BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
WASHINGTON COUNTY, IOWA
REGULAR MEETING OF TUESDAY, AUGUST 6, 2024
At 9:00 am Chair Richard Young called the meeting to order in regular session, Courthouse Chambers. Items on the agenda included: discussion/action re: method of determining compensation for Washington County elected officials; discussion/action re: establishment of a Washington County Wind Energy Ordinance; personnel change request–Conservation; acknowledgment of K-9 fund donation. Supervisors Bob Yoder, Jack Seward Jr., Marcus Fedler, and Stan Stoops were also present.
All motions were passed unanimously unless noted otherwise.
On motion the Board voted to approve the agenda as published.
The Board directed its attention to the matter of determining the level of compensation in the future for Washington County elected officials. To provide background on the matter Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds signed into effect legislation that ended county compensation boards in Iowa as of July 1, 2024. Prior to that date such compensation boards, whose membership consisted of representatives selected by county elected officials, would meet and make formal salary recommendations for the elected officials for the coming fiscal year. The approved legislation also included language stating that Supervisors could take action to reinstate the county compensation boards albeit with some changes. In turn the Supervisors could approve the recommendations as presented or otherwise lower the recommendations. It was noted that the Iowa State County Treasurers Association, the Iowa County Recorders Association, the Iowa County Attorneys Association, the Iowa State Association of County Auditors, and the Iowa State Association of Counties all opposed the new legislation. Discussion began with Yoder expressing that he preferred the former compensation board method and explained that he was uncomfortable with the concept of determining his own level of compensation. Seward stated that all but two of the individuals he had spoken with stated that they did not have a clear understanding of the former compensation board process while the remaining two individuals described the process as being antiquated and a complete waste of time since the Supervisors ultimately determine the amount of any wage increases. Seward also said that he and his fellow supervisors are entrusted by their constituents to make good decisions and he reminded that the new legislation includes “show your work” verbiage which requires either the Supervisors or the Compensation Board, if reinstated, to provide in clear written form the basis of their recommendations. With regard to the compensation for Sheriff Jared Schneider, Fedler reminded that “Back the Blue” legislation in Iowa eliminates much of the Board’s decision making authority as the legislation requires that sheriffs be paid so as to be “comparable to the salaries paid to professional law enforcement administrators and command officers of the state patrol, the Division of Criminal Investigation, the Department of Public Safety, and police chiefs employed by cities of similar population as to that of the county”. Young commented that he had spoken to eight individuals who all favored the former compensation board process and the transparency that it provides. In response to Young, Seward questioned why so few citizens attended compensation board meetings if transparency was so vital. Seward suggested that discussion related to compensation for elected officials take place at a regular weekly meeting of the Supervisors. Recorder Teresa Mangold voiced that input from citizens provided value to the compensation process for elected officials and she added that she had no strong preference as to which of the two methods were selected. Likewise, County Attorney Nathan Repp expressed no strong preference. Auditor Dan Widmer shared that no matter which method was ultimately chosen, elected officials should perform their own research and share the results with the Supervisors. Deputy Auditor Tammy Stewart opined that involvement from Washington County taxpayers provides value to the process. On motion the Board voted, effective July 1, 2024, to assume the duties that were previously performed by the Washington County Compensation Board. The vote on the motion: Aye-Young, Seward, Stoops, Fedler; Nay-Yoder.
The Board took up discussion concerning the establishment of a Washington County Wind Energy Ordinance with such discussion revealing that various components of such an ordinance were still in need of further discussion and consideration. Such components included the rights of neighboring landowners who do not wish to have a windmill located on their property, set-back distances and separation distances with regard to property lines and nearby homes, the impact of wind turbines on the value of neighboring properties, potential property value guarantees for properties located near wind turbines, and the impact of future Iowa legislation related to wind energy whose passage seems likely. The Board voted, with regard to a proposed Washington County Wind Energy Conversion Ordinance, to include wording stating that the set-back distance for wind turbines from property lines shall be two times the height of the windmill and to proceed with the necessary steps to establish a formal ordinance for consideration. During discussion prior to the vote Young stated that he was uncomfortable with wording contained in the ordinance that guaranteed property values while Yoder voiced his opinion that the majority of Washinton County citizens were opposed to windmills. The vote on the motion was as follows: Aye-Seward, Stoops, Fedler; Nay-Young, Yoder.
On motion the Board voted to acknowledge, and authorize the Chair to sign, a personnel change request from Conservation for the hiring of Seth Adam as a FT non-exempt Ranger Technician eff. August 8, 2024, at the rate of $30.42/hr. It was noted that Adam will begin his employment with 40 hours of vacation, 40 hours of sick leave banked, and will accrue vacation at 4.62 hours (2nd tier) per pay period.
On motion the Board voted to acknowledge a $150.00 donation to the Washington County K-9 Fund received from Cassandra J. Boulton.
At 10:05 am the Board voted to adjourn.
ATTEST: s/DANIEL L. WIDMER, Washington County Auditor
Published in The News, Thursday, August 29, 2024 L-175
