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minutes meeting date 2026-06-08 · fetched 2026-09-09 · 25454 characters · official file · plain text
BOCC Jun 8 2026 Regular Meeting FREMONT COUNTY COMMISSIONERS MEETING MINUTES June 8, 2026 Present for the meeting were: Commissioners Blair Dance, Rick Hill, and Mark Chandler Also attended by: Clerk Meredith Mattingly, Civil Attorney Blake Hall, Treasurer Lori Beard, Assessor Carol Blanchard, Sheriff Bart Quayle Commissioner Dance began the meeting with a necessary amendment for today’s agenda “– Need to discuss Sign CAI Phase 1” needs to include “and Phase 2” that was inadvertently excluded from that item. Commissioner Hill made a motion to amend today’s agenda to include the signing of Phase 2 for the Harris Idaho Conversion Project. Commissioner Chandler seconded the motion. A full voice vote was heard with all commissioners voting in favor. Commissioner Dance offered the prayer. Commissioner Chandler led the pledge. Commissioner Dance called the meeting to order and welcomed those in attendance. Treasurer Lori Beard- Reported Fremont County sent out just under 6,000 reminder notices on second half of taxes due this month. $469,000.00 has been collected with around $6 million outstanding. Ms. Beard explained Fremont County has been paying for the LID program within the Computer Arts Software. The County hasn’t been using this specific LID program for a very long time. The program costs roughly $6,000.00 a year. The County will not renew this for next year. The County has only 13 parcels left on LID. Assessor Carol Blanchard- Reported Fremont County got all assessment notices mailed. The final number was just over 19,000. The County has over 23,000 parcels. The Assessor’s office is busy managing phone calls which are mostly inquiries due to assessment notices. The office has also been getting a significant number of calls regarding homeowners’ exception. The DMV is in their busy season. Generally, throughout the day there is a line at each of the DMV windows. Everyone is moving forward with all their responsibilities. Ms. Blanchard discussed the stabilization of property values- for a large part of the County there were no changes necessary. Island Park is levelling out, but is still selling for more than what we anticipate. Island Park is still pretty active with sales. Sheriff Bart Quayle- Sheriff Quayle began with a ‘shout out’ to IT. The Sheriff’s office has gone live with a new records management and dispatch system. This has been a 5-month build up. Staff have been working hard to get up to par with the system. They are impressed with it so far. The Sheriff’s office switched over to the state SWET (Search Warrant Execution Training) system. This is a state program that is available to Counties at no cost. This will help clean up some of the issues between the Sheriff’s office and the Court. Part of this program computerizes currently handwritten warrants. Sheriff Quayle explained a very large seizure of narcotics came through this month. This was a team effort. In the last month there were 19 drug-related arrests, 93 citations, 1,208 traffic stops, 51 paper services, 34 motorist assists, and 207 business checks. The Sheriff’s office responded to 27 non-injury accidents this month and a couple injury-accidents. Three Jail employees graduated from POST. Currently within Fremont County jail there are 26 inmates. There is 1 female inmate being held in the Madison County jail. Shortly upcoming for the Sheriff’s office is the statewide push to NextGen 911 software. This will be a complete over-hall for dispatch. Sheriff Quayle expressed that he was very impressed with the BLM and their response over the Memorial Day weekend. The acting supervisors have been phenomenal. BLM and the County have a very good partnership. He looks forward to working with them during the 4th of July. The Sheriff has been in communication with Fremont County Emergency Management regarding the fire season. Clerk Meredith Mattingly- Reported she attended the IACC Conference held in Nampa Idaho. The IAC Conferences are always full of good information. Specific classes on AI, social media, Budgeting. Clerk Mattingly finished a beginning budgeting course through the University of Georgia. It was 11 hours’ worth of studying and tests. The clerk’s office is getting situated with new carpet and paint. They were able to find used office desks in good condition from Madison School District surplus sale. Budgeting time is fast approaching. All departments, except one, have turned in their budget requests. Budget meetings with the Departments start June 16, 17, and 18. Commissioner Chandler- Reported he attended the Landfill ribbon cutting. They have a nice facility out there. He spent time distributing and retrieving voting machines. He attended the Button appeal. He discussed brush fires at the golf course. Commissioner Chandler attended Invasive Species meetings. Commissioner Chandler explained the need for the 5 County Detention board to have a meeting to discuss the future of that building. Commissioner Hill- Reported he attended the Fair Board meeting last month. Commissioner Hill also attended the ribbon cutting on the Eastern Idaho Regional Solid Waste landfill, and the Caldera Flats meeting. Commissioner Hill reported on demolition work for the North Annex Suite A, the awning has been removed. Work is set to begin on the Extension/4H Annex. Commissioner Hill also attended the IACC Conference in Nampa. Commissioner Hill explained IACC is looking down the road and expressed that during the next 5 years Idaho will use as much energy as was used in the last 40 years. Commissioner Hill participated in Election delivery and take down. He will also be attending the ribbon cutting on the Teton Dam Memorial site on Friday. There has been a lot of work done on the site; adding walking paths, railings, and informational plaques. Commissioner Dance- Reported he got reappointed to the Governor’s Roadless Commission. Commissioner Dance also attended the ribbon cutting on the Eastern Idaho Regional Solid Waste landfill. He also participated in the delivery and pickup of Election equipment. Commissioner Dance attended an ITD update meeting; these are now being scheduled for regular monthly meetings. Commissioner Dance explained there has been a lot of activity in District 6 ITD the effort is being made to improve communication. Greg Bowman from ITD was instrumental in getting that set up and put in place. Commissioner Dance attended the Excellence in Everyone event where Fremont County received and passed on the Special Olympics torch. Commissioner Dance attended both the Button and Caldera Flats appeals. He also attended the semi-annual Roadless Commission zoom meeting, which lasted 5 hours. He attended the Teton Dam Museum ribbon cutting. He explains they have a nice facility there for the public. Commissioner Dance did not attend the IACC Conference in Nampa, as he had prior commitments to the activities commemorating the Teton Dam all last week. The annual Teton Marathon took place during this week. Lieutenant Governor Scott Bedke was present to represent the State of Idaho at the Teton Dam commemoration. Commissioner Dance shares this has been a good project. The museum is a good facility for the public to tell the story of the Teton Dam flood. Many valuable anecdotes from those who experienced the flood have been collected and recorded. IT Manager Josh Warnke RE: Copy Machine Purchase – action item Mr. Warnke discussed purchasing a new copy machine for the Prosecutor’s Office in the amount of $6,606.64 Commissioner Chandler made a motion to approve the purchase of a new HP copy machine for the Prosecutor’s Office in the amount of $6,606.64. Commissioner Hill seconded the motion. A full voice vote was heard with all commissioners voting in favor. Emergency Management Keith Richey RE: Grant Acceptance – action item Mr. Richey rescheduled this item for another meeting. Planning and Zoning Planner Dusty Rigby RE: Development Agreement for Whitetail Ridge Subdivision – action item Mr. Cluff presented a development agreement for the Whitetail Ridge Subdivision. Mr. Cluff discussed the difference between a Platt and a phasing plan (or development agreement). Before a final Platt is recorded all land improvements have to be complete. A phasing plan allows for land improvements to be completed in phases and/or bonded. In order to do a bond, you have to have a development agreement. A bond is a contract between the applicant and the County. The bond has to cover the entire cost plus a 10% warranty for the County. Phase I has no bond- the property owner has already completed all land improvements. Mr. Cluff’s understanding is that the property owner intends to make all land improvements without bonding at each Phase. Mr. Hall explains a development agreement is a way to get longer than 2 years to complete a project. Commissioner Chandler made a motion to approve the Development Agreement for Whitetail Ridge Subdivision. Commissioner Hill seconded the motion. A full voice vote was heard with all commissioners voting in favor. Commissioners RE: Executive Session IC 74-206(1)(d) – action item Commissioner Dance made a motion to go into executive session pursuant to IC 74-206(1)(d) To consider records that are exempt from disclosure as provided in chapter 1, title 74, Idaho Code; at 10:31 a.m. Commissioner Hill seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken with Commissioner Dance voting “Aye”, Commissioner Hill voting “Aye”, and Commissioner Chandler voting “Aye”. Commissioner Dance declared the meeting open at 10:48 a.m. Treasurer Lori Beard RE: Credit Card Approval – Action item; Tax Cancellations – action item Ms. Beard requested a credit card for the Sheriff’s Office, specifically Search and Rescue to be used by Brett Mackert with a credit limit of $2,500.00. Commissioner Hill made a motion to approve a credit card request for Search and Rescue for Brett Mackert with a credit limit of $2,500.00. Commissioner Chandler seconded the motion. A full voice vote was heard with all commissioners voting in favor. Ms. Beard presented the tax cancellations for the month of May 2026 in the amount of $2,156.26. Commissioner Dance made a motion to approve the tax cancellations for the month of May 2026 in the amount of $2,156.26. Commissioner Chandler seconded the motion. A full voice vote was heard with all commissioners voting in favor. Marnie Spencer / University of Idaho Extension District Director RE: Annual Meeting – action item Ms. Spencer discussed that Tom Jacobsen has been granted the ability to apply a year early for tenure. Extension is a program operating throughout the state in 42 of Idaho’s 44 Counties. Extension specialists do field work and research projects. Ms. Spencer provided a flyer which illustrates the Extension trends for Fremont County. 4H is a strong program in Fremont County. Ms. Spencer says Dana and Erika are a dynamite team. Shooting sports is a huge effort and success in Fremont County. Fremont County has hosted the statewide shoot for a few years. As way of explanation, Ms. Spencer supplied that Fremont County pays only $1,500.00 for Tom Jacobsen’s salary with the University of Idaho paying the rest. Fremont County pays all of Dana and Erika’s wages. Throughout the nation this program is called Cooperative Extension. There is a little bit of federal government influence as well. This is a program that is working to help our communities. Ms. Spencer expresses her gratitude for Fremont County’s support. Mr. Tom Jacobsen shared information regarding upcoming Field Days: Cereal Grain, 22 July 2026 from 10 am – Noon; chain saw basics workshop, Island Park, 28 July 2026. This is a day-long class that will teach how to sharpen blades, maintain chain saws, and chain saw safety. Forestry workshop, 29 July 2026. This workshop will teach about the forest, problems we’re having, drought damage, and fire concern. Our area still needs rain. Horticulture Regional Master Gardener Conference, 18 July 2026. Mr. Jacobsen discussed the Robotics program. Robotics were put on the website for sale last month. There have been over 270 units sold so far. These units have been sold to customers all over the United States. Mr. Jacobsen shares they had the AgTech Robotics competition down at CEI; the Cyber Security module is approved for publishing; and 4H camp will be held next week. He says that any day of the week you can go over to the annex and see exactly what the 4H kids are working on. Sheriff Bart Quayle RE: Tri-County Sheriff’s Mutal Assistance Compact – action item Sheriff Quayle presented the Tri-County Sheriff’s Mutual Assistance Compact. Mr. Hall explained the critical aspects of the agreement. If Fremont County needs assistance, they can request help from any of the Counties within the compact. Any of the Counties within the compact can request help from any of the member Counties. Sheriff Quayle tells they meet regionally every month; which helps build good relationships between the compact members. Commissioner Dance asks if this compact can be used for internal conflict as well. The answer is absolutely. Sheriff Quayle answers, absolutely; it has also been used within the Jail as well. It is a really good association. Commissioner Dance made a motion to approve the Tri-County Sheriff’s Mutal Assistance Compact. Commissioner Chandler seconded the motion. A full voice vote was heard with all commissioners voting in favor. Parks and Rec Director Greg Grant RE: Fremont County Ladies Golf Association Request to Waive 100% of Greens Fees for Tournament – action item; Side-by-side and ATV Purchase for IP Grooming Shop – action item; Golf Course billboard Advertising Rate – action item; Request to Approve and Waive Greens Fees for Labor Day Golf Course Maintenance Fundraiser Tournament – action item; Update on Waterways Parking Fee Proposal The Ladies Golf Association requested a waiver of 100% of the golf course greens fees for a tournament they will be holding. Ladies Golf Association representative read a letter to the commissioners requesting the commissioners waive the remaining 50% of the golf course green fees for all participants. Commissioner Chandler asked if it takes 1 full day to run the tournament. The association answered no, not all day- but most of the day. Comm Hill asked clarification on what percent they want off- 50% was approved and they are asking for the full 100%. Fremont County is making an effort to have the Golf Course pay for itself and provide some money to make necessary improvements. Commissioner Hill explains we are not trying to penalize anyone. The Ladies Golf Association replies that the possible $450.00 earnings are small compared to the $1,000.00 annual donation that is made back to the Golf Course by the Ladies Golf Association. Mr. Grant discussed the benefit of the Ladies Golf Association – they are making an effort to promote the game of golf. They are doing a good job. This tournament is a benefit to the Golf Course. Mr. Grant discussed waiving the greens fees for the Labor Day Golf Course Maintenance Fundraiser Tournament. Commissioner Chandler made a motion to waive the greens fees for the Ladies upcoming tournament and the Labor Day Maintenance Fundraiser tournament. Commissioner Hill seconded the motion. A full voice vote was heard with all commissioners voting in favor. Mr. Grant would like to purchase a side-by-side and an ATV for the Island Park grooming shop. He gathered quotes the following 3 quotes: Golden Spike, side-by-side $21,020.00 & ATV $8,170.00; Island Park Adventure, side-by-side $28,698.00 & ATV $11,342.00; Rexburg Motor Sports, side-by-side $23,340.00 & ATV $8,184.00. Funds are to come from the Emergency fund in snowmobiles, line 37-0-531. Commissioner Hill made a motion to accept the bid from Golden Spike Powersports in Ashton, Idaho for the side-by-side at $21,020.00 and the ATV at $8,170.00 to come out of the Emergency Snowmobile fund, line 37-0-531. Commissioner Chandler seconded the motion. A full voice vote was heard with all commissioners voting in favor. Mr. Grant discussed the billboard advertising rate for the golf course billboard. This advertising space is available between hole 1 and 2, closer to the road. St. Anthony Motors would like to use the place to advertise for about $350.00 for the remaining of the season. The advertising space is Golf Course facing only. Mr. Grant explains, we’ll reevaluate the rate for next year. Mr. Hall says that in Idaho a public hearing would have to be held declaring this spot as surplus county property to be leased. Once the public hearing is complete, there are additional steps to follow. Mr. Grant believes it would cost the County more money than it would make this year and so will not move forward with this ask. Mr. Grant updated the Commissioners about Fremont County Waterways Access Fee Program Proposal. Commissioners, Henrys Fork representative (Matt), and Mr. Grant discuss the necessity and benefit of the fee program; funds can go directly back into the water ways for upkeep and improvements. Mr. Grant continues to move forward in this endeavor; his next step is to get community feedback. The commissioners appreciate their time and effort. Adopting written Findings of Facts, Conclusions of Law and Decision in Sandbox Appeal – action item Commissioner Dance asked for any comments regarding the Sandbox Appeal. Both Commissioner Chandler and Commissioner Hill state there have no additional comments. Commissioner Dance read into the record the paragraph regarding their decision on the Sandbox Appeal Commissioner Dance made a motion to adopt the written Findings of Facts, Conclusions of Law and Decision in the Sandbox Appeal. Commissioner Chandler seconded the motion. A full voice vote was heard with all commissioners voting in favor. Commissioners RE: Work Meeting w/ St. Anthony City Council – action item Commissioners met with the St. Anthony City Council for a work meeting. Present for this meeting were St. Anthony City Mayor Donald Powell, St. Anthony City Council members Rod Nichols, Russ Rubert, Rod Willmore, Tessa Schuldies, Chad Quayle, St. Anthony City Clerk Pattie Parkinson, and Fremont County Sheriff Bart Quayle. Councilman Chad Quayle discussed the history of Fremont County not paying the City of St. Anthony. He discussed landfill fees. Agreements he’s heard about but has never seen. Airport, Fairgrounds. Main thing, we can all get this documented so we don’t have to continue having this discussion. He wrote a brief summary on his finding of minutes with key word searches. There may be some inconsistencies; if a person wasn’t named by title but just by name, it may not have been caught. Mayor Powell stated everyone needs to know what the agreement is. Let’s make an agreement and everyone know what it is, and have it down in writing. He would think the City pays the County what they owe, and County pays the City what we owe, but they are open to an agreement. Commissioner Dance asked if we know all the things we should be reviewing and understanding. One thing that comes to mind is dispatch. Mayor Powell stated that if the County wants to charge for dispatch, they will pay if we charge every city in the county. What does the County want to include? What is fair for everyone? Sheriff Quayle asked if there are examples of City/County partnerships. Civil Attorney Blake Hall stated that yes, there are examples. Madison County and the City of Rexburg have an agreement in regards to their dispatch. He explained their agreement. Bonneville County and Bingham County all have the same agreement. There is no County or City that has an all-encompassing agreement with landfill, water, sewer, etc. Usually, they pay what they are owing. The only agreement Mr. Hall could find is the dispatch fee. If the City has their own law enforcement, they have the responsibility to dispatch these officers. If they have the County dispatch the officers, then they have an agreement and fees that they pay. They discussed the City of Ammon and their experience trying to run their own law enforcement. Sheriff Quayle stated that Star, Eagle, and Kuna Counties did this with Ada County. Commissioner Hill stated that EMS pays $35,000 per year to the County for dispatch. Commissioner Chandler asked what the bottom line is. How much is the County losing, and how much is the City losing? Councilwoman Schuldies stated $36,000 is what the City loses out on dumpster fees. Commissioner Dance asked how many commercial dumpsters the County has. City Clerk Parkinson stated she estimates the County has about 14 or 15 commercial dumpsters. Commissioner Chandler asked if the County reciprocates in any way to the City. County Clerk Mattingly shared an email she received from Rowdy Rigby from Road and Brodge, outlining the cost for chip sealing completed last hear for the City. The amount saved by the City of St. Anthony was around $45,000. The City of St. Anthony also saves on landfill fees of about $7,000 per year. Commissioner Hill stated that if we have an agreement similar to Madison County, dispatch salaries come in at $400,000; this is just salaries. We’d have to figure out the percentage. Sheriff Quayle and Attorney Blake Hall discuss for the group dispatchers and how much EMS pays, etc. Also, ilets fees, etc. Jim Hobbs, Fremont County Citizen, commented on the wastefulness of the County with their water usage, and gave an example of 1 acre of grass on the Fairgrounds where the water is running all the time. Councilman Chad Quayle stated agreements need to be discussed because none of it has been discussed before with the current employees and elected officials. They need to be written down and documented to avoid future questions and problems. Commissioner Hill stated it’s a good thing to discuss and have things written down. He’s comfortable with what we’ve bee doing. What does the City Council want to do? What about dispatch? It is a big item. We have to look at what other cities are doing. It is important we meet and he is open to what the City wants to do. Councilman Chad Quayle stated we don’t have an action item, so we couldn’t vote today if we wanted to. Councilwoman Schuldies stated we really just need to have something written down. Commissioner Chandler asked if we should come up with our top 5 areas of issue; the City come up with their top 5 and the County come up with ours, and come back together to discuss those issues. Councilman Chad Quayle stated that is as good as anywhere to start. Commissioner Dance suggested getting some specific things to start to look at and compare, as well as bringing in some numbers and more specific data to discuss. Sheriff Quayle stated the 911 fees increase every year. Attorney Blake Hall stated everyone things everyone else is getting a better deal. The grass is always greener. Having these meetings helps everyone see clearly what exactly is going on. Commissioner Dance asked where we go from here. Councilman Chad Quayle stated he is a County employee. He can recuse himself if anyone is uncomfortable with him being part of these talks. Another work meeting is scheduled for July 6, 2026 at 2:00 pm during our Regular Commissioner Meeting. Miscellaneous Commissioner Chandler made a motion to approve the claims for June 8, 2026 as presented. Commissioner Hill seconded the motion. A full voice vote was heard with all commissioners voting in favor. Commissioner Chandler made a motion to approve the minutes from May 26, 2026 as amended. Commissioner Hill seconded the motion. A full voice vote was heard with all commissioners voting in favor. Commissioner Hill made a motion to approve the minutes from the May 20, 2026 Caldera Flats Appeal Hearing as presented. Commissioner Chandler seconded the motion. A full voice vote was heard with all commissioners voting in favor. Clerk Mattingly presented the CAI Phase 1 and Phase 2 for the Harris Idaho Conversion Project for the Commissioners to sign. Commissioner Hill made a motion to approve signing of Phase 1 and Phase 2 for the Harris Idaho Conversion Project to be paid out of IT Fund 1-14-533. Commissioner Chandler seconded the motion. A full voice vote was heard with all commissioners voting in favor. Commissioners discussed the East Idaho State Fair annual appropriation budget request for 2026-2027. The Fremont County contribution amount will be $2,500 and this is a payment we make every year. Commissioner Dance made a motion to approve the Eastern Idaho State Fair annual appropriation for $2,500. Commissioner Hill seconded the motion. A full voice vote was heard with all commissioners voting in favor. Commissioners reviewed Pay App #17 for the Last Chance WWTP in the amount of $536,848.46 Commissioner Dance made a motion to approve Pay App #17 for the Last Chance WWTP in the amount of $536,848.46, and authorize Chairman Dance to sign the reimbursement documents when we receive them. Commissioner Hill seconded the motion. A full voice vote was heard with all commissioners voting in favor. There being no further business to come before the board the meeting was adjourned. _________________________________ Blair Dance, Chairman Fremont County Commissioner Attest: _____________________________ Meredith Mattingly, Clerk HISTORY Recorded by Min. 613245 Regular Commissioner Meeting 06-08-2026 on 6/15/2026
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