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Glasscock County News
School Board Approves Laptop Project; Discusses Bond Issue
At their meeting Aug. 11, the GCISD board approved a bid from Hewlett-Packard for $336,000 to purchase laptop computers for all elementary and secondary school students. In his presentation to the board, the HP representative stressed the importance of professional development for the staff if the “Laptop for Students” program is to be successful. The board discussed a bond to fund the laptop project and other possible improvements. Those items include classroom improvements, improved lighting and a sound system for the auditorium, new lockers in the high school, additional teacher housing, transportation, and a new gym estimated to cost $6M. Aug. 26 is the last day to call for a bond election for the November general election. The board approved Aug. 25 as the date for the public hearing on the tax rate, which will be followed by a budget meeting and setting of the tax rate. The last day to file for a position on the school board is Aug. 26. Four positions are available with incumbent members Diane Havlak, Tibby Niehues, and Kevin Hirt filing for reelection. Karla Hoelscher is not seeking reelection. Elementary School Principal Randy Gartman, when presenting goals for the year, said teachers will use Saxon Math in K – 5. Secondary School Principal Misty Kinnibrugh said both the elementary and the high school were named as “Recognized” and the plan is to improve on both. Teachers will receive extra training on TEKS. She said students enrolled for the fall semester at the end of May, so only minor changes will be made to schedules when school starts. The board approved the appointment of Charlene Belew, Rebel Royall, and Warren Multer as adjunct faculty for the 2008-2009 school year. No certified person has applied for the business teacher position, which will be filled by existing staff members until a certified person is hired. Superintendent Steve Long says teachers’ weeklong in-service begins Aug. 18 and school will start on Aug. 25. Handbook Changes Approved The board approved the Student and Faculty Handbook with the following updates: Elementary Student Handbook Changes: 1) Detention will be before or after school for thirty minutes, Monday – Friday. Teachers assigning detention will monitor the students for the detention time period. 2) Cell phones and other electronic devices collected by staff will require a $15 fee to have the item returned. 3) School sponsored trip information and guidelines. 4) Internet usage form attached to back. Secondary School Handbook Changes: 1) Detention will be before or after school for thirty minutes, Monday – Friday. 2) GCHS will no longer sponsor a junior-senior prom; football and basketball concession income will apply toward a junior class trip. 3) Cell phones and other electronic devices collected by staff will require a $15 fee to have the item returned to the student. 4) Tardy policy – 1-3 tardies, no consequences; 4-9 tardies, detention; 10+ tardies, in school suspension. Tardies will be accumulated for the semester; at the beginning of the new semester, the tardy count will start over. 5) Students who bypass the filtering software on school computers will be assigned 1 week of in-school suspension.
Emergency Phone Service Now Active
The Connect-CTY telephone service is active in Glasscock County, managed by the Glasscock County Sheriff’s Department. The service allows emergency messages to be sent by telephone calls to county citizens and also provides paging to county volunteers. The service is paid for by Glasscock County and there is no cost to residents. The county’s cost is $250 initial set-up, $1,885 for the first year and $1,633 per year thereafter. The system’s notification database includes residents’ home phone number, and the phone number of county businesses. The following is a list of Frequently Asked Questions regarding the service. This information is provided by the NTI Group, which operates Connect-CTY. For more information about the service, call the Glasscock County Sheriff’s office, 432/354-2361.
The Connect-CTY service allows authorized county leaders to create and rapidly disseminate time-sensitive messages to every telephone number stored in the notification database. With the Connect-CTY service, authorized users can send thousands of messages in minutes. Only authorized officials are allowed access to the system.
• How does the service work? Authorized officials record a voice message that is then delivered quickly to individual phones in the notification database.
• What types of messages will be sent using the service? Any message regarding the safety or welfare of the community can be disseminated using the Connect-CTY service. Examples include severe weather warnings and updates, fire warnings and updates, hazardous traffic or road conditions affecting local routes, and any other situation that could impact the safety, property, or welfare of our citizens.
• Is my telephone number included in the notification database? The intention and hope is that every residence and commercial facility in the community be included in the notification database. For businesses, only one main phone number is stored. Residents may have more than one number in the database.
• May I use a cell phone as my notification database listing?
Yes,
we can accept cell phone numbers in the database. You must request that your
cell number be included. • What precautions are being taken to protect personal information? Connect-CTY™ is a service of The NTI Group, Inc. (NTI). NTI takes security and privacy concerns very seriously and does not sell, trade, lease or loan any data about our clients to any third party. From a technical perspective, we utilize multiple physical and virtual layers of firewalls to maintain data security. NTI only utilizes secure transmissions with its customers. No confidential information is ever transmitted between NTI and its customers using e-mail or FTP, but rather always utilizes either a VPN tunnel or SSL. Data is hosted in state-of-the-art facilities which require photo identification, thumb-print recognition, keyed access, and are manned 24/7 with full-security personnel. All data is encrypted prior to being placed on tape for offsite storage. NTI also retains an external, independent security firm to perform annual security audits.
• Will there be a way to positively identify incoming calls that are made by the town using the system? The caller-ID number for calls generated by the Connect-CTY service will be the same as the county judge’s number: 432-354-2382
• Will the Connect-CTY service work if I have a call screening system on my phone? There are several varieties of call screening devices that use differing protocols for screening. In general, the system has been found to work with these devices, but some may require some type of pre-programming to allow our telephone number to pass through. We may conduct periodic test to assure that messages are being delivered to numbers in the notification database.
• If I am a non-resident homeowner, what phone should be listed in the notification database? For non-residents or owners who reside out of our county, you may provide an additional phone number to be included in our database to contact during certain situations. In general, calls are sent to the primary number only, but we also have the ability to call multiple numbers for each resident or business when requested by the resident or business.
• How can I add, change, or completely remove a phone number(s) in the notification database? Send the information to the sheriff’s office via email (gcsheriff@crcom.net), USPS mail (P.O. Box239, Garden City, TX 79739) or fax (432/354-2661). Those who have Internet access can use the following URL address: https://portal.blackboardconnectcty.com/7168436
• If I have provided more than one phone number, when will they be called? Should a situation arise that requires us to contact you at multiple phone numbers, we can activate the system to place a simultaneous call to all of your numbers. In most cases, we will be sending calls only to one phone number.
• My primary phone or my second listing is a cell phone with a non-local area code. Will the Connect-CTY service call numbers outside the area? Yes. The area code does not impact whether or not a call is made.
• How does the Connect-CTY system respond to busy signals or no-answer situations? For busy signals, the call will be repeated several times in an attempt to reach you. The same is true for No-answer and Call-waiting. If the phone is answered by a message recorder, the message will be left on the answering device. If, after several attempts the call does not successfully go through, the system will stop attempting to call.
• I was not able to listen to the entire call. Is there a way to repeat the message? Yes, at the end of the message playback, simply press the star (*) key on your telephone to have it repeated in its entirety.
• I
answer the phone but the “Hello” message repeats. It then hangs up, Repeating or looping of messages happens when the system detects excessive noise in the background. This can be caused by loud radio/television volumes, people talking, or busy traffic noise. When you receive the next call, say “hello” once and turn down the volume of your radio/television or press the mute button on your telephone to allow full message delivery.
EMS Gets New Trainees
Deputy Sheriff Keith Burnett reported to the Glasscock County Commissioners’ Court Aug. 11 that 15 people have said they are interested in the Emergency Medical Technician training, but no one knows at this time how many will actually sign up. The classes will be Sept.16 – Jan. 28 and will be held in Garden City on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings from 6 – 10 p.m. Emergency Program Director Christy Seidenberger sent the court an itemized list of approximate expenses for the training. The cost is expected to be $1,500 per trainee and includes tuition, books, liability insurance, criminal background check, national registry exam, state certification exam, CPR certification, immunizations and supplies. These costs are paid by the county. Alan Dierschke said that due to the cost, Seidenberger will ask each trainee to commit to a minimum of two years’ service after certification, and require that each repay the county if he/she cannot fulfill that commitment. He said repayments could be pro-rated, or perhaps waived in the case of unavoidable circumstances. Easement Granted for Power Line The county court agreed to give an easement to Competitive Power Ventures (CPV) for an electric line that would run east/west along the south side of Section 9, Blk.34, T-4-S on the north side of County Road 110. Mike Hollister of Westwood Professional Services, representing CPV, said landowners on both sides of the county’s property had agreed to easements. He said the line is to be a single-pole, metal-post line which will be approximately 65 feet tall, similar to the Caprock Energy line that runs north and south several miles west of Garden City and crosses Highway 137 to the south. The proposed line would take a jagged route from a wind farm project south of Garden City to a 345-kilowatt transmission line some 28 miles to the north, Hollister said. The court voted to give a 20-foot easement, plus use of another 50 feet for construction only. Payment for the easement was not discussed in the court meeting. Sea Containers for County Storage The court authorized Commissioner Michael Hoch to buy two 40-foot sea containers with vents and walk-in doors. They would be located at the county barn on County Road 415 and used for storage of Warren Multer’s materials, such as chemicals and seed and for storage of courthouse material. The containers would free space upstairs in the courthouse where old documents are now stored, and allow more space for storing equipment such as lawn equipment and various supplies in the cinderblock building outside the courthouse. Commissioners discussed a new roof for the jail building. Burnett said there are multiple leaks in the tax office, jail and the apartment. The court voted to advertise for bids on a peaked, metal roof. The existing roof is flat, which commissioners did not want again. They will also get bids on moving the air conditioning system to the ground. The county’s medical insurance plan was approved, with no increase in premiums for employees. The county’s cost totals $516 per employee per month, and includes life and accident insurance. The court gave Burnett permission to buy $3,500 in software from this year’s budget. The software will help the justice of the peace coordinate her files with the sheriff’s department and reduce paperwork.
Commissioners Shape Budget
During budget work July 28 and Aug. 11, discussions of salaries took most of Glasscock County Commissioners’ time. Budget figures proposed on Aug. 11 may well be the final ones, but the tax rate will not be set and the budget will not be adopted until Sept. 8, and two public hearings will be held Aug. 25 and 29. [Call the county judge (354-2382), county treasurer (354-2415), or county clerk (354-2371) after Aug. 15 for times of these meetings.] The commissioners’ court used data compiled by Deputy Sheriff Keith Burnett regarding salaries in four adjoining counties as a basis for local salary increases. Those figures are: Upton County Judge $66,040, Commissioners $45,760, Treasurer $53,664, County/District Clerk $53,664, Sheriff $56,680, Tax Assessor $53,664; Reagan County Judge $42,273, Commissioners $31,101, Treasurer $42,273, County/District Clerk $42,273, Sheriff $50,631, Tax Assessor $42,273; Martin County Judge $52,068, Commissioners $23,913, Treasurer $38,430, County/District Clerk $38,430, Sheriff $45,240, Tax Assessor $38,430; Sterling County Judge $43,300, Commissioners $20,580, Treasurer $43,300, County/District Clerk $43,300, Sheriff $43,300, Tax Assessor $43,300. The averages for these four counties are: Judge $50,420, Commissioners $30,338, Treasurer $43,916, County/District Clerk $43,916, Sheriff, $48,462, Tax Assessor $43,916. Currently, Glasscock County pays its Judge $26,520, Commissioners $23,100, Treasurer $31,400, County/District Clerk $32,000, Sheriff/ Tax Assessor $37,100 and Tax Appraiser $15,100. Raises for Elected Officials Proposed In the proposed budget, the sheriff’s salary is set at $43,000, and each of two deputies will earn $38,800. Burnett reminded the court that the three men will be on call 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, and they get paid no overtime. He also pointed out that he has eliminated the sheriff’s office part-time dispatcher position [formerly held by his wife, Tisha Burnett], saving the county more than $12,000 per year. He said the county will now have a full-time, working sheriff’s department serving its residents. Burnett said the second deputy has been hired and will begin work Oct. 1. The tax assessor, newly separated from the sheriff’s job, will have a salary of $38,000 plus the chief appraiser’s salary of $15,100, which is set and paid by the Glasscock County Appraisal District. The deputy tax assessor will be paid $30,800, up from that position’s $27,200 last year. The county/district clerk will make $38,000, and her deputy will make $30,800, up from that position’s $27,800 last year. Longer Hours for Courthouse Offices? Commissioner Jimmy Strube said that while he wasn’t trying to tell anyone how to run his or her office, people in the county complain about the hours kept by county offices. He said the salary increases might cause people to expect longer, more convenient office hours. County Clerk Becky Batla said her office is open from 8:30 a.m. – 4 p.m. and is open through the noon hour. Tax Assessor-elect Nancy Hillger said when she holds the office officially, it will also be open 8:30 a.m. – 4 p.m. and through the noon hour. Hillger asked Strube if he had ever asked those complaining to talk directly to the person in charge of the office? He replied, “I’m just passing on what I hear.” The county judge will be paid $34,500, plus a state stipend of $15,000. The justice of the peace will have a salary of $22,000, up from $19,500 last year. (She is also paid $9,000 as the judge’s secretary.) County commissioners will make $26,100. In discussion, Commissioner Marck Schafer suggested that since the court was basing many of its salaries on Sterling County’s, it should do the same with commissioners’ pay (Sterling pays them $20,580). He added, “We shouldn’t get those commissioners’ salaries up too high, or somebody good might run.” The county treasurer will make $38,000. County Treasurer Alan Dierschke pointed out that his office and Sterling County’s are the only treasurer’s offices in the four counties surveyed without a full-time assistant. Necessity of Constable’s Job Questioned Commissioners discussed the constable’s job and salary at some length, and finally decided on a salary of $13,000, up from $10,500 and they doubled the car expense allowance to $2,400. Constable Mark Frysak had said much of his salary goes to car expenses, since he furnishes his own. Commissioners agreed that Frysak does a good job, and helped the sheriff’s office greatly during fires and traffic accidents, especially when it was short-handed. However, some question whether a constable is needed as much now that we will have a full-time sheriff and two full-time deputies. Commissioner Michael Hoch said he had checked around and found that Sterling, Reagan and Martin counties have no constables at all, and Upton County has three, who are paid no salaries, only insurance. Burnett said a constable can handle the civil part of law enforcement, but the constable’s job and the sheriff’s department’s are separate. He said here, the constable is responsible for animal control, but not livestock, and can serve civil papers such as lawsuits, divorce papers, restraining orders, etc. The total budget for the constable’s job is $29,464, including benefits. The courthouse custodian/water system operator’s salary was raised from $29,400 to $33,000 on the condition that an updated job description be written and adhered to. Bednar was to take care of that matter. Strube said people complain about the look of the courthouse yard. This salary is divided 60/40 between the county and the water system. Truck drivers on the county road crew were raised from $26,500 to $30,000; maintainer operators and a heavy equipment operator (dozer) were raised from $30,000 to $33,000. The two county extension agents were given increases of $1,500 each, bringing the FCS Agent to $17,500 and the Ag Agent to $17,000. (Most of the agents’ salaries are paid by the Texas A & M Extension System.) The court declined to allocate $30,000 for the FCS Agent a car. The Extension secretary’s part-time salary was set at $12.50 per hour, and Dierschke said she averages about 22 hours weekly. Unchanged salaries include a jail administrator (Burnett) at $2,500, two jailers (deputies) at $1,500 each, emergency program director at $6,000, three fire department chiefs at $1,200 each and county entomologist at $2,500 and a stipend for a DPS secretary of $6,000. Water System Salaries Increase The Garden City Water System Manager’s (Oscar Trevino) salary was tentatively increased $1,440 to $13,200 Aug. 11 along with those of other county employees. The system’s administrator (Alan Dierschke) got a $1,500 raise to $7,500. The system’s total income is expected to be $57,250, with budgeted expenses of $65,750, the largest of which are salaries and benefits, electricity ($18,500) and insurance ($8,500). Records management revenues from fees and interest in the county/district clerk’s office are expected to total $33,500 for the next fiscal year, up from $15,500 the previous year. Expenses are budgeted at $30,000, to take care of replacing badly worn records books, and reducing the content size of other books. Batla told the court she didn’t know how much the needed repairs to record books would cost. Her office has accumulated almost $86,000 in fees over the last several years, which is state-intended for use in these same type projects.
County To Lower Tax Rate; Revenue Goes Up
At its Aug. 11 meeting, the Glasscock County Commissioners’ Court tentatively agreed to set the 2008-2009 tax rate very near the rollback figure, but well below the previous year’s rate. Last year’s rate was $.343165 per $100 valuation, and the planned new rate is $.263400, just under the rollback of $.263451. The effective rate is $.243937. At a July 28 meeting, Commissioner Marck Schafer said taxpayers probably wouldn’t object to leaving the rate where it is for another year in order to build the county’s reserves, if they were assured the extra money would be saved and not spent. County Treasurer Alan Dierschke said the discipline of the commissioners’ court is the only guarantee of not spending revenue or reserves. Commissioner Jimmy Strube said the court has tried to stay under budget, but sometimes couldn’t, due to unforeseen problems. Last year’s tax base was $774,389,980 and the new adjusted tax base is $1,089,391,310. Revenues last year were $3,096,476; expected revenues for the coming fiscal year are $3.4 million. The county has an unencumbered fund balance (cash reserves) of $1,850,000. The tax rate will be officially set and the budget adopted at the Sept. 8 court meeting after two public hearings Aug. 25 and 29, which are required because of the increase in revenue. Times for those meetings are not yet set.
Locals participate in Texas 4-H Congress
Local 4-H’ers Whitney Kellermeier, Halie Schaefer, Marcus Cook, Amber Halfmann and Laura Halfmann were among the 283 delegates to the Texas 4-H Congress July 13-16 in Austin. “This is our premiere leadership experience for 4-H members,” said Dr. Toby Lepley, who coordinates the Congress. “It allows participants to experience in real life the lessons they have learned in history and government classes. Through this process they see very quickly the challenges our elected officials face in determining how legislation can and will affect our citizens and state. The experience builds the youth’s self-confidence and skills in negotiation and public speaking, making it a great leadership development experience.” Texas 4-H, which is the youth development program of the Texas AgriLife Extension Service, has held the Congress on alternating years for 4-H members ages 15-18 since 1980. For more information, check the 4-H Congress Web site at: http://texas4-h.tamu.edu/events/txcongress/index.html
Coleman County Needs Crafts Volunteer
In celebration of Coleman County’s Sesquicentennial, they are asking for a volunteer to create and submit an original, handcrafted Christmas ornament from each Texas county. The ornament should depict a unique, significant or recognizable aspect of the county and will hang with honor on a Christmas tree located at the Coleman County Museum in the city of Coleman throughout the 2008 holiday season alongside ornaments representing the other 253 counties in Texas. This exhibition will be displayed for the enjoyment of all Texans and will be a part of the 2008 Tour of Homes the first weekend in December. A reception is being planned for all the participating artists and their invited guests. If you are interested in crafting the ornament for Glasscock County, or for more information, contact the local Texas AgriLife Extension Agency at 354-2381.
SLVFD Gets Engine for Fire Truck
At a meeting July 28, the Glasscock County Commissioners Court learned that the St. Lawrence Volunteer Fire Department has gotten a new, $10,000 diesel engine for a fire truck. A Forest Service grant will pay up to $6,800 of the cost, with the county paying the balance. The county pays the total up front, then is reimbursed by the Forest Service. Commissioner Jimmy Strube said St. Lawrence is in line for a new fire truck, which should be ready in January. Commissioners discussed a request from Donald and Wanda Hanson to rename County Road 135 ‘Hanson Road,’ citing the family’s history in the county. Commissioner Michael Hoch said the road is in his precinct, and he doesn’t favor the change. He said a name change would create problems with existing 911 addresses, USPS addresses, etc. Hoch said the Hansons could, of course, name their private road. Commissioner Marck Schafer said he thinks private names on county roads cause problems – the signs are often stolen, he said. No action was taken. There was a brief discussion of a report from county landfill employee Wanda Roberts that Alvino Noyola had asked whether she could have metals separated when they are dumped at the north landfill. He would use some of them in a scrap metal yard he plans to build on his property along State Highway 33. Discussion centered mostly on whether such a yard would be economically viable, and no action was taken. County Judge Wilburn Bednar reported that the county is eligible for a $2,000 solid waste grant from the Permian Basin Regional Planning Commission. County Treasurer Alan Dierschke said the grant may be used in any of eight categories, including local law enforcement. At the request of the mayor of Melissa, Texas, the commissioners passed a resolution opposing the state diverting highway funds for other uses.
Briefly
• Glasscock County Senior Citizens will meet Aug. 19 for snack night and games. At the Sept. 2 meeting, fried chicken will be furnished, bring a veggie or dessert. All Glasscock Co. residents 50 years or older are invited to attend.
• Homecoming activities are scheduled for Fri., Sept. 26. The Saturday alumni gathering, which is held in alternating years, is not scheduled for this year.
• School board members will be elected at the November general election. The last day to file for a position on the board is Aug. 26. Four positions are available with incumbent members Diane Havlak, Tibby Niehues, and Kevin Hirt filing for reelection. Karla Hoelscher is not seeking reelection.
• Glasscock County is not, and has never been, under a burn ban, according to Deputy Sheriff Keith Burnett and the county commissioners’ court. Burnett asks county residents to burn trash responsibly. Also, he asks everyone to notify the sheriff’s office if doing any type of deliberate, controlled burning, so that volunteers are not sent out to what might be mistaken as a grass or wildfire.
Spotlight
• Glasscock County Sheriff/Tax Assessor Collector Royce “Booger” Pruit will retire on Sept. 30, 2008 after 46 years of service.
• Warren Multer was honored at a reception July 1 in Providence, RI, with a Superior Paper Award for co-authoring a paper entitled, “Cotton Response to Phosphorus Fertigation Using Subsurface Drip Irrigation.” The American Society of Agricultural Biological Engineers Paper Awards are selected annually from papers of engineering merit published during the prior calendar year in ASABE publications Applied Engineering in Agriculture, Transactions of the ASABE or Journal of Agricultural Safety and Health.
From the Schoolhouse
Scheduled Events:
Check the school website at: http://www.gckats.net for a schedule of current events.
Aug. 16 Football – Scrimmage Grady @ Lenorah, 9:30 a.m.; Aug. 22 - Scrimmage O’Donnell @ Garden City, 6 p.m.; Aug. 30 – Abbott @ Hico, 8 p.m.; Sept. 5 – El Paso Jesus Chapel @ GC Parents Night, 7:30 p.m.; Sept. 12 – Robert Lee @ GC, 7:30 p.m.; Sept. 19 – At Abilene Christian, 7:30 p.m.; Sept. 26 – El Paso Immanuel Christian @ GC, Homecoming, 7:30 p.m.
Obituaries
• Briana Nicole Hanson, infant daughter of Linda Torres and Josh Hanson, died Aug. 2, 2008, at Odessa Regional Medical Center and was buried at the Garden City Cemetery. In addition to her parents, she is survived by a sister, Melody Hanson of Big Spring; grandparents, Genice Ovalle of Big Spring, Donald and Wanda Hanson of Garden City, and Tina Hanson of Big Spring; great-grandparents, Betty Jo and Bruce Hanson of Midland, Inez Garza and Jesse Hernandez of Big Spring, and Gracie Porter of Big Spring; and several aunts, uncles and cousins.
• William Luke "Bill" Shumake III, 86, of Monahans, a pumper, died Thursday, August 7, 2008, in Big Spring. He was buried at Monahans Memorial Cemetery. Survivors include his wife, Jenny Lynn Shumake of Monahans; sons, William Luke Shumake IV of Austin and Phillip Lynn Shumake of Vidor; brother, James Cunningham of Midland; sister, Helen Stanley of Big Lake; two grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.
Next Issue Date and Deadline
The next issue of the Glasscock County News will be Sept. 10. The deadline for that issue is Sept. 8, 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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