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Glasscock County News
School Sets Hearing on Tax Rate
The Glasscock County ISD board met in regular session Aug. 8 with Doug Schaefer and Andy Wheeler absent. The board discussed the possibility of the school becoming a “peanut-free zone” because there might be a student enrolled who has a severe allergy to even the smell of peanuts. The regulations regarding situations such as this are very involved, according to School Superintendent Steve Long. He said the cafeteria might have to eliminate all use of peanuts, peanut oils, etc., and it could mean that things such as peanut butter and jelly sandwiches or candy containing peanuts would be off limits at school. Elementary School Principal Ken Hoskins said there might be two kindergartens this year, due to a projected enrollment of 20. The board approved property and casualty insurance with Rogers and Belding for a price of $51,000, down just over $2,000 from last year.
County Helps Pay DPS Secretary
The Glasscock County Commissioners’ Court agreed Aug. 8 to pay $500 per month to help pay a $2,000 monthly salary for a Howard County employee who serves as Department of Public Safety secretary for a four-county area. DPS trooper Weldon Jones said the Howard County office serves Howard, Glasscock, Reagan and Upton counties. He said Howard County is paying the current salary of $1,500, and providing office space and equipment, but Jones said a salary increase is needed. Reagan and Upton counties do not pay part of the salary, but provide the DPS office space, computers and cell phones, which Glasscock County does not provide. Jones said the DPS plans to have a trooper on Highway 158 every Friday and Sunday afternoons/evenings. Tax Values Increase Over Last Year Official tax appraisal roll information made available July 25 by chief appraiser Royce Pruit shows Glasscock County’s 2005 total appraised value to be $687,683,410, an increase of $17,648,288 over last year’s value. The total taxable value for 2005 is $548,726,630, an increase of $12,094,219. The court adopted a county vehicle use policy. They had previously discussed the risk management organization’s rules regarding the use of county vehicles, and the county’s liability. All department heads will be asked to sign the policy. Although the court agreed a year ago to provide $2,500 annually to help fund a victim rights organization out of Big Spring, it delayed renewing that funding until it has more information regarding how much the organization is used in Glasscock County. County Treasurer Alan Dierschke said the organization has sustained cuts in state funding. He said everyone should hope the group’s services are not needed here at all. The commissioners’ court took no action on an inter-local agreement with Midland County that provides for mutual emergency medical service and fire department assistance in emergencies. County Judge Wilburn Bednar gave commissioners copies of the agreement and got their approval to have the county attorney review it.
Harston Reports on Legislation
Glasscock Groundwater Conservation District Manager Rick Harston reported June 17 to his board of directors on the 79th Legislative Session. He said it was one of the worst sessions he has witnessed. He said there is tremendous animosity between the House and Senate members, and the good part was that few junk bills were passed. Among the bills passed which affect groundwater districts was HB 1763, a “Christmas tree” bill that ultimately had various legislation attached. It requires all districts within a Groundwater Management Area to meet annually to determine the managed available water and the future conditions of the aquifers. The bill changes procedures water districts use for notice and hearings on rule making and water well permitting. It also makes some changes in appeals processes for both water districts and landowners. HB 380 makes it easier for oil and gas companies to get insurance rather than bonds for future plugging of wells. Harston says the insurance is supposed to stay with the well even if the owner changes. HB 578 was passed to facilitate location of potential pipelines for use in an emergency water delivery situation. SB 18 will affect the way water districts calculate tax rates and the notice and hearings process. SB 286 requires members of all publicly elected boards to take two hours of open records and open meetings law training. Ten new groundwater districts were authorized, but voters may not approve them all, due to resistance to what some view as the state usurping local control with recent legislation (HB 1763).
County Discusses Retirement Plan Options
The Glasscock County Commissioners’ Court, at its regular session Aug. 8, discussed whether to raise the county’s matching rate in its retirement plan. Currently, an employee contributes seven percent of his/her salary to the plan, and if he retires, the county matches his contributions at a rate of 125 percent, or $1.25 for every $1 the employee has contributed. An employee gets the matching funds only with retirement. In order to retire with full benefits, an employee must be vested for eight years and meet the Rule of 75 (his age plus service time must equal at least 75). The court discussed raising the matching rate to 150 percent, or $1.50 for every $1 the employee contributes. County Treasurer Alan Dierschke said that with the county’s $672,000 annual payroll, the county’s matching costs now are $77,000 annually, and changing to 150 percent matching would cost the county an additional $1,125 total for the next fiscal year. But he said the annual cost could rise or fall in subsequent years. Dierschke said under current regulations, the county can increase matching amounts only in 25 percent increments. Next year, he said there will be more options available. No action was taken regarding the retirement plan, and the court will address it again at a special budget meeting Aug. 17 at 9 a.m. The court approved new rates for employees’ health and life insurance benefits which are paid by the county. Effective Oct. 1, an employee’s medical and prescription plan will cost $496 and term life and disability insurance will cost $12, making the total almost $18 less than the current amount. Optional, employee-paid coverage is available for spouses and children.
Briefly
• School starts for all students Aug. 15.
• Glasscock Co. Senior Citizens will meet Tuesday, Aug. 16 at 6 p.m. Please bring snacks. Stew will be furnished at the Sept. 6 meeting. Please bring something to go with stew. Anyone 50 years or older is invited.
• The deadline to file nominating petitions for Farm Service Agency Local Administrative Area (LAA) #1 has been extended to August 15 in an effort to give agency personnel, community-based groups, farmer organizations and others more time to continue their outreach efforts. This gives county farmers and ranchers an extra two weeks to decide if they would like to serve on the FSA committee, or to nominate one of their neighbors to run for election.
• Leroy Moore will give piano lessons on Tuesdays in Garden City at the First United Methodist Church beginning Aug. 15 for adults and children first grade and up. Thirty-minute lessons are $20. To schedule a lesson time, call Karen Wheeler at 397-2753.
• Congressman Mike Conaway invites you to discuss issues of the day as he hosts a town hall meeting, Aug. 16 from 2 – 3:30 p.m. at the Center for Energy and Economic Diversification, 1400 N. FM 1788 west of Midland.
• Jeremy and M’Lynn Niehues Taylor leave Aug. 15 for China where they will teach conversational English at Blue Sky University in the city of Nanchang in the Jiangxi Province. They will return to the States June 27, 2006. Carey and Renee Niehues, Walter and Kathy Taylor, Jeremy and M’Lynn are grateful for the love and support from this community. Please contact Carey or Renee at 432/354-2419 for more information.
• J’Layne Niehues Kemp is the head junior high girls track coach and the assistant junior high girls basketball coach at Muleshoe ISD. Her husband Layne is employed at Kemp Pump Service in Muleshoe. She is the daughter of Carey and Renee Niehues.
• The All-America 6-man football game held here July 15 would not have been possible without all the hard work from the community. Thanks to the Knights of Columbus for buying food, supplies and for cooking an evening meal, the Garden City Lions Club for helping cook and for setting up the community center, the Glasscock County Coop for use of their barbecue pit, cooking and helping out and to Glasscock County employees for helping clean up the next morning. Special thanks for all the extra kitchen help! --- The All-America Football Association
Conaway Addresses FSA Group
U.S. Congressman Mike Conaway was in Garden City Aug. 1 for a brief meeting with Farm Service Agency county committees and executive directors from District 9. Jerry Harris, state FSA committee chairman, introduced Conaway to the 28 people present, calling him a true friend of agriculture regardless of his background in oil and gas. Harris said so far, Conaway has done everything Harris has asked him to do. Discussing agriculture appropriations, Conaway said a $3 billion reduction in mandatory spending is necessary over the next three years. That is one percent of the total allocation, he said. A 14-member ad hoc committee will make recommendations Aug. 16 on where to make the cuts to reach that figure. Most comments and questions from the audience concerned reductions in FSA personnel in 2005, and more that are expected in 2006. Most said they believe staffing is as low as it can go without losing the infrastructure that serves agriculture producers. Conaway, while sympathetic to the audience’s concerns, said the problem is the same all across the board, with folks being asked to do more work and spend fewer dollars. He said each businessman must become more efficient to keep his own business profitable, and public agencies must do the same. He said greater use of technology should help. “We can’t cling to the status quo as the reason to preserve the status quo,” he said. While admitting that consolidations may be necessary in order to spread resources, he advised FSA personnel to continue to “…work hard and spend dollars like they were yours.”
County Approves Voting Machines
In order to comply with federal regulations, the Glasscock County Commissioners’ Court on Aug. 8 approved purchase of five voting machines at a total cost of $30,000. A federal grant will reimburse the county for the purchase, and will pay for training in the use of the equipment, according to County Clerk Becky Batla. Voters will able to either mark ballots by hand or use the machines. The machines will enable a person with disabilities or other special needs to mark a paper ballot privately and independently, but will not tally nor store the ballots. Among the machines features are an audio function (using earphones) for the vision-impaired, multiple-language capability, and support for writing in candidates. It will cost approximately $550 to program the machines for each election. After the first two years, the county will pay $625 per year for maintenance. Ballots will be printed by the equipment company at little or no increase in cost above current printing, Batla said. Court Denies Tax Penalties Waiver The court declined to waive penalties and interest on past-due 2004 taxes for two taxpayers who said they had inadvertently not paid on time. Saying they sympathized, the court nevertheless did not want to set a precedent. County Judge Wilburn Bednar said $22,000 spent for new digital radio equipment purchased by the sheriff’s office will be reimbursed by grant monies provided by Homeland Security. The court discussed a bill from Warren CAT because no one knew who had authorized the work. They decided to delay payment on another Warren CAT bill, believing the maintainer repair should have been covered by warranty. Commissioner Jimmy Strube will replace County Treasurer Alan Dierschke on the board of West Texas Rural Counties. The group, which handles the county’s insurance and risk management, meets monthly in San Angelo.
In The Spotlight
• Chris Braden recently completed requirements for his Ph.D. from Texas A & M University. His course of study was in plant breeding with special emphasis on cotton. He was selected as a Cotton Incorporated Fellow during the years of his doctorate program completion. Braden is the son of Charles and Janet Braden and a 1994 graduate of Garden City High School.
• Trey Hillger, son of Scott and Andrea Hillger, was chosen by the Texas 6-Man Coaches Association to play in the Texas All-Star Football Game in Lubbock July 23. In addition, Trey was the recipient of a $1000 scholarship given by the coaches’ association.
• Glasscock County Treasurer Alan Dierschke will be installed in October as the new president of the County Treasurers’ Association of Texas.
Groundwater District Meets
GGCD had no regular board meetings in May or June due to lack of a quorum. The board met July 19 with Kenneth Braden, Larry Wheat and John Phillips present. Prior to the meeting, a public hearing was held during which Bill Alexander with Wind Plus, Inc. presented the wind power project planned for northeastern Glasscock County. He asked that the board approve a resolution for a reinvestment zone and a tax abatement contract with the company. The board, during its meeting, tabled both these matters until the entire board is present. The board discussed new joint planning requirements enacted during the 79th Legislative Session, and designated Rick Harston as the district’s voting representative to meetings of Groundwater Management Area Seven. The board voted to move $40,000 from a certificate of deposit to the district’s checking account and to renew two CD’s with First State Bank, Big Spring for three months beginning July 31.
Work Progresses at GC Cemetery
The project to construct a new fence and entrance at the Garden City Cemetery has made considerable progress in recent weeks. The metal portion of the entrance, including an arch over the main gateway, support structure for two smaller side gates, and metal, vertical line posts are cemented into place. County workmen and volunteers Mark Halfmann, James Cypert and Butch Halfmann did the installation July 19. The next step is to surround the four main posts of the entrance with limestone blocks, making rock columns. The cemetery’s historical plaque will be set into the rock. Then, smaller pipe will be welded between the line posts, making two horizontal rows in the fence. A metal gate will be built for an equipment entrance at the east side. After all welding is complete, visible metal surfaces will be sandblasted and painted black. In addition to helping with the construction, county crews have mowed the cemetery, removed piles of excess dirt and, at the request of the cemetery committee, removed several dead trees and a few bushes which were covering headstones. Fence, Entrance Completion Will Take Months Completion of the fence and entrance is expected to take several more months, since most of the work is being done by volunteers, who have their own businesses, which have first priority. The committee’s future plans include paving the east and north roads and resurfacing the center road; landscaping the entrance; planting perimeter trees, sponsoring a clean-up day, and acquiring more land for future use. The Garden City Cemetery Committee currently consists of: Deanie Craft, Betty Pate, Helen Wilkerson, Butch Halfmann, Mark Halfmann, James Cypert and Joe Melanie Calverley. Call any of these folks with comments or suggestions regarding the cemetery. In the future, the committee will be asking for donations, but only as projects need funding.
FSA Committee System Said Threatened
Jerry Harris, chairman of the state Farm Service Agency committee, told a group of FSA people in Garden City Aug. 1 that the county committee system as we know it is in jeopardy. He said powers in Washington want to go to a system in which county committee members are appointed, rather than elected. Appointments would presumably be made at the state or national level. Harris said the primary reason given for wanting to change the system is that too few agriculture producers are involved in committee elections, as evidenced by too few candidates on ballots and too few producers voting. He said for the elected committee system to survive, more people must get involved now. He encouraged local FSA offices and county committee members to do whatever they can to encourage people to put their names on the ballots, and to be sure that they vote, returning ballots correctly signed and in a timely fashion. Nationally, only 15 percent of eligible voters return ballots in county committee elections. County executive directors say that non-resident landlords are the group that votes the least. According to Glasscock County Executive Director John Kinnibrugh, local voting percentages are significantly higher than 15 percent. He said that in the last three elections, the percentage of eligible voters who actually voted ranged from 25 to 48 percent. Percentages vary from one LAA to another, and from election to election. Harris, who was here at a meeting of FSA county committee persons and executive directors from District 9 at which U.S. Congressman Mike Conaway spoke. Conaway also said that large turnouts are very important in county elections.
From the Schoolhouse
Dates to Remember: Aug. 13 – Scrimmage at Ropesville, 10 a.m.; Aug. 15 – School starts; Aug. 18 – Meet the Bearkats, 6 p.m., high school auditorium; Aug. 19 – Scrimmage in Garden City, 4 p. m.; Aug. 25 – Varsity game at Grandfalls, 7:30 p.m.; Aug. 27 – Cross Country Meet in Garden City. On Sept. 1 – Jr. High and JV games at Ira, 5/6:30 p.m.; Sept. 2 – Ira at Garden City (Senior Night) 7:30 p.m.; Sept. 8 – Jr. High and JV games in Garden City, 5/6:30 p.m.; Sept. 9 – Varsity game at Sanderson, 7:30 p.m.
Obituary
Jerry Jon Currie, 47, of Big Spring, died July 16 in a Lubbock hospital. Following a memorial service, he was interred at Trinity Memorial Park in Big Spring. He was born Sept. 22, 1957, to Jerry Curry and Mae Barnaby Currie in Big Spring where he was a lifetime resident. A graduate of Big Spring High School, he was involved in his family’s ranching business. Survivors include his son, William Jon Currie; his father, Jerry Currie, and one brother, Bill Currie, all of Big Spring; one step-sister, Nicole Bash of Dallas; a niece, Natalie Stroup and husband, Kayne of San Antonio; an aunt, Barbara Lu Ratliff of Garden City: two uncles; and four cousins, including Laura Ratliff Huitt of Garden City. Jerry Jon was preceded in death by his mother, Mae Currie and a sister, Diana Currie Nichols. Memorials may be made to the Diana Currie Nichols Scholarship Fund at Howard College, 1001 Birdwell Lane, Big Spring, TX 79720 or a charity of one’s choice.
Next Issue Date and Deadline
The next issue of the Glasscock County News will be Sept. 14. The deadline for that issue is Sept. 12, 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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