20 December 2011 Dearborn County Council Meeting Notes

20 December 2011 Dearborn County Council Meeting Notes

Present: Dennis Kraus. Sr., President, Dan Lansing, Jim Hughes, Liz Morris, Maynard Barrett, Bryan Messmore, and Bill Ullrich.

Also present: Gayle Pennington, Auditor and Bill Ewbank, County Coordinator and Andy Baudendistel, County Attorney.

Steve Renihan- DCRSD -Sewer Board- and Bob Hrezo, Engineer, passed out information to Council and an update on all projects and progress of DCRSD. He apologized for absence last month. He wants to get the contingency fund back up to $10,000. He gave an accounting of their expenditures and they only have $818 in it now. They need to have money available for things that come up during the year. Collected $99,000 from customers from Highridge Plant- so that is in a separate account at UCB. He thinks they should keep that money for future maintenance and repair on that plant. It is a county asset. They could turn it into the sewer account and then have to come back to council for it. Kraus said they can deal with that in January. $23,682 has been collected on Stewart road and Cole Lane. The West Harrison TIF is almost done. Hueseman Road is proceeding. Morris motioned and Ullrich 2nd to approve $9200 to that account. Messmore voted Nay- rest Ayes- passed.

Sheriff Kreinhop- wants to replace his civil process server. He wants the individual he has selected to be approved. He hadn’t even advertized it yet. Kraus said the committee recommends 7 days to advise council. No one backed Kraus up on this- and apparently the council doesn’t enforce the county policy to advertize positions and open them to the public. Council approved it anyway.

IRS requires an amendment to the police pension and it has no financial impact on the county. Baudendistel has reviewed- no problem. Merit board pres. And Kreinhop has signed. Council approved Kraus’s signature on these amendments.

Medical expenses for inmates- the fee schedule was amended and commissioners approved and now it needs Council president’s signature. Approved.

Liz Morris presented the 911 fee before in November and Pennington pulled off the fees for 2010. AIC (Association of Indiana Counties) suggested language for funding for gas tax revenues and 911 issues. Morris said this is asking our reps to approve legislation to addresses these issues. Council approved signing the 2 resolutions.

Pennington also asked Council to set their January organizational meeting for board appointments etc. . Council will meet the 3rd Tuesday at 6:30 in January.

Kraus said he will take the SEIRPC (SE Indiana Regional Planning Commission) spot now that they want an actual Council member and not Mark McCormack as before. Council approved Kraus Sr.

Council approved a 2.5% raise for county employees, with Bill Ullrich abstaining. [NOTE: Apparently he recognizes a conflict of interest since he is a county employee. Messmore-Victim’s Advocate Coordinator- did not abstain. Perhaps his and his boss’s positions are not paid by the county?]

Council approved the October Budget adoption minutes. Lansing and Hughes weren’t at the meeting so they abstained.

Andy Baudendistel- County attorney- searched ordinances- 1998- written motion indicating a 7-0 aye vote was to approve the riverboat savings. It was never passed as an ordinance.
Kraus found it reaffirmed in 2003 and 2006 minutes. It was also in newspaper articles.
You can change it even if it were in a written ordinance.
To change how it’s done now would be a simple vote. [NOTE: The county attorney also works in Judge Sally Blankenship’s drug court and his mother works in the probation dept. He’s juggling a lot of duties and allegiances here.]

Morris said- that even now we can vote to spend it as a simple majority.

Lansing said it was disrespectful to those who sat here for the last 15 years. Lansing doesn’t think it’s good to rely on the riverboat for everything.

Morris said that once we get economic development then we won’t be relying on riverboat. (Is she saying the jail expansion is economic development?)

Lansing noted ongoing yearly costs of the jail- what’s paying for that?

Morris said we can’t ignore the problem. It’s about safety.

Ullrich said the best case scenario you move the people thru as fast as you can. The judges are trying to do that. He said the programs to help people- we don’t have enough space for all of that. If they keep the sentences- then we can send them up state. We can house Ohio county prisoners again. We used to do federal prisoners. [NOTE: Ullrich works for the sheriff’s dept and transports prisoners. Should he be in this discussion or vote?]

Lansing brought up Gardner’s article and thinks that we are doing things differently than most other counties.

Morris said- we passed this last month.

Ullrich’s main concern is no additional impact to the taxpayers.

Jim Hughes would like to let the people vote on it.

Ullrich said the federal prisoners were the best ones you could have.

Jim Hughes said we shouldn’t be in the business of housing prisoners.

Messmore said the plan is not to house other prisoners. [NOTE: Then why do the sheriff and Ullrich keep bringing that idea up in campaigning and meetings?]

Ullrich said we need to do Ohio County.

Lansing asked RQAW rep what the 72 extra beds that would go to the empty shell built now would cost. He said a few 100,000s of dollars.

Tom Cheek former councilman of 12 years. He said at the bottom of every riverboat sheet at budget hearings the 7 vote requirement was written and signed. The charettes a few years back – the jail surfaced as the top project. The project was at $14 million. Now it’s whittled down. And it still says that won’t achieve the goal. He challenged Morris on why not put it to the voters? Why are we afraid to do that? There is a presidential election. He also said that 3 people are involved in these decisions that shouldn’t be- conflict of interest. [NOTE: He’s referring to Commissioner Shane McHenry, Councilman Bill Ullrich, and Councilman Bryan Messmore- all employed by the county sheriff and/or prosecutor. McHenry also has a mother (probation) and step- father (sheriff’s dept) employed there. He's also juggling a lot of allegances.]

Judy Howard- Aurora- Harmony Hills- spoke passionately and directly- I’m sick of hearing that it won’t cost the taxpayer. It’s a bold false lie and you know it. There is no such thing as a free lunch. I hope that if you learn nothing else- you learn that this is not the truth. Mr. Ullrich- you stated that this won’t cost anything additional to the taxpayer. What if you don’t have the base anymore? I’m 73 years old and I’ve gone thru hell and heaven in my life. I hope that you know what you are putting on the taxpayers. There a lot of inmates in this county. It isn’t free- that $15 million in the savings account- is the people’s money. It’s the citizen’s of this county. I want you to promise that you won’t lie again.

Liz Morris- I’d like the record to show that I resent being called a liar.

Stephanie Libbert- taxpayer. I have questions and I get now answers. Why do we have 2 bonds in this county? It makes it harder for people to get out of jail.

A surety bond is tacked on to cash bond when they are from out of county per Ullrich.


Libbert- why not show us you are trying something besides just adding jail space? What about first time offenders? What about crimes with victims?She told a story of a woman writing bad checks at several stores including hers and when she sought help with the prosecutor- it wasn’t done. You are not protecting us- and she was a victim at this point. Why did you not put it to a vote of the people? How can you represent us if you do not ask? I work every day- I pay taxes so that you can take them from me. Use survey monkey- and modern technology to get in touch with your people. Get your own blog. Grant money is tax money too. Government creates their own problem as you all demonstrate. I agree with the whole conflict of interest here.

Ullrich said he does not have a conflict of interest. A conflict of interest is when you have a monetary interest and I don’t have one in this project. [NOTE: YIKES!!!]

Jerry Jacobsen- Greendale- we have bad economic times and the Riverboat Revenue is used as a buffer against these times. It’s very important that you keep it. If you bond it you get 90 cents on the dollar. Do we need the jail expanded? If you are going to spend your cushion I think you need to put it to the people. That would be the politically expedient way.

Cindy Luchow- I think you should stick to the 7 or at least 6 to decide. I would be interested to see the statistics on the jail. Once charged with a felony or ending up in jail – they will lose their jobs. I think the conflict of interest is a valid point- you need to think about that.

Harley Ohmansiek - Aurora- has there been any discussion of a federal mandate if they force building a jail? It hasn’t happened yet.

Tom Cheek- clarification- DLGF looks at Riverboat money as a tax- a gaming tax. But it’s not a property tax.

Morris reading from a prepared motion said the current jail is a maximum security facility built by federal judge’s mandate. We should take matters into our own hands. I would like to put it in the minutes that the county attorney said this should be in our minutes. Morris and Barrett motioned to make the simple vote to get it out of 197 savings. Four ayes- Morris, Barrett, Ullrich, and Messmore ayes. Lansing, Hughes, and Kraus, Nay.

[NOTE: Morris clearly ties the change in vote for 197 savings account to the jail expansion. In this vote and prior discussion are two people who ethically should not be part of the jail expansion decision. Their paycheck and their boss’s favor is part of the system. If ever there were an argument about county employees also being elected officials- this is it.]

The actual funding of the jail project will be on the January agenda. The council will decide how MUCH of the Savings account will be spent on this. They could do portions of the savings and a bond or tax. They could do all savings.

Meeting adjourned at 8:05 PM.

Christine Brauer Mueller
Lawrenceburg Township