Commissioners approve audit

At the February 20 Hot Springs County Commissioners board meeting, Jason Lund of Carver, Florek & James CPAs presented their audit results for fiscal year 2023. Lund explained their procedures and processes involved in the audit. Lund was pleased to report that they could not “identify any significant deficiencies or material weaknesses…good kudos to management here and it takes a lot of time for us to get through and weather through with these audits.” Lund recognized County Clerk Becky Kersten and her staff for their thorough work in preparing their information for the audit.

Chairman Tom Ryan also discussed with Lund their challenges in staying compliant with Covid funds when they were given the money without guidance until later. Chairman Ryan described it as a “crazy time.” The commissioners voted and passed the approval to accept the financial audit.

The commissioners held a public hearing regarding the Jeffrey Powell Minor Subdivision taking 37.64 acres, dividing them into five residential lots of various sizes. There were no public comments given. The commissioners then went through their checklists and did not find any issues that disqualified the application. They then voted and passed the approval of the subdivision.

The commissioners held a public hearing regarding the Porath Land Use Change application from agricultural to commercial for the use of short-term rentals. There were no public comments given.

The Poraths have property in the Wind River Canyon. Regarding the site history, this property originally held two structures, which were removed by the applicants several years ago. The pre-existing water system and septic system were retained, and the applicants propose to use them for the toilet and laundry facilities serving the cabins. The property also contains two cabins for the personal use of the owners and their daughter, a water treatment shed, a storage shed, and an RV trailer; these are not proposed as rentals and are not part of this application. 

The Porath originally filed an application with the LUPC in 2021 and received some concerns from neighbors at that time. The Poraths withdrew their application in 2021 and now are resubmitting. The commissioners went through their checklists and found that all the conditions were properly met. They did not find any concerns. Therefore, the commissioners voted and passed the approval of the land use change for the Porath’s property.

Daniel Porath was present at the meeting, and the commissioners thanked him for going through the process. Commissioner Phil Scheel said that their cabin rental business in the Wind River Canyon is an “awesome opportunity.” 

The commissioners held a public hearing for the Budget Amendment Fiscal Year 2023-2024 and a Request for Approval of Resolution and Order No. 2024-04, Budget Amendment No. 1. County Clerk Becky Kersten explained the amendments and said, “We transferred approximately $47,000 out of the project management line item and $7,000 of that into the Clerk budget so that we can purchase a copier.”

Kersten continued and said, “Much of the money, $26,501, was transferred into the planner line items to cover the additional payroll, payroll taxes, and benefits associated with adding the additional duties to his position (project manager). $11,850 was moved into the Arca Search line item because they found many more documents to scan than what they had proposed to us but not budgeted for. And then the remainder of that $47,000 moved into emergency expenditures.”

Chairman Ryan asked for public comments. None were given. The commissioners voted and passed the approval of the budget amendment.

The commissioners gave an update from the Wyoming County Commissioners Association Legislative Meeting. Some of the topics that were discussed were property tax matters and how mills are different from county to county. They also discussed how voting among the commissioners was handled in the meeting. Governor Mark Gordon also spoke for about one hour to the groups of commissioners. Chairman Ryan also discussed how human resources in counties can have challenges due to elected county officials in various offices and staff in those departments sometimes struggling with “consistency”. 

Stephanie Conrad gave the Emergency Management report and said that she was working with Aimee Kay regarding school evacuation plans for all three school buildings.

Conrad purchased 60 senior emergency buckets and took them to the D Street Apartment a few weeks ago. They knocked on every door individually and explained what the buckets were for.

County Treasurer Julie Mortimore presented a request for the Approval of Resolution #2024-05 State of Investment Policy Per Wyoming State Statute 9-4-831 (h). The commissioners voted and passed the approval of the resolution. 

In other business, the commissioners voted and passed the approval of re-appointing Joe Moon to the Big Horn Basin Nature and Discovery Center (BHBNDC) as a board member. Moon is the pastor of the River of Life Church and has served multiple terms on the BHBNDC board.

The commissioners discussed their support letter for the State Wide Shooting Complex. No formal action was taken as they previously voted on offering their support to the effort. During their discussion, Commissioner Phil Scheel said there were “some pretty awesome recommendations”.

The commissioners voted and passed the approval of the Ratification of WYDOT Aeronautics, Wyoming Airport Improvement Program Certificate of State Grant-in-Aid for $5,943.