are currently four open positions for our area and explained that they would hope to fill those positions with local candidates. Those positions are listed on USA Jobs. 22) 1:00 PM Consider request to purchase two law enforcement vehicles with trade-ins - Sheriff Thompson a) 5heriff Thompson discussed that he would prefer to purchase the two Dodge Durango vehicles. b) He suggested that they could continue to discuss leasing with Enterprise possibly for the next budget year, noting that for some entities that leasing could make sense. 1:07 PM Motion and Action: authorize the chair to sign title for the 2018 Dodge Charger which is being traded in Moved by Bob Kunau - Member, Seconded by Kent R. Searle - Member. Motion passed unanimously. c) 1:08 PM There was discussion that the second vehicle being traded in has had $1,000.00 allowed as a trade in allowance. That vehicle is a 2018 Dodge Charger that had a mechanical failure which resulted in damage to the transm ission. 1:09 PM Motion and Action: Approve the purchase of the second Dodge Durango Pursuit in the amount of 542,305.00 which does reflect a trade in value of $1,000.00 as presented, Moved by Bob Kunau - Member, Seconded by Kent R. Searle - Member. Motion passed unanimously. 1:10 PM Motion and Action: Authorize the chair to sign the release of the title for the 2018 Dodge Charger as a trade in as presented, Moved by Bob Kunau - Member, Seconded by Kent R. Searle - Member. Motion passed unanimously. 23) 1:15 PM Adjourn 1:15 PM Motion and Action: Adjourn, Moved by Kent R. Searle Member, Seconded by Bob Kunau - Member Motion passed una n imously. CASSIA COUNTY COMMISSION RE6UtAR SESSION Monday, F ebruary 23, 2026 5lPage APPROVED: Leonard M. 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