07-27-2023 Budget Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

Commission Minutes—July 27, 2023 5757 County Ambulance and Rescue Association was present and said he is on the Harwood Quick Response Unit and a majority of the license plates from incidents he serves are from North Dakota, he said he does not have specific information on if they are Cass County residents. Mr. Peterson asked if $280,000 would be an adequate amount of funding for 2024. Mr. Jager said rural ambulance workers are considered volunteers with minimal pay. He said people now do not want to volunteer, people expect to get paid for their time. He said ambulance services have considered paying minimum wage, however struggle with funding. Mr. Jager said the County's support is needed and appreciated. MOTION, passed Mr. Breitling moved and Mr. Kapitan seconded to approve the 2024 preliminary budget for Rural Ambulance and Rescue Association with $280,000 in funding. On roll call vote, the motion carried unanimously. 11. VALLEY WATER RESCUE Pete Fendt, Valley Water Rescue President was present to review the 2024 budget. The request is for $42,631 the same amount since 2015. Mr. Fendt said in addition to the regular 2024 budgeted amount, Valley Water Rescue is requesting an additional $24,000 to properly store life supporting equipment. He said the cost would cover rental fees and utility costs. He said currently the equipment is stored at the Cass County Highway Department and gets dusty and dirty. He said the equipment needs to be stored in a clean, climate-controlled building. He said the equipment was moved outside of the Highway Department this spring during sand bagging efforts which poses a risk to the expensive equipment. He said the equipment includes two boats and trailers and a pickup truck. Mr. Fendt said Valley Water Rescue has had this concern for a few years and no alternative storage solutions have been provided. Mr. Wilson said there are funds in the 2023 Building Fund for a storage facility at the County's Law Enforcement Center that includes space for Valley Water Rescue's equipment. He said a request for proposal was put out for the project and came back with no qualified bidders. Mr. Wilson said the County has had internal discussions and is going to consult an architect to assess the square footage for the building to be sure it meets all the needs of the Sheriff's Office before proceeding. Mr. Peterson said the County and other entities associated with Valley Water Rescue have various storage facilities, he said storage space for Valley Water Rescue needs to be allocated. MOTION, passed Mrs. Scherling moved and Mr. Breitling seconded to approve the 2024 preliminary budget for the Valley Water Rescue as presented. On roll call vote, the motion carried unanimously. 12. LAKE AGASSIZ REGIONAL COUNCIL Amber Metz, Executive Director of Lake Agassiz Regional Council (LARC) was present to review the 2024 budget. The request is for $30,000, up from $28,350 in 2023. Ms. Metz said the 5% budget increase was requested to match a federal grant opportunity. She said LARC continues to work on many state and federal grant opportunities. MOTION, passed Mr. Breitling moved and Mr. Kapitan seconded to approve the 2024 preliminary budget for Lake Agassiz Regional Council as presented. On roll call vote, the motion carried unanimously. 13. METROPOLITAN COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS Paul Griffith, Executive Director of the Metropolitan Council of Governments (Metro COG) was present to review the 2024 budget. The 2024 request is for $12,796 to cover local dues for Metro COG's operations and overhead and $149 for the local funds for internal operations based on a formula approved by the Metro COG Policy Board. Mr. Griffith said Metro COG will transition to a transportation management area (TMA) on October 1, 2023 and there will be changes in funding. He