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Glasscock County News
Many County Employees Get Pay Raises
After meeting in special sessions Aug. 19, 26 and 30, the Glasscock County Commissioner’s Court approved a $1,200 raise for most elected officials and most full-time employees. Effective Oct. 1, the raises will cost the county $38,000, including benefits, according to County Treasurer Alan Dierschke. Part-time personnel are not included in the increase. With the raises, benefits not included, county employees’ salaries are: Sheriff / Tax Collector Royce Pruit, $35,000 plus $13,700 as chief tax appraiser; deputies Ken Zunker and Keith Burnett each make $29,600 and Burnett is paid an additional $1,200 as jail custodian. Tisha Burnett and Leroy Hoelscher, county constable, are paid $1,200 each as jailers, and Hoelscher will draw a salary of $8,400 (no raise). County Judge Wilburn Bednar will make $25,620 plus $10,000 state-paid supplement, plus $1,200 as the county’s Homeland Security Coordinator. County/District Clerk Rebecca Batla will make $29,300, and her deputy clerk, Susie Hillger, will get $25,100. Justice of the Peace Marilee Jost will make $17,400 plus $7,200 as the county judge’s secretary. The four county commissioners will make $21,000 each: county treasurer Alan Dierschke will be paid $24,000 plus $6,000 as the water system manager. The county road crew, which consists of eight full-time and three part-time people, will be paid a combined $300,000, the same as last year, when there were more people on the crew. The courthouse custodian, Diane Havlak, will make $19,000 (no raise); the extension agent for agriculture, Randy Rakowitz, will be paid a county supplement of $12,000 (no raise), while FCS extension agent Charlene Belew will get $14,500, having been given a raise earlier in the year, and extension services part-time secretary, Tracy Hollingsworth, will be paid $12,000. Extension entomologist Warren Multer is paid a county supplement of $2,000 (no raise). Part-time Emergency Management Coordinator Kenny Batla makes $6,000 and money is budgeted for three fire department chiefs at $1,200 each. Two contract predator control trappers (Richard Batla and Jody Griffith) are paid $21,600 each, while part-time employee Curtis Palmer makes $13,440 as the landfill overseer. According to Dierschke, the county’s outlay for all salaries and benefits will total $1,078,913, or 41 percent of the budget.
County Maintainers Down to Three
In a rare split vote, the Glasscock County Commissioners’ Court on Aug. 30 decided to sell one maintainer outright and to trade one in on a new machine, lowering the number of maintainers to three. Commissioner Mark Halfmann opposed the purchase of a new machine, but was outvoted by the other three commissioners. Commissioner Michael Hoch contended that since the money was in the 2003-2004 budget, the court should go ahead with the purchase. Commissioner Jimmy Strube, who had said at an earlier meeting that buying a Caterpillar maintainer was just as good as having that money in the bank because of the machine’s high resale value, agreed with Hoch. Halfmann wanted to go from four to two maintainers rather than three, saying the county no longer needs three, and that the money budgeted this year for a maintainer would be better used toward emergency vehicles and equipment. A used John Deere maintainer from Halfmann’s precinct was sold to Bee Equipment of Lubbock for a bid price of $42,500, and the new one purchased on a $48,000 bid from Warren CAT. The new CAT machine was bid at $179,995, less $128,500 as trade-in of a used CAT maintainer. (Commissioners decided to keep the mole board off the old machine, lowering the trade-in bid by $3,500 to a total of $48,000). The new machine will have a guaranteed buyback of $112,500 at five years or 5,000 hours.
Briefly
• Bertie, Ervin and David Wooten thank all those who have given prayers and moral support during the last few months.
• Garden City’s All-School Homecoming Reunion begins at 10 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 25, with lunch at noon in the school cafeteria. The event is open to all ex-students, spouses, teachers and friends; the dress is casual and the cost is $10 per person for a meal provided by Kenneth Blanek Catering. For reservations or more information, contact Emma Schafer at 354-2227, Wanda Moore at 354-2439, Bonetta Bednar at 397-2221 or Barbara Currie Ratliff at 354-2307. Reservations need to be made by Monday, Sept. 20.
• Glasscock County’s Senior Citizens will meet Sept. 21. The group will play one hand of dominoes and order hamburgers (Dutch treat). Do not bring finger food for this meeting. Potluck will be served at the meeting on Oct. 5. All senior citizens are invited.
• Incumbent Charles Gully is the only nominee for Glasscock County’s Farm Services Agency County Committee for Local Administrative Area #2. Election ballots will be mailed to eligible voters in LAA #2 on Nov. 8 and must be returned by Dec. 6.
• Register to vote: Oct. 2 is the last day to register to vote in the Nov. 2 general election. Royce Pruit is the county’s voter registrar and registration is taking place in the sheriff’s office.
• Registered voters may vote by mail: Absentee mail-in ballots for the Nov. 2 general election can be picked up at the county clerk’s office or by submitting a written request for a ballot to that office. Written requests for a ballot must be received in the clerk’s office by Oct. 26. To be counted, ballots must be received in the mail at the clerk’s office by Election Day.
• Early voting in person runs Oct. 18 – Oct. 29 in the county clerk’s office in the courthouse.
• Hours for public use of the fitness room at the school are: 6 a.m. – 10 p.m. Mon. – Fri. except for the following hours, which are reserved for school use: M Tu W – 2:30 – 4 p.m. Th F – 1:30 – 3 p.m.
• The Garden City Methodist Church hosted a pizza party for junior and senior high students during Fifth Quarter activities following the Sept. 10 football game.
• All Glasscock County volunteers and their spouses will be treated to an appreciation dinner Sept. 26 at 7 p.m. in the Community Center.
• Dump ground and landfill hours are: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Wednesday and Friday (west dump ground); 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Thursday and Saturday (north landfill); the phone number is 432-270-3711. Only bagged or burned trash is accepted at the west site; anything legally disposable is accepted at the north site.
Water District Raises Salaries
The Glasscock Underground Water Conservation District Board of Directors, with manager Rick Harston absent, agreed to a raise for both employees at its meeting Aug. 17. Harston will get a $1,200 raise to $36,200 and secretary Donnita Coats will be awarded a $2,500 increase, taking her salary to $21,500. The increases will be effective Jan. 1, 2005. Medical insurance rate increases will cost the district $21 more per month for employee premiums, which will total $845 per month. Salaries and benefits cost the district about $72,000 annually, 53 percent of its total budget. At a Sept.14 meeting (Dennis Seidenberger and Mike Hughes absent), after a public hearing which no one from the public attended, the board approved a 2004-2005 tax rate of .031107 per $100 valuation, three percent above the effective rate, but lower than last year’s rate of .034806. The effective rate is the rate necessary to raise the same funds as last year. The board also adopted a budget of $136,000 in revenue and $137,000 in expenditures on Sept 14. The shortage, if there is one at the end of the fiscal year, will be taken from the district’s reserves, which are now approximately $159,000.The board had informally agreed to both the tax rate and the budget at its Aug. 17 meeting. Board president Kenneth Braden said the board should not make the mistake of letting the tax rate go too low. He said at times in the past, that mistake was made, only to have a greater increase later.
GCISD Plans New Vocational Building
The Glasscock County Independent School District’s Board of Trustees, meeting in regular session Sept. 13 looked at and discussed a preliminary plan for a new vocational arts building. The plan is for a 125 foot by 110 foot building that would include a large shop plus woodworking, welding and painting areas, wood and steel storage rooms and two classrooms. The planned site is the area immediately southeast of the entrance to the high school. School Board President Jimmy Eggemeyer suggested going ahead with the bidding process. Pointing to a growing program under second-year teacher Rusty Hollingsworth, Secondary Principal John Petree said all eighth graders are enrolled in various vocational arts classes and approximately 43 high school students are enrolled in the program. Superintendent Steve Long reported that approximately $103,000 was left unspent from the 2003-2004 budget.
County Court Lowers Tax Rate, Sets Budget
The Glasscock County Commissioners’ Court set the tax rate for 2004-2005 at .47891 plus .05 debt service for a total of .52891 per $100 valuation at its regular meeting Sept. 13. Last year’s rate was .59252 and the effective rate was .51351. The new rate will raise $2,047,803 in revenue and another $326,000 will come from various fees, such as those from auto registrations, and sheriff’s, clerk’s, and JP’s offices. The court also adopted a budget with $2.4 million in expected revenue with budgeted expenditures of $2.6 million. The county’s reserves currently stand at approximately $700,000, according to County Treasurer Alan Dierschke. In addition to salaries, which are detailed elsewhere in this newsletter, major items of the new budget include $104,000 for two emergency rescue vehicles (one each for St. Lawrence and Garden City), $50,000 for two sheriff’s department vehicles; $100,000 for road repair supplies and upkeep, $60,000 for fuels, $75,000 for road building materials, $200,000 for seal coating and paving, $40,000 for valuation engineers in the appraisal district, and $150,000 for insurance other than employee medical insurance. Other Major Expenses Other major budget items are $35,000 for courthouse repairs and upkeep, including a central air and heat system, $12,000 in landfill expenses, $50,000 in a miscellaneous fund, $164,000 in an indigent health care fund (required by state law; eight percent of ad valorem taxes), $22,000 for community center operating expenses, and a $143,000 payment on the community center. Reserves in the interest and sinking fund for debt on the community center now stand at $182,000; a result of tax revenue being more than is required in annual payments on the debt. These reserves should allow the bond tax rate to be lowered in 2005-2006 and the debt to be paid off early. Dierschke says the center is bringing in about $1,000 per year in rental income. Water System Budget Approved The court also adopted a $54,000 budget for the Garden City Water System, with possible expenses of $59,000. Income from water sales is projected to be $53,000, with interest and miscellaneous income providing the balance of revenues. Much of the water system’s expense is for salaries: $16,800 for manager Jim Havlak with the new raise, plus $4,800 in benefits, and $6,000 for administrator Alan Dierschke (no raise). Insurance takes another $12,000. Repairs and upkeep are allocated $6,000 and electricity requires $9,000. The system currently has reserves of $56,000. Bednar to Head County’s Homeland Security At a special meeting of the Glasscock County Commissioners’ Court Aug. 26, County Judge Wilburn Bednar volunteered to become the county’s Homeland Security Coordinator when no one else offered to take the job. Bednar said, as the county judge, he is ultimately responsible for the county’s Homeland Security (HS) preparations. The action came after Kenny Batla informed Bednar that he no longer wanted to be responsible for the county’s HS work in addition to his part-time job as the county’s emergency management coordinator. Batla had earlier cited the overall complexity, enormous amount of paperwork and time requirements as problems involved with the HS work. The court voted to pay Bednar an annual supplement of $1,200 for the work, and to pay Batla a retroactive $1,500 for the HS work he has done over the past two years.
In The Spotlight
• Meagan Kothmann was recently named Howard County 2004 Fair Queen. Meagan, a GCHS senior, is the daughter of Kaddo and Penni Kothmann.
• Trey Hillger and Colby Hirt each won $1,000 scholarships recently from the Permian Basin Fair Association. Trey is the son of Scott and Andrea Hillger and Colby is the son of Duane and Marianne Hirt.
Weather Modification Effort Continues
The cloud seeding effort to produce more rain will continue for at least another year, according to Dennis Seidenberger, the Glasscock County Underground Water Conservation District’s representative to the board of the West Texas Weather Modification Association. He said Glasscock County reaped a provable one-inch rainfall increase during the first part of 2004 due to cloud seeding. Seidenberger said state funding is gone, and after this year, the GCUWCD will have to decide whether to continue to support the effort. He said, “We’re finally where we want to be to enhance rainfall, and it would be a shame to lose it now. What we’ll learn about modifying weather in the next five years will be tremendous.” But Seidenberger added, “If the majority in the county doesn’t want the weather modification program, we won’t have it.” In June 2005, the district will probably have to decide whether to increase its assessment per acre or pull out of the program. The district currently spends approximately $27,000 per year, 20 percent of its total expenditures, on cloud seeding.
Sheriff’s Department Gets New Pickups
In the second split vote in a matter of weeks, the Glasscock County Commissioner’s Court voted Sept. 13 to buy two Ford F150 Super Crew pickups for the sheriff’s office at a total cost of $45,000. The vote was 3 – 2, with commissioners Mark Halfmann and Hugh Schafer voting for, Michael Hoch and Jimmy Strube voting against, and County Judge Wilburn Bednar breaking the tie with a vote for the purchase. Hoch and Strube wanted to buy Dodge diesel pickups. The sheriff’s office had asked for one Ford F150 Super Crew and one Ford Crown Victoria sedan. Commissioners seemed to agree on just one thing in the matter: that another Crown Victoria would not be a in the county’s best interest, since that car’s trade-in value is so little. Hoch and Strube said Dodge pickups would be worth more at trading time than Ford pickups would be, either as trade-ins, or as additions to the county’s road crew vehicle line-up. Halfmann and Schafer disagreed. Bednar said he was voting for the Fords in the tie-break because they were what the sheriff’s department preferred. One price for each make was available: $23,873 per vehicle for the Dodges and $22,398 per vehicle for the Fords. The sheriff’s department’s three vehicles and the extension service’s one vehicle are on a rotation schedule, which should replace the oldest vehicle each year. However, replacing an engine now in Deputy Keith Burnett’s Crown Victoria, which was not in line for replacement until next year, was going to cost over $7,000. Commissioners decided it wasn’t a good idea to spend that much money on a car that was to be kept only one more year, and that buying two new vehicles at one time made more sense. Central Air, Heat for Courthouse The court voted to accept Greenwood’s Eddie Quine’s bid of $24,579 for putting central air and heat into the courthouse. He will install two Rheem five-ton units with heat pumps. The only other bid was from Closon and Parker of San Angelo for $26,700 for four and three-ton Bryant units. Electrical work was included in both bids. A bill from Nancy Hillger for 105 hours worth of cleaning in the sheriff’s/tax offices from January to September was a matter of some discussion, when commissioners said they were unaware that she had been doing the work. Bednar said Sheriff Pruit had mentioned the arrangement to him months ago, and he thought he had mentioned it to the court. Commissioners discussed that at one time, the jail custodian cleaned those offices as part of his duties. They agreed that the courthouse custodian, Diane Havlak, should do that cleaning now. At the meeting’s end, the court had apparently not authorized payment of the Hillger invoice. Victims’ Services Organization The court approved payment of $2,500 annually to Victims Services, a five-county organization that serves as a liaison for law enforcement. Each county in the service area is being asked for the same money. Shan Thomas, the organization’s director, met with the court and explained that, if not for the group effort, each county would be required to have its own victims’ service person. She said the organization has been in existence since 1984, and until recent cuts in state funding, has not had to ask individual counties for money. Of the organization’s $200,000 budget, Thomas said $115,000 comes from the state, $50,000 from an unnamed Howard County foundation, and the organization is a United Way agency. In addition, she said Howard County pays $6,000 and Big Spring puts in another $5,000. The group, headquartered in Big Spring, has a full-time staff of four, plus 11 volunteers. They have three nurses who are trained to take evidence in sexual assault cases and are qualified to testify in trials. She said Glasscock County has an average of four victims per year. Bednar said he thought the money paid by counties should be based on population. Deputy Burnett said the victims’ services group is “awesome, a great program.” He said they are here quickly when called, and are great with victims, often meeting in private with women and children. Charlene Belew reported on extension activities, including a possible senior citizens’ meals on wheels program, which would involve high school students delivering meals provided by the school cafeteria. She asked the court to consider providing the agents with a county Visa or MasterCard to use when they travel. The court later discussed the matter, and seemed not to favor the cards, since the agents have several gas cards at their disposal. Again -- Warning Siren for Garden City? Bednar reported that Curtis Palmer, who operates the county’s dump ground and landfill, wants the county to repair and improve the plumbing at the shelters he uses at both facilities. The court also discussed a pump for taking water out of the landfill pit, but took no action. Commissioner Hugh Schafer said a new pit would be needed within six months. An emergency warning siren for Garden City was mentioned once again. Bednar is to get information and prices on such equipment, which could be used for weather warnings, plus alerts for local fire or medical personnel. In other action, the court agreed to continue having its regular meetings on the second Monday of each month at 9 a.m. in the courthouse. It also decided to maintain the current 125 percent funding of the county’s retirement system by which the county puts in $1.25 for each $1.00 contributed by the employee. The other choices are 100 or 150 percent funding.
GCISD Lowers Tax Rate with Higher Values
After a public hearing (which no one from the public attended) Aug. 30, the GCISD Board of Trustees adopted a 2004-2005 budget in excess of $6.8 million and a tax rate of $1.42 per $100 valuation, down from $1.50 last year. Expenditures are budgeted at $7 million, but Superintendent Steve Long says the school usually only spends 95 to 98 percent of its budget, so he expects to end the fiscal year with a surplus which will be added to the district’s reserves of approximately $2.7 million. The board was able to lower the tax rate because the county’s valuations were up from last year. The school’s only debt service is $118,000 for fitness equipment, which is to be paid for with grant funds. There is $150,000 budgeted for construction of a vocational arts building. The board hired Addie Lynn Nauman as a second kindergarten teacher. She is a 2002 graduate of East Texas Baptist University, receiving an education degree with a reading specialization and a kinesiology component. Most recently, she has been working in Russia as an elementary school English specialist. Kindergarten enrollment is currently 24. Long reported that two new busses are in, and that car (bus) seats for head start students are in use. The board approved four new student transfers into the district, bringing the total to 31.
Rehab Center Begins Round-Up
West Texas Rehabilitation Center has begun its annual effort to raise the funds to provide care for 21,000 children and adults each year. Round-Up for Rehab will feature nine special livestock sales across West Texas this fall, beginning Sept. 23 at Producers Auction in San Angelo. Red Steagall is once again the drive’s honorary chairman, while Butch and Tammy Halfmann are heading up the Glasscock County program. Supporters can help the effort by either donating animals to one of the livestock sales, attending one of the sales and bidding on the livestock, making a cash gift to Rehab, or notifying Rehab or a local chairman of an intent to have an auction house cut a check to Rehab for animals sold later in the year. For more information about the Rehab Center, Round-Up sale dates or arrangements for hauling donated animals, call the Halfmann’s at 432/354-2366 or 354-2367 or WTRC – San Angelo at 325/223-6300.
Local 4-H Members Win Awards
Several local youth won awards at the District Six 4-H Recognition Banquet held Aug. 21 in Fort Stockton. Kevin Hillger and Macy Schwartz received district honors as Outstanding Intermediate Boy and Girl. The award is given to one boy and one girl in their age division who show outstanding leadership qualities and growth throughout their 4-H career. Trey Hillger won the J.T. Rutherford Award, given to the top senior boy and girl in the district who exhibit strong qualities in leadership, citizenship and overall 4-H project work. Cade Halfmann and Blaine Walker were honored as Glasscock County’s 4-H Gold Star recipients, the highest award given to a member of a county program. Cade Halfmann, Kevin Hillger and Blaine Walker were named 2005 District Six 4-H Ambassadors. The Ambassador Program is designed to utilize senior 4-H members to tell and show audiences how 4-H has impacted them personally and how it is addressing key youth issues in the district. Steve Long and Jennifer Jansa were honored as the 2004 Glasscock County Outstanding 4-H Volunteer Leaders. Each year two recipients are chosen by their peers for their unselfish gifts of time and talent to the county 4-H program. Trey Hillger and Dusty Walker were recognized for having their 4-H Record Books place first at state competition in Aug., providing them the opportunity to participate in the Texas 4-H leadership Conference trip to Washington, D.C. in November. The books were among 39 winners from 324 entries in the state. Marissa Schwartz and Blaine Walker also competed on the state level with their Record Books.
From the Schoolhouse
• Report Card Night at the school is Sept. 28 from 4 to 7 p.m. The Beta Club and the National Honor Society are sponsoring a lasagna supper at a cost of $5 a plate, and everyone is invited.
• Library News: The Garden City Library will host its fall book fair fundraiser Sept. 27–29. The Family Event will be Sept. 28 from 4 to 7 p.m. during Report Card Night. This is a great time to add to your family's home library! Also, there will be wish lists available for the elementary classes. You may purchase a book to donate to K–6 and/or to the library. If you would like to volunteer to work at the fair, please call Tracy Hollingsworth at 354-2250.
• A chapter of the Fellowship of Christian Students has been started at GCHS. The group meets Wednesdays during lunch in the student lounge.
• Scholarship deadlines for seniors: Coca Cola Scholarship due Oct. 31, www.coca-colascholarship.org; Campbell Soup Scholarship due Nov. 30, www.campbellsdream.com. For more information, contact Jan Holland at the high school.
• PSAT-practice SAT test for 9th – 11th graders will be Oct. 13 at the high school and the cost is $11. Juniors who score high enough can be eligible for the National Merit Scholar honor. Contact Jan Holland for further information.
Next Issue Date and Deadline
The next issue of the Glasscock County News will be Oct. 13. The deadline for that issue is Oct. 11, but earlier material is helpful. Send information to: P.O. Box 98, Garden City, TX 79739; phone or fax: 432/354-2221; e-mail: gcnews201@aol.com. The Glasscock County News is published by Joe Melanie Calverley, P. O. Box 98, Garden City, TX, 79739. Phone or fax: 432/354-2221; e-mail: gcnews201@aol.com; web site: glasscockcountynews.com
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