OSAGE COUNTY — In their meetings last week, Osage County commissioners covered a wide range of business, from washed-out county roads and shop lighting to insurance increases.

Much conversation centered around the MoPERM increase of approximately $34,000 for the county’s property and liability insurance. Although the increase is unfortunate, Western District Commissioner Dale Logan said the county’s increase is less than what many others are seeing.

“It looked like, though, that at least we was able to save some,” said Western District Commissioner Dale Logan. “It looked like an 18% statewide increase, and he’s got us to 10%, so maybe we helped a little.”

Logan said Higginbotham agent Casey Chastain suggested the commissioners consider raising their deductibles to lower their premiums. To that end, the commissioners asked Interim Osage County Clerk Brooke Dudenhoeffer to gather information on vehicle claims. After contacting other departments, Dudenhoeffer said most vehicle deductibles were set at $500, and that the Sheriff’s Office had just three claims in 2025, and Road & Bridge had none.

Logan said he had also received data from Chastain on Sheriff’s Office claims going back to 2016.

“The sheriff’s department, since 2016, has had 43 claims,” Logan said, adding the caveat that nothing was paid out for several of those claims.

Dudenhoeffer asked whether commissioners were comfortable with higher deductibles if the numbers made sense. She pointed out that many heavier Road & Bridge vehicles already have higher deductibles and said she would make sure new 911 equipment is included.

Later in the discussion, she suggested looking at deductibles on smaller items stored in the shop. “Since we have insurance on the small things in the shop — the saws, the cinder spreader, the signal sign — just all the little things that you guys have out there, those are all $1,000 deductible,” Dudenhoeffer said. “Would it save us as well to increase that? Have we ever had a claim on any of that?”

Eastern District Commissioner Jeff Peters questioned whether some of those items needed separate coverage at all.

Dudenhoeffer said the next step is getting comparison numbers from Chastain. Peters agreed the commission needed hard numbers. Dudenhoeffer added that timing matters with budget season starting.

• Logan laid out a proposed pay scale for Road & Bridge employees and related positions, emphasizing he viewed it as a starting point for discussion. He walked through proposed Equipment Operator 1, 2, and 3 levels.

“What I thought was that the one would be like, that’s gonna be dump truck operators, and that the lower level regular, you know, culvert guys, whatever the case, type employees,” Logan said. “And then the Equipment Operator Two, that was going to be obviously dump truck driving as well, but also going to get into the skid steer and the mini and the backhoe and that kind of stuff. And then the equipment operator three, obviously, is the other two combined, along with mainly being a road grader operator.”

Logan tied the scale to years of service, matching earlier commission discussions about vesting. Commissioners agreed they would need to sit down with Treasurer Valerie Prater and run the numbers before adopting anything.

“So what we’ll need to do, from us three, is look at the numbers, make sure we can agree on all the numbers,” Logan said later in the conversation. “(Then) get with Valerie, obviously, on the budget, and we can get this set in stone with the final numbers.”

Peters replied, “I agree with all of what you just said.”

• Logan also told the other commissioners AT&T had decided to drop a claim against the county, made after Road & Bridge severed a fiber optic line they said was not buried as deeply as it should have been, going over a culvert pipe instead of underneath. Logan read from a letter AT&T sent about a damage claim tied to a cut line.

“Here it says, ‘After meticulous deliberation and exhaustive review, we have decided to cease our efforts concerning (this claim). As a result, this matter will be formally expunged from our records,” Logan said. “We greatly appreciate your understanding and cooperation regarding this decision. If you have any questions or require further fair clarification, please,” he continued, before trailing off.

Commissioners speculated that AT&T’s lawyers may have realized the company was exposed if the county started sending them all the pictures of low-hanging or road-infringing lines.

• Sheriff Michael Bonham reported that the county had secured a grant for a new truck.

“So we have been approved on the grant, $50,000 for the Blue Shield grant,” Bonham said. “We have made a deal for a 2024 brand-new one-ton that will be replacing the 2500 F250.”

Bonham explained the new unit comes fully outfitted for a price of approximately $68,000, and that the balance will be paid for by trading in the truck being replaced.

“It’s got fifth-wheel capacity, which we’ve never had,” he added.

• Bonham went on to say that traditional public law-enforcement grants are drying up.

“You can see the granting is getting less and less,” Bonham said. “They cut drug task force almost $200,000 and that’s for the whole state.”

• Bonham also cautioned commissioners about rising mental-health calls, noting a suicide at Painted Rock earlier that morning. The deceased, he said, was from Jefferson City, not an Osage County resident.

ROAD & BRIDGE

Peters started the conversation with Osage County Road and Bridge Assistant Foreman Brad Sneller with a complaint on CR 412 near Loose Creek. He described ditches dropping off three to four feet and said he worried someone would get hurt if a vehicle left the pavement there. Sneller told him, “I know where you’re talking about” and agreed the road needed shot rock and attention.

• Peters mentioned CR 401 by the vet clinic and said the speed of drivers on that road made it hard for Road & Bridge crews to work safely.

Logan asked whether there was a posted speed limit on that route, and Sneller said there was a 35 mph sign. Commissioners talked briefly about asking the Sheriff’s Office to patrol the area more often.

• There was also a brief discussion of the fact that only one boom mower was currently running. Sneller said they were trying to finish in the Folk area so they could move the mower down toward Loose Creek.

• Sneller told commissioners the fluorescent lights in the Road & Bridge building are failing and hard to replace. “They’re the old fluorescent long tube lights, and they just keep blowing,” he said.”They keep burning out one by one by one. You can’t get them anymore.”

He had a bid of approximately $2,700 from Schaefer Electric to convert the bay to LED fixtures. The commission initially talked about budgeting the project for next year, but Sneller reported there was enough left in the building line of the budget to pay for the work, and the commissioners voted to approve it.

• Sneller also told the commission that citizens stopping graders in the middle of work had become a problem. He said one operator reported people “bothering him like crazy” and that the operator was “about ready to drive away from that road.” Commissioners agreed operators shouldn’t get drawn into arguments and directed Sneller to tell grader operators to call a commissioner instead.

• Asked about equipment sales, Sneller said there had been delays listing surplus graders online. “I don’t even think he’s got it online yet,” he said. “He was supposed to come out and take different pictures.”

The equipment manager handling listings had family issues, Sneller said, and commissioners told him to let the professional service handle the listings once ready.

• The group also circled back to finishing mowing work on CR 608 and clearing brush near the old red train bridge. Logan said the county had received “multiple complaints” (14:04) about it.

• Creek rock was hauled on CR 738 (320 tons); roadwork was done on CRs 416 and 738; brush mowers was working on CRs 506 and 706; and grader operators were active as follows: G01 (CRs 509, 542, 551), G02 (CRs 713, 714, 715, 721, 722, 723), G03 (CRs 508, 551, 801, 805, 806, 808, 809, 811), G04 (CRs 611, 612, 631, 633, 634, 635, 613B), G05 (CRs 401, 402, 403, 404), and G06 (CRs 313, 314).

• Plow trucks PT29 (2014 Dodge Ram two-ton) and PT34 (2005 Ford F550) were serviced out of house.

• Contact was received from citizens regarding ditch work on CR 622, culvert installation on CR 211, culvert on CR 302, road condition on CR 303, and complaints about CR 602.

• Compliments were received about CR 303.

HEALTH DEPARTMENT

Health Department Administrator Kim Sallin reported that a new Tri-County Prevention Coalition will launch on Dec. 4, focused on suicide prevention. “We finally kind of got things lined out,” she said. “Compass has been very instrumental in that, and that’s been a great organization getting that kind of up and going.”

She said the coalition’s kick-off meeting would include Osage County participation.

The open meeting will take place from 1-3 p.m. in the Dogwood Room at the Compass location at 3515 Amazonas Dr., in Jefferson City.

• Sallin also asked permission to close the Health Department the Friday after Thanksgiving, even if the governor does not designate the day a state holiday. “I was hoping that we could just, for staffing purposes, go ahead and plan on doing that,” she said.

Commissioners agreed, but stipulated the closure would be without pay unless the governor made the closure official. “If the governor doesn’t declare it a holiday, then it would be without pay,” said Presiding Commissioner Darryl Griffin.

The commissioners also asked Sallin to make sure the closure is well publicized in advance.

• Sallin confirmed she had signed the snow removal contract for this winter, saying, “I did not receive any bids from any other company.”

Logan said he preferred a multi-year agreement with the same local contractor, Triple A Enterprises, to simplify the process.

“I’d like to see you do a contract with him for like two or three years where you don’t have to mess with it every year,” Logan said.

Sallin agreed, calling the company “absolutely fantastic,” and complimenting their responsiveness and follow up.

• She also updated the commission on a partnership with the University of Missouri’s Master of Public Health Program, whose students are conducting a health study in Osage County.

“They are coming here this afternoon,” she said. “They’ve already worked on the issue, done all the research to see what the specific health issues are most prevalent in our county.” Sallin said the students would tour Osage County, then the Health Department.

911/Emergency Management

Osage County 911/EMA Director Ron Hoffman reported new recording equipment is installed and operational. “It should be recording all the county lines,” he said.

Hoffman said the upgrade was funded through a state grant to convert dispatch systems to VoIP. However, he said the project had been delayed by an Ameren permit. “We’ve had a permit request in for two months, or two and a half months, to bring the fiber line across their electric poles,” Hoffman said. “They haven’t gotten it to us.”

• He said the dispatch center’s headsets, in service for 20 years, were nearing end of life. “I’m going to have to start phasing in new headsets,” Hoffman said. “They’re redesigning them, so they said the end of life — no more batteries or parts — is coming up at the end of the year.”

• Commissioners also questioned Hoffman about phone system problems with the county’s non-emergency lines. Logan asked whether he was aware of issues getting through extensions. Hoffman said, “I think it’s just something to do with the phone system,” and that Floodplain Administrator Andi Rice was working with the vendor. He said, in his opinion, the system had “too many options” and sent too many calls to dispatch.

“Everything is geared right back to 911 dispatch as if we’re the operator, and we don’t have time to explain to them why the Extension office is busy,” he said.

• Hoffman said he had hired a new dispatcher from Belle, who would start before upcoming CAD training from Nov. 11–13.

• He also confirmed the new siren at Rich Fountain was performing better than the old one. “That thing gets out way better than the old one,” Hoffman said. “It’s in a better spot. It’s bigger, more powerful.”

• To improve employee well-being, Hoffman said the department had added a recliner in the dispatch center’s quiet room for staff to decompress after a difficult call. “If somebody has a headache and they need to kind of get away or maybe decompress from a bad call, we have now an interior place to go,” he said. “You can either lay down or sit in that recliner.”

FINANCIAL

• An income report for the County Clerk for the month of October showed a monthly total of $277, including Liquor License ($162), Notary ($75), Plat Books ($35), Election ($0.50), and Misc/CC ($4.50).

• The end-of-month bank balances for October showed a total of $14,185,413.49, including ARPA Funds ($109,360.70, which has all been allocated), AS23 - Assessment ($221,863.91), AX08 - Annex Building ($332,747.76), BG89 - Building & Grounds ($230,179.06), CC55 - Conceal Carry ($7,112.29), CI88 - Capitol Infrastructure ($1,493,585.12), DS61 - DSSSF Fund ($215), ES48 - Election Service ($17,870.34), FC46 - Family Court ($33,315.73), GR01 - General Revenue ($1,444,026.60), HD23 - Health Department ($236,909.60), IS63 - Inmate Security Fund ($16,654.21), JR60 - Jail Renovation ($2,443,839.17), LACTF - Local Assistance ($113,800.95), LE25 - Law Enforcement ($1,027.29), LERF - Law Enforcement Restitution ($6,362), LF38 - Civil Fees Fund ($3,993.33), JR60 - Jail Renovation ($2,443,839.17), LACTF - Local Assistance ($113,800.95), LE25 - Law Enforcement ($1,027.29), LERF - Law Enforcement Restitution ($6,362), LF38 - Civil Fees Fund ($3,993.33), OE22 - Emergency Management ($78,186.28), OPIO - Opioid Settlement ($104,082.10), PA18 - Bad Check ($15,368.82), PA26 Prosecutor Training ($5,361.86), PB21 - Pentecostal Bridge ($1,531,400.61), RB02 - Road & Bridge ($568,540.52), RF36 - Retirement ($77.16), RF42 - Recorder’s Fund ($40,579.98), RR30 - Rollback Reserve ($811,095.61), SE19 - Special Elections - ($5), SF49 Law Enforcement-911 ($489,613.54), SR25 Sheriff Retirement ($95), UT33 - Use Tax ($3,817,805.38), VD24 - Domestic Violence ($2,278.52), and HA56 - HAVA Elections ($8,060.05). Please note that not all of these funds are controlled by the county commissioners. Some are controlled by elected officials or committees.

The county also has $582,871.78 in CDs, including Road & Bridge ($111,145.86), Rollback Reserve ($444,946.19), and Law Enforcement-911 ($26,779.73).

• Time sheets were approved by commissioners.