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Glasscock County News
County Proposes Tax Rate Increase
At its Aug. 13 meeting, the Glasscock County Commissioners Court proposed a tax rate of .343165 per $100 valuation for the next fiscal year. The effective rate (the rate necessary to raise the same monies as in the last year) is .317775. The proposed rate is just below the rollback rate of .343197. (The rollback rate is the highest tax rate which can be set before taxpayers can start tax rollback procedures.) The proposed rate represents a decrease of approximately two percent from last year’s rate of .362300, but because of higher valuations, County Treasurer Alan Dierschke said he expects the proposed rate to bring in approximately $210,000 more revenue than last year. Last year’s operating taxes were $2.4 million, from a tax base of $678 million. This year’s tax base is $773 million. The county will have an unencumbered balance in its property tax accounts of $1.5 million at the end of the current fiscal year. Public hearings on the proposed tax rate will be held on Aug. 28 and Sept. 4 at 9 a.m. in the courtroom of the courthouse. A vote on whether to adopt the proposed rate will be at the regular commissioners court meeting Sept. 10 at 9 a.m. Court Discusses Higher Tax Rates There was discussion of raising the tax rate. Commissioner Marck Schafer said everyone knows that the county’s oil is being depleted, and that at some point in time, the oil companies will leave and say, “Thanks for the cheap tax rates.” He guessed that oil companies pay around 90 percent of the taxes in the county and said individual tax rates here are not excessive. He said raising taxes might be a good idea, if county government could actually hold onto the extra money and not spend it. On the other hand, Schafer said that low rates are one of the reasons the county is attractive to enterprises like wind farm companies, and he said maybe that’s a good reason to keep them low. In addition, he said raising taxes “…might be a hard sell right now, since the county doesn’t really need the money.” The commissioners seemed to think that Glasscock County’s tax rates are below most other area counties. Commissioner Jimmy Strube said Reagan County’s rates are $1.33 per $100, County Judge Wilburn Bednar said Sterling County’s are at .56.
County Gets New Dump Trucks; Maintainer; Maybe Fire Truck
Glasscock County commissioners voted Aug. 13 to buy two 2007 Mack CD713 ‘program’ dump trucks, each with less than 30,000 miles for $100,000 each from Bruckner Truck in Odessa. They will replace trucks that are 23 and 24 years old. Apparently, the used ones will be displayed on Bruckner’s lot, and sealed bids will be taken for them. A second bid on dump trucks was from R.L. Anderson in San Angelo for 2008 International trucks with the same specs for $104,300 each. The new trucks are 18-yard models, and are heavier duty than the 12-yard models they replace. Commissioner Marck Schafer said he thinks they are overkill on size, but will carry almost 50 percent more per load, so may save on labor costs due to fewer trips per job. Schafer wants designated drivers with Mack truck training assigned to the new trucks, so there is accountability for their use and upkeep. Commissioners will pay for the trucks out of the current budget by taking $67,000 from road equipment, $40,000 from the lateral road fund, $23,000 from the capital improvements budget, and $70,000 from the Garden City Fire Department equipment budget, depending on a future grant to provide funding for a planned fire truck. (See discussion below.) Bids to Come on Maintainer The commissioners also authorized County Judge Wilburn Bednar to advertise for bids on a Caterpillar 120 and 140 maintainer, or the equivalent from another company. The machine is budgeted at $225,000 in the 2007-08 fiscal year. The machine will be used in Commissioner Mark Halfmann’s precinct, even though he tried again Aug. 14 to find a way to work with three maintainers to avoid the expense of the fourth machine and an additional driver. With the decision to buy a maintainer, money for an additional driver was added to the next budget. Commissioner Jimmy Strube insisted that “…a maintainer is not an expense, it’s an asset.” He said in 19 years, he’s never seen the county lose money on a Caterpillar machine. Commissioner Michael Hoch said three maintainers and four bosses won’t work. Schafer said several times during the truck/maintainer discussions that he didn’t oppose buying the two dump trucks, but was concerned that their cost, plus the maintainer, was going to “…bust our reserves.” He said the combined equipment cost plus operators will be more than half a million dollars, “A pretty good chunk,” he said, “when we’ve been trying to build reserves, and are getting there.” Fire Truck Grant Application Planned Commissioners voted to apply for a Forest Service grant to help pay for a new, large brush fire truck to be stationed in Garden City. Strube said he’s been told that the county will be “almost guaranteed” a grant which will pay 90 percent, up to a maximum of $108,000, for a truck, with the county’s part a maximum to $12,000. Sturbe said the grant application deadline is Sept. 1, and John Kinnibrugh is writing it. The truck is to be identical to the St. Lawrence truck, but will have a poly tank rather than steel. If and when the grant is approved, it will take six or seven months for delivery. According to Kinnibrugh, the Forrest Service funding is far from a sure thing. Bednar reported that Greenwood VFD is interested in acquiring the old Forest Service pumper truck, which Glasscock County has never used and wants to send elsewhere. There was some discussion of how much, if any, of the $10,000 the county spent on the truck could be recouped.
School Proposes Tax Rate; Budget
The GCISD board (Diane Havlak, Tibby Niehues and Doug Schaefer absent) Aug. 13 proposed a tax rate for the next fiscal year totaling $l.097, down from the previous rate of $1.42. The effective rate is $1.00 and the rate could go as high as $1.40 without triggering roll back, according to Superintendent Steve Long. The board also approved a preliminary budget of $9.5 million in revenues, and $9.3 million in expenditures. The school has an unencumbered fund balance (reserve) of $3.4 million, according to Long. A public hearing will be held Aug. 30 at 6 p.m., with final action on the tax rate and budget at 7 p.m. According to board president Karla Hoelscher, the school’s projected WADA payment (which is sent to other schools or to the state) is lower this year because of the use of bond money for the current construction project. Board member Kevin Hirt complained about how athletic money is budgeted, saying it is weighted too heavily toward football. He said girls playing basketball have to buy their own shoes, and some other sports have no uniforms. Long said he would check into the matter. Budget allocations for UIL activities are: football supplies $8,000; basketball supplies, boys and girls each $2,500; tennis supplies, boys and girls combined, $1,000; cross country and golf supplies each $500; track supplies, boys and girls each $750; medical supplies $1,000; UIL supplies, elementary school, $1,200; high school, $3,000; equipment, $4,000.
Separating Sheriff/Tax-Assessor to be on November Ballot
With no public discussion, the Glasscock County Commissioners Court at its regular meeting Aug. 13, voted to put an item on the Nov. 6 election ballot that would separate the county sheriff’s position from that of county tax assessor-collector, effective Jan. 1, 2009. Both are elected positions. Although Sheriff Royce “Booger” Pruit’s term doesn’t expire until Dec. 31, 2008, the action was said to be necessary now so that potential candidates could sign up in December 2007 for March 2008 primaries. Commissioners say they do not think that separating the offices will cost the county more money than it currently spends on tax office and sheriff’s department personnel, and that the change shouldn’t require more office space. They say a more complete discussion of the matter will be forthcoming.
No Interest in Fire Buildings Construction/Renovation? There were no bids for proposed work on the fire department buildings in Garden City. County Treasurer Alan Dierschke said he provided specifications to ABCO, Sturgeon, Steve Jansa, Lee George and Phillips Fabrications. County Judge Wilburn Bednar told the court he would like to hand the job of Emergency Management Coordinator to someone else. He has been the coordinator for several years. The job entails being responsible for emergency planning and seeing that the county is in compliance with Homeland Security requirements. Bednar said Martin County pays their chief of police $1,000 per month to handle that extra job, and he said Deputy Keith Burnett is willing to take the job for that salary here. After some discussion, the matter was tabled with no action taken. Dierschke said all elected officials are being required to take four courses related to disaster preparedness before Jan. 1. Paving Bid Accepted Commissioners on Aug. 14 accepted a $260,000 bid from Lipham Construction to seal coat 12.3 miles of roads and to rebuild approximately 1000 feet. The other bid was from Ronald R. Wagner and Co. for $261,529. The work will be done on County Road 125 (from CR 110 south to FM 2401) and on CR 170 (from CR125 east to FM 33), and is to be done in the next two months The court again discussed whether to contribute to West Texas Rural Counties’ risk management pool, but made no decision in the matter. WTRC is hoping to raise at least $1.4 million in member contributions in an effort to save 12 percent on the cost of its reinsurance, As of Aug. 10, seven of WTRC’s 15 member counties had committed between $100,000 and $200,000 each, for a total of $950,000. Glasscock, Sterling and Reagan Counties have not yet decided on whether to contribute; and five others will not contribute. Member counties will be paid 10 percent interest on the money they contribute, with the funds secured by Wells Fargo, according to Dierschke. Commissioner Jimmy Strube reported that Dierschke is taking his place on the WTRC board. The commissioners approved an insurance premium for county employees of $516.25 per person per month for the next year, which includes medical insurance and a $25,000 life and accidental death policy. Dierschke said even though this has been a bad year for the county in terms of claims, the premium is unchanged from the previous year. The court accepted a contract with the same auditor, at a cost of $11,000 per year. They also approved a tax on “goods in transit” which they may not choose to collect. The information and discussion relating to this tax was vague, but related to State HB 621.
County Employees Get Raises
Glasscock Commissioners voted 3-1 (Marck Schafer opposed) Aug. 14 to give 27 full-time county employees a salary increase of $125 per month ($1,500 per year). Schafer voted against the raise, having questioned where the $40,500 in expense could be found. Both Commissioner Michael Hoch and Schafer agreed that current salaries are in the middle of other area counties’ pay scales, but Hoch said to stay competitive, the county should give a minimum $100 raise. Commissioner Jimmy Strube suggested giving the two Extension people half that, since they get raises from the state. Hoch said the county ‘adjusted’ road crew salaries last year, but it gave no across-the-board raises. Schafer said if any raises were given, they should be equal for all. Hoch at first proposed a $150 increase, then Strube suggested $125, and Hoch proposed $125 for all full-time employees with the two Extension Service employees getting half that amount and Strube agreed. Commissioner Mark Halfmann said he would support the $125 if Extension folks got the same amount, and that figure finally passed. Sheriff Royce “Booger” Pruit had asked for a $3,600 increase for each employee in his department; County/District Clerk Rebecca Batla asked for a $2,400 increase for herself and her deputy; Alan Dierschke, county treasurer, asked for $2,400 and Extension agent Charlene Belew asked for an increase of $2,000. Other major budget increases include: $225,000 for a maintainer, and for a full-time driver. County income is expected to be slightly over $3 million, according to Dierschke.
GCISD Prepares for Wind Farms
At its Aug. 13 meeting, the GCISD board approved a policy (CCG Local), which will allow it to enter into “tax limitation” agreements with commercial entities in the future, if it chooses to do so. The wind energy company Airtricity has approached Superintendent Steve Long with intent to file an application for tax limitation treatment of its wind turbine activity in Glasscock County. (Texas school districts are not allowed to grant tax abatements.) The application would be accompanied by a $75,000 payment to the school district to be used to pay for an impact study which would supposedly determine if a tax limitation agreement would be in the school district’s best interest. The purpose of such a tax limitation agreement would be to enable the school district to treat tax income from the turbines in such a way as to reduce the dollars that would have to be sent out of the district under the state WADA (Robin Hood) system. The school board would either approve or disapprove the tax limitation after it was approved by the state comptroller, the local appraisal district, and after the impact study. Greater explanation of this complicated issue will be available in the future.
Fees for County Services May Increase
County Commissioner Marck Schafer said at a commissioners court meeting Aug. 13 that he thinks it’s time for the county to look at the prices it charges for private work. He said his research shows that the county’s cost for operating a dump truck is about $40 per hour, and at current prices, the county is losing too much money doing private work. He said the county shouldn’t compete with private companies, and its prices shouldn’t discourage private enterprises. He said construction companies charge $55 per hour plus 50 cents per yard for dump truck hauling. Currently, the county charges $45 per hour for private work done with maintainers, loaders, and dozers. Hauling is priced by the load, at $3 per yard, and the total depends on whether a 6, 12 or 18-yard truck is used. A load in a 12-yard truck costs $36. Water is $36 in a tandem truck, $54 in a transport. Materials such as caliche, dirt and sand are priced at the county’s cost of $1 per yard. Refined materials from Laredo Paving are $4.50 per ton for screen base; $5.50 per ton for state base and a sales tax of 6.25 percent is charged on refined materials. Strube Defends Private Work Commissioner Michael Hoch said, “We’re not in it for profit; it’s hard to say if we’re breaking even.” Commissioner Mark Halfmann questioned whether companies were losing business because of the county’s private work, but said it might be time to look at raising prices. Commissioner Jimmy Strube said material costs have increased, and those increases have been passed through to the consumer. He said he would agree if the court’s majority wanted to raise prices. Schafer said the only private work he does in his precinct is on roads, and he gets flak because other commissioners do more. Strube said more private work is done in his precinct than in others because more people in the precinct live in the country. He added that most county volunteers come from his precinct and he “...tries to provide service to those who serve the county.” He said he only does work for residences, and charges for all of it. The matter was tabled with no decision being made.
GCISD ‘Recognized’ District
Both the elementary and secondary schools in the Glasscock County Independent School District achieved Recognized status in the 2007 Texas Education Agency Accountability Ratings, with at least 75 percent passing the state standard. Both schools were also Recognized in 2006. Curriculum/Testing Coordinator Misty Kinnibrugh told the school board Aug. 13 that only 20 percent of school districts across the state earned the top two ratings of Exemplary (90 percent passing) or Recognized. Kinnibrugh said GCISD is one of only five Recognized districts in Region 18. The others are: Grady, Marathon, San Vicente (Big Bend Park) and Balmorhea.
Dove Hunt Set for September
A dove hunt sponsored by the Glasscock County Junior Livestock Association is scheduled for Sept. 11. The cost is $75 per person and includes the hunt, a steak meal and a drawing for a shotgun. Participants should meet and sign in at the St. Lawrence Hall from 3 – 5 p.m. Only the first 60 people to sign up will be accepted. Pre-registration fees should be sent to the county extension office, P.O. Box 299, Garden City, TX 79739 by Sept. 4. For more information, contact Sammy Kellermeier, 397-2667. Partial proceeds go toward a livestock association scholarship.
Briefly
• Congressman Mike Conaway (TX-11) will be at the Glasscock County Community Center on Monday, Aug. 20 from 9:45 – 10:45 a.m. to meet and visit with county residents. This will be an opportunity for the congressman to answer any questions or address concerns citizens may have. The Congressman is visiting Garden City as part of his August district tour.
• Glasscock County Senior Citizens will meet Tuesday, Aug. 21 at 6 p.m. This will be snack night, bring finger foods or other snack items. They will meet Tuesday, Sept. 4, which will be potluck night, and encourage all to come join them.
• GCHS Registration: Late registration is Aug. 15 and 16 from 9 a.m. – noon.
• State Senator Kel Seliger will hold a town hall meeting at the Martin County Community Center, 301 N. St. Theresa in Stanton Aug. 21 from 11:30 a.m. – 1 p.m. He plans to discuss and receive feedback from constituents on the recently completed regular session of the 80th Legislature.
• School Dates: Monday, Aug. 20 -- first day for teachers; Monday, Aug. 27 -- classes begin.
• The GCHS Homecoming game will be Oct. 12 at 7 p.m. with the Bearkats taking on Sands. Ex-students will meet to visit that night, either inside or on the east side of the Complex building at the north end of the football field. An ex-students reunion will be Saturday, Oct. 13 with an all-day get together starting at 10 a.m. in the school cafeteria. Big John's Feed Lot will cater a noon meal at a cost of $10 per plate. Those planning to eat should RSVP no later than Oct. 3 by mail, phone or e-mail to Dick Cunningham, 5316 Conroe Ct., Midland, TX 79707, 432-689-6588 (home), 432-770-4079 (cell) or e-mail at j4325@sbcglobal.net.
• Glasscock County ISD is accepting sealed bids on the following: • a 1996 four-door Ford Crown Victoria, 4.6 liter V-8 with 173,198 miles; • a 1998 Ford F-250 pickup, 5.4 liter V-8 with 69,283 miles. Bids will be accepted until noon on Aug. 28. GCISD reserves the right to accept or reject all bids. The vehicles may be seen at the school administration building.
• Chelsea Schwartz, Miss West Texas 2007, was named 4th runner-up at the 2007 Miss Texas pageant held in Ft. Worth July 1-7. Her placement is awarded $2,000 in cash scholarships and $48,000 in-kind scholarships. Special thanks to everyone who traveled to Ft. Worth to cheer her on, especially her princesses, Sarah Hoelscher, Maddie Hoelscher, Daeley Havlak and Morgan Cox and their families. Chelsea is a 2003 graduate of Garden City High School and the daughter of Floyd and Martha Schwartz. (The pageant is available for viewing on demand by going to www.misstexas.org.) ----- Martha Schwartz
Local Dove Appreciation Day Set
The Texas Agricultural Extension Service has scheduled a Dove Appreciation Day in Garden City to help hunters, land managers and owners get ready for the coming season, which begins Sept. 1. The event will be at the community center Aug. 22 from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Pre-registration is $15 by Aug. 17 and $25 at the door. Two Texas Department of Agriculture continuing education units will be offered. Contact Rebel Royall, 432-354-2381. Two other two Dove Appreciation Days will also be held: in Stephens County Aug. 20 (contact Leslie Neve at 254-559-2313) and in Runnels County Aug. 21 (contact Marty Gibbs at 325-365-2219). The three events share similar programming. The morning sessions deal with habitat management practices and the afternoon sessions will be devoted to field tours. Widespread rainfall across Texas should mean excellent dove hunting for much of the state, according to Dr. Dale Rollins, Extension wildlife specialist at San Angelo. Sunflowers Abundant “There’s such an abundance of sunflowers, that the hunter’s problem may be a dilution of doves across the landscape. Having a back-up plan that might include a stock pond or evening flyway may be good insurance for a successful hunt," he said. "The backbone of the dove season in Texas still rests on the mourning dove, but in recent years both the white-winged dove and the introduced Eurasian collared dove have increased dramatically," Rollins said. "The latter two doves tend to concentrate in urban settings, but usually travel to nearby fields to forage. We’ll also discuss these birds during the seminars," he said. Dove hunting in Texas has changed in recent years, he said. "Good dove hunting is something most of us in Texas have pretty much taken for granted, but what used to be a sure bet has been more erratic in recent years," Rollins said. "Whether one is managing purely for personal recreation or for profit, the information presented at these dove seminars should improve one’s hunting opportunities." For more information, contact Rollins at 325-653-4576 or by e-mail at d-rollins@tamu.edu. Program updates will be posted at http://teamquail.tamu.edu.
Odessa Makes Final FutureGen Offer
Senator Kel Seliger, R-Amarillo, who authored Senate Bell 1461 which included the state’s final incentive package for FutureGen and addressed key liability issues, recently announced that Texas’ best and final offer has been submitted to the FutureGen Alliance. Seliger, in recognizing the hard work and dedication of the Odessa Future Gen team, said, “They have submitted an excellent proposal and we are confident the Odessa site bid will showcase Texas’ energy expertise, particularly in the long-term storage and transportation of carbon dioxide and the use of hydrogen by the petrochemical industry.” The state’s final incentive package was made possible by the passage of SB 1461 in June 2007, which addressed key concerns raised by the Alliance regarding the operation of FutureGen. Seliger said, “This comprehensive clean coal legislation provides the legislative authority for the Governor to enter into a contract with the Alliance, and offers the Alliance the strongest package of incentives possible for locating the project in Texas.” Senate Bill 1461 also provides the Alliance long-term liability protection for CO2 injection because the state of Texas will take ownership of the gas and arrange for the construction, operation, maintenance and monitoring of CO2 pipelines and monitoring programs. It also gives the Alliance indemnity, since the Railroad Commission of Texas will take ownership of the CO2 at the FutureGen gate, acquiring the right, title and interest in the CO2 and hold the owner/operator harmless. There are also case law safeguards, since Texas has a 30-year history of safely and permanently storing large volumes of CO2 in subsurface injections. The Odessa site is among four finalists in the national competition to host FutureGen. The other finalists are in Jewett, Texas and two in Illinois. The Alliance is expected to announce the winning site by the end of 2007. FutureGen is a $1.5 billion initiative to build the world’s first near-zero emissions fossil fuel energy facility. Co-sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy and the FutureGen Alliance, FutureGen will gasify coal to generate electricity and produce hydrogen and capture and store carbon dioxide. The technologies demonstrated, refined and commercialized at this prototype power plant will lead to the deployment of similar clean energy facilities throughout the world – and help to shape the global energy future. (Editor’s Note: The foregoing material is from a press release from Senator Seliger’s office.)
School to Buy Computers, Vehicles
The GCISD board met July 16 and approved purchase of several vehicles. A 53-passenger bus ($69,900) will replace a 1989 model with 250,000 miles, and a second 18-passenger bus ($46,000) will be added to the fleet as a travel vehicle, helping move the school further away from the use of vans. Other vehicles slated for purchase are: a Gator utility vehicle ($6,950), a Grasshopper mower ($9,300) and a Mercury Marquis from White Motor Co. ($22,381). (Other car bids were from Robert Hall Chevrolet and Stephenville Chevrolet.) The total of $154,531 will be taken from the transportation portion of the bond monies. The 18-passenger bus actually holds 14 after two rear seats are removed and an equipment cage installed. The old 53-passenger bus will have the school’s name removed, and will be placed on a statewide bid list, rather than being sold locally. Bond funds will also be used to upgrade computers, and to provide “smart boards” and computer-connected projectors as teaching aids in classrooms. The computers in one of the three computer labs will be replaced, with the used machines going to upgrade classrooms. Technology coordinator Jerry Cannon plans to get things on a three-year rotation plan, so that the oldest equipment is phased out on a regular basis. Lockers Can Wait, For Now The board decided to hold off on replacing the high school lockers ($16,240) for the time being. They will make a decision on the lockers after other improvements are complete. The board hired Denice Bradbury as a science teacher (see following profile.) A change was made to the school’s student handbooks to require that a minimum of two grades be recorded in each class each week, with the exception of band and P.E. The rule applies to all levels, elementary and secondary. Several other, mostly minor, changes were made, so both parents and students should read the new handbooks carefully. With only one bid submitted, the First National Bank of Sterling City was chosen as the school’s official depository for the next two years. Single maturity time deposits of more than $100,000 will draw interest at .50 below the “asked” rate on the T-Bill closest to the maturity date of the deposit. The bank requires that the school keep a $1million monthly average on deposit. All bank services are provided at no extra charge.
Bradbury to Teach Science
Denice Bradbury will be the new science teacher at GCHS. She completed a B.S. with a Life Science Composite from Hardin-Simmons University in August 2007 and was a member of Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society. Bradbury worked as a lab technician in the HSU Biology Department in the spring of 2007, was a substitute teacher in the Westbrook schools from 2004-2006, and did microteaching at Cooper High School in Abilene in the spring of 2006. She was a youth minister at Calvary Baptist Church in Colorado City from 2002-2005 and was employed at First National Bank of Colorado City from 1986-1998.
From the Schoolhouse
• Scheduled events: Aug. 15 – 16 Late Registration; Aug.18 - JV and Varsity scrimmage vs. Ira in Garden City, 9:30 a.m.; Aug. 20 – 24 Teacher In-service; Aug. 23 – Meet the Bearkats, 7 p.m. in the auditorium; Aug 24 – JV/Varsity scrimmage at Wellman-Union, 6 p.m.; Aug. 27 – First day of classes for students; Sept. 1 Garden City vs. Calvert – Hico Super Saturday, 1:30 p.m.; Sept. 3 - Labor Day Holiday.
Next Issue Date and Deadline
The next issue of the Glasscock County News will be Sept.12. The deadline for that issue is Sept.10, 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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