OSAGE COUNTY — With soybean harvest approaching, Eastern District Commissioner Jeff Peters pressed Osage County officials Sept. 15 for an immediate solution to overhanging tree limbs preventing a farmer from getting a combine down a county road.

Western District Commissioner Dale Logan said he had also received complaints about campers being unable to travel CR 512 because of limbs.

Peters said the issue presents both property-rights and safety concerns because some trees are located outside county easements on private property.

Presiding Commissioner Darryl Griffin asked if the farmer had gotten a new combine, or if he had been able to drive the same one down the road the previous year. Peters said he had managed it, but not without damage. “He tore his shit up last year going in there,” Peters said, adding that the farmer reported the road was now impassable. “This is super dangerous work, too.”

Road & Bridge Foreman Neil Mantle said he would not allow his employees to perform substantial overhead cutting without equipment designed to protect the operator.

“If you’re going to get into this, the only way that I’m letting my guys do it is if you get one of them Limb Blazers for that skid loader, so that you got your roll cage completely,” Mantle said.

Logan said the county needs to establish a consistent procedure for dealing with overhanging limbs, including determining what clearance it will maintain, rather than responding differently to individual complaints.

“We don’t own those trees,” Logan said. “Most of those trees are not even in our easement, they’re actually on [private] property, but yet they’re coming over, the big trees, and we have to keep our roads passable.”

As topics shifted throughout the meeting, Peters repeatedly pressed for an immediate solution to the road where a farmer could not get a combine through to harvest his soybeans, rather than waiting for the county to develop a broader policy for trimming limbs. He acknowledged that there are other roads in the county with overgrown brush that also need to be cut back.

“This is a little different situation,” Peters said. “They can’t rub through this. They just can’t make it through. The limbs are blocking it.”

As the discussion continued, Peters returned to the immediate question of what the county was going to do about that road. He also described equipment with an approximately 25-foot boom that would allow an operator to cut limbs while remaining inside an enclosed cab.

Peters later reported finding a Limb Blazer for approximately $5,200 and said another supplier in Rosebud could provide one for about $500 less. Logan suggested comparing the cost of an attachment with the cost of hiring a contractor to perform the work.

• That discussion prompted Griffin to ask about an earlier incident in which a property owner felled a tree that damaged a county bridge.

“Did we ever get any money from that guy that dropped the tree on the bridge?” Griffin asked.

Commissioners disagreed over how far the county had gotten in seeking reimbursement. Peters recalled that repair costs had been determined and a letter sent to the property owner, while Griffin said he had spoken to the man initially, was told he would not pay for the damage, and had expected Road & Bridge to determine the cost of repairing the concrete structure versus replacing it with a culvert.

“I said, ‘You’ll be hearing from us,’” Griffin recalled. “So, then we went to have the price and the cost and everything. I ain’t never heard anything since.”

“Yeah, we need to check in on it,” Peters said.

• Officials are continuing to explore both fully insured and self-insured options for employee health coverage as they await the county’s annual renewal proposal from Anthem.

Alan Faye with Higginbotham and Galen Floyd with GBS, a third-party administrator, returned to the commission meeting to answer questions about self-insurance. Interim County Clerk Brooke Dudenhoeffer emphasized that the discussion was intended to educate officials about available options, not indicate the county had decided to change plans.

Under a self-insured plan, the county would pay employee medical claims while purchasing stop-loss coverage to limit its exposure. Floyd said plans could include programs aimed at reducing claims costs, including nurse navigation, alternative sources for some prescriptions and medical equipment, and incentives to use lower-cost providers while preserving employees’ choice of care.

Faye said health insurance renewals nationwide are averaging about 15% this year, with some counties seeing increases as high as 45%. Anthem was expected to provide the county’s renewal proposal within two or three weeks. His office is also seeking fully insured quotes from other carriers.

“If Anthem comes in and they give us a single-digit renewal, I’m likely going to say, ‘Guys, we are below the national trend,’” Faye said, adding that the county could then give itself more time before considering a different funding model.

Dudenhoeffer said she would like open enrollment to begin in November. Peters asked Faye to move forward with obtaining both prices so officials could assess all of the available options.

“That way, everybody has options,” Peters said. “We can talk about this again, and we can decide as a group.”

The county is completing the employee census needed to obtain insurance quotes, including pricing for a potential self-insured plan.

• Recorder of Deeds Cindy Hoffman presented commissioners with a proposal for continued preservation of the county’s historic record books.

Hoffman said the books have been microfilmed, but the physical records have suffered decades of use, with bindings deteriorating and some books becoming brittle.

“In all the years that I’ve worked here, and all the years that Bonnie Hackman has worked here, which is back in the early ’70s, nobody’s ever preserved our records,” Hoffman said. “If we don’t have that, we don’t have our history of the county.”

She said the proposal could change before budget time depending on costs but wanted commissioners to be aware of the anticipated expense.

• Commissioners also approved an additional $100 payment to KLB Construction’s Kevin Hicks to haul debris from the Recorder’s office expansion project. The county had anticipated spending approximately $600 for a dumpster, but Hicks offered to remove the debris for $100.

• Dudenhoeffer also informed commissioners that two of the county’s older election tabulators are no longer repairable and will be replaced with two faster units compatible with the county’s existing voting system.

The two machines will cost $8,041.20. Dudenhoeffer said the expense is already included in her budget and she will use available election grant funding toward the purchase, but she wanted commissioners to be aware of the cost and of a much larger expense facing the county in future years, as the county’s existing tabulators will become obsolete within the next seven to 10 years.

A newer voting system is becoming available, but Dudenhoeffer said replacing all of the county’s tabulators at once is currently unaffordable.

“I cannot afford 13 tabulators,” she said. “You see what two of them are going to cost.”

Instead, she plans to replace the two unusable machines now and extend the life of the remaining equipment while building reserves in the election account toward eventually purchasing the newer system.

Dudenhoeffer said the county charges political subdivisions for use of election equipment during their elections and will likely need to increase those rental charges to help cover future replacement costs.

• She also presented commissioners with the county’s 2026 assessed valuation figures and preliminary tax levy information. Commissioners are expected to vote on the assessed valuation and set the levy rate at their Sept. 22 meeting. Dudenhoeffer said General Revenue and JR60 are subject to rollback calculations.

• Dudenhoeffer also clarified the effect of House Bill 1825 on elected officials’ salaries. She said salary changes apply when an elected official begins a new term after the law’s effective date, rather than immediately increasing the salaries of officials already serving a term.

For officials beginning new terms Jan. 1, the change would take effect then. Because the collector and assessor operate on different statutory term schedules, changes affecting those offices would take effect March 1 and Sept. 1, respectively, when new terms begin.

• During review of the county’s bills, Peters questioned a charge of $4.879 per gallon for red diesel fuel, saying off-road fuel should be approximately $1 to $1.25 per gallon cheaper than highway diesel. Commissioners agreed the price should be checked.

• Griffin also questioned reimbursement of tips on employee travel expenses, saying he did not believe tips should be reimbursed. Dudenhoeffer said the county employee manual specifically allowed for it. Griffin disputed that and said he would apologize if she could find the provision.

Dudenhoeffer returned with Article 16, Subsection 2, Number 4, which lists reimbursable travel expenses as “meals and tips up to $50 per day.”

“I stand corrected,” Griffin said.

Peters asked whether that was an apology.

“No, I said I stand corrected,” Griffin replied. “Don’t mean I agree with it.”

ROAD & BRIDGE

Road & Bridge Foreman Neil Mantle presented updated pricing for snowplows and electric spreader beds for the county’s new trucks. He said prices had increased approximately $800 since he previously checked and he was having difficulty locating appropriately sized flatbeds.

Mantle said he wants at least one truck equipped with a flatbed so Road & Bridge can build a rack to transport skid-steer attachments on the truck rather than adding their weight to equipment trailers.

• The department’s new red dump truck was also out of service temporarily after its serpentine belt failed the previous afternoon. Mantle said employees had to obtain a replacement belt that morning.

• Mantle reported that he had spoken with Greg Muenks about work on roads in the 700s. Based on the hours used to date, approximately 300 hours would cover about 36 miles if the contractor also waits for and places rock. If Road & Bridge employees handle the rock and final grading, Mantle estimated the same 300 hours could cover approximately 72 miles.

• Logan also reported that CR 412 was in poor condition and needed attention.

• The road report for Sept. 8 - 14 showed quarry rock hauled on CR 251 (62.18T), 274A (88.74T), 516 (164.38T), 604 (121.29T), 805 (99.4T), 821 (35.93T); a culvert was replaced on CR 303 (17.45T); road work was done on CR 251 and 303; dirt was hauled from CR 303; trees were removed on CR 221, 304, 432, and 638; brush was sprayed on 300, 303, 305, 310, and 401; brush mowers were working on CR 210, 211, 212, and 823; and grader operators were active as follows: G01 (CR 401, 403, 425, 501, 503, 512), G02 (CR 251, 274A, 276), G03 (CR 206, 207, 805, 811), G04 (CR 512, 516, 631, 635), G05 (CR 373, 738, 740), and G06 (CR 221, 231, 236, 303, 312).

• Dump truck DT57 (2026 International HV507) was serviced in house.

HEALTH DEPARTMENT

Health Department Administrator Kim Sallin told commissioners she would attend an annual public health conference at the Lake of the Ozarks and provided them with the conference schedule and sessions. The department would remain fully staffed during her absence.

• Sallin reported that Quick Care saw 21 patients Wednesday through Friday the previous week and another 12 patients Monday.

• The department continues to experience plumbing problems that have occurred since the building opened. Sallin said she was waiting for a quote from Wegman for high-flow toilets because the waste piping does not have sufficient fall. She said the proposed toilets may help move wastewater through the lines more effectively and prevent backups during periods of heavy water use.

• Sallin also reported interviewing a candidate Friday for the department’s open office support position. She described the applicant as an “absolute perfect fit” and said she lives in Osage County and could begin work Sept. 22.

• The Health Department’s grand opening is scheduled for Sept. 25. Sallin said community partners have been invited, including Compass Health and the Osage Ambulance District Mobile Integrated Health team, along with food, coffee, and bakery trucks. She asked commissioners for assistance contacting area mayors after that task had been assigned to an employee who subsequently left the department.

911/Emergency Management

911/EMA Director Ron Hoffman told commissioners he had scheduled a meeting with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for 1 p.m. the following day to address documentation and questions related to storm cleanup.

Peters asked what FEMA was requesting.

He said FEMA wanted details including where debris originated, where it was taken, how many loads were removed, how much cleanup remained and the status of damaged infrastructure.

“I wanted to get everybody in the same room because I don’t know a lot of them answers,” Hoffman said.

Mantle said brush and other debris had already been removed and was taken to county locations and burned rather than hauled to a landfill.

Hoffman said FEMA had also asked whether the county obtained burn permits. He said the county had the necessary fire and floodplain permits.

Hoffman said Mantle’s participation in the meeting was particularly important because Road & Bridge had much of the information FEMA was requesting. Commissioners agreed to participate as schedules allowed, with Mantle confirming he would attend.

FINANCIAL

• Bills totaling $123,417.31 were approved by commissioners, with the following totals by department: 911/EMA ($2,395), Assessor ($5,012.19), Building & Grounds ($6,581.23), Circuit Clerk ($1,113.47), Collector ($2,949.78), Commission ($114.55), Coroner ($463.70), County Clerk ($323.20), Election ($3,618.01), Health Department ($14,918.32), Juvenile & Family Court ($3,043.54), Misc. ($7,905.34), Prosecuting Attorney ($701.74), Road & Bridge ($65,301.39), Sheriff-Jail ($7,783.42), Treasurer ($692.43), and Treatment Court ($500).

• Sales tax distribution received from the state of Missouri showed $536,546.88 collected in September, including $73,501.63 to General Revenue, $80,284.68 to Jail Renovation (JR60), $40,133.86 to Capital Improvements (CI88, $36,120.47) and Building & Grounds (BG89 $4,013.39), $80,258.32 to Prop P, $80,038.18 to Prop R, $80,284.63 to 911/Law Enforcement, and $102,045.58 to Use Tax.

• The August Statement of Monthly Collections from the collector showed county tax distributions of $2,129.25 to General Revenue, $4,001.48 to the County Retirement Fund (CERF), $466.43 to the County Assessment Fund, and $14.22 to the County Collector’s Office.

Taxes collected for the school districts were: $24.00 to R-1 (Chamois), $15,225.27 to R-2 (Linn), $6,273.18 to R-3 (Fatima), and $2,273.62 to Maries County R-2.

A total of $1,508.87 went to special road districts, including Osage County ($843.40), Belle Special Road District ($23.15), Chamois Special Road District ($1.55), and Linn Special Road District ($640.77).

Ambulance districts received the following: Osage ($787.41), Ozark ($197.29), and Maries ($176.51), for a total of $1,161.21.

Fire Districts received a total of $1,434.45, including Belle ($151.75), Bland ($29.94), Chamois ($2.78), Linn ($1,129.06), Meta ($3.83), and Owensville ($117.09).

Cities received a total of $1,688.14, including Argyle ($46.40), Belle ($76.89), Chamois ($2.61), Linn ($1,556.76), and Meta ($5.48).