Safety program paying dividends

It’s reaping rewards for working safe. That’s what has happened for the county budget as premiums for workers’ compensation insurance continue to go down.

At its Thursday meeting Commission President Les Boggs reported that workers’ comp insurance will cost the county $22,000 less this year than in 2010, or a 2011 premium of $454,711. Over the past five years annual premium payments have gone down $180,000.

Boggs attributed that to Commission Administrator Tami Meade’s establishing a safety program with the bureau of workers’ compensation that gives the county a discount and a county-wide safety committee plus requiring each department to cover their own workers’ compensation claims.

“They are more frugal and diligent in telling people ‘Safety. Safety,’” Boggs said.

Commissioners also approved seeking for an opinion from the county prosecutor on the minimum requirements for reclassifying a private road as a county thoroughfare.

“The way I read the law we don’t have a lot of leeway,” County Engineer Doug Cade told the commission.

Right now it is Cade’s understanding that for the county to take over a roadway, there must be at least five residences within the first 300 feet and at least one residence or business every subsequent 200 feet.

“We may be limited as to the help we can give,” Boggs said.

A request for $148,000 by County Treasurer Stephen Burcham for his 2011 real estate delinquent tax budget was only partially approved. Commissioners only appropriated $70,000 as that was the amount certified in the budget.

“They use this for various things when they have tax sales,” Boggs said. “Last year it seemed like they were (always) having some kind of sale. It depleted that fund.”

The request from Burcham included $55,000 for salaries, $45,000 for supplies; $2,000 for travel and $25,000 for advertising.

Boggs said if the county received additional revenues, not budgeted, that appropriation could be increased if the budget commission, made up of the county treasurer, county auditor and county prosecutor, certified the new amount.

Commission also approved giving the contract for billing services for the county emergency medical services to MCA of Huntington, W.Va., that was hired earlier this year on a short-term contract. MCA will receive 8 percent of what is collected. About three weeks ago the EMS received its Medicaid billing number that enabled the EMS to back bill that governmental agency for certain runs.

County EMS Director Buddy Fry estimates that amount to be approximately $40,000. Emergency runs continue to average 27 daily.

In other action the commissioners:

• Executed contracts for material for the county engineer’s office from Ferguson Waterworks and Waterloo Coal;

• Received a notice that the Army Corps of Engineer is taking public comments on The Point intermodal transfer facility project through May 14;

• And approved a demolition agreement on property on County Road 4.