OSAGE COUNTY — The Osage County Commission voted in closed session Thursday to hire Neil Mantle as the county’s new Road & Bridge foreman, replacing Bradley Sneller, who will return to a grader operator role.

• Western District Commissioner Dale Logan updated the commission on his March 10 meetings with Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) Director Ed Hassinger and state Sen. Ben Brown regarding the Hwy. 63 project..

“I met with MoDOT first, the director, Ed Hassinger, at 1:30 Tuesday afternoon,” Logan said. “They are still fighting, obviously, the south entrance for us there on the bypass. I reiterated the importance of it and they’re struggling with it.

“They’re trying everything they can do to keep from having to build that second bridge, and that’s about a $7 million project,” He continued. “My suggestion was postpone the project for a year. The interest off the $100 million they have more than covers a bridge.”

Logan said MoDOT responded that the interest would not cover construction cost inflation because the funds are earning only about 3% per year.

“I brought it all up,” Logan said. “Back when they built 63 and in the late 30s, you know, they took the cheap route. They went along the ridge tops. And I said, ‘Here we are in 2026 and MoDOT’s still taking the cheap route. When are you going to stop half-assing these projects and do them the correct way? This is supposed to be about community betterment as well. It’s not just safety, it’s progress. It’s community betterment.’ And I said, ‘You’re not doing that.’”

Logan said his meeting with Brown went better and that the Senator seemed willing to help, but Logan said he was not confident MoDOT would add a south entrance.

“I’m not overly optimistic we’re going to be able to pull that off, but we’re going to fight until there’s no fight left,” he said.

• Commissioners discussed changes to payroll procedures, after some confusion over the past few months about whether changes in the federal “Big, Beautiful Bill” affected whether employees could continue accruing compensatory (comp) time.

Initial information received by Interim County Clerk Brooke Dudenhoeffer indicated accrual of comp time was no longer allowed across pay periods, but information received by the commissioners contradicted that. County Attorney Amanda Grellner said her research did not indicate the Big, Beautiful Bill changed comp time rules, only the reporting of overtime on W-2s.

Commissioners voted to reverse their earlier decision disallowing the accrual of comp time, but warned that the clerk’s office will no longer be responsible for keeping track of whether specific employees prefer to be paid overtime or accrue comp time. Department heads, they said, are responsible for ensuring their employees’ time is submitted properly.

Dudenhoeffer, in turn, said her office would take the format used by Health Department Administrator Kim Sallin and create a spreadsheet that could be used by all departments.

Commissioners warned an employee’s pay might be delayed if their time is not properly submitted to the clerk’s office. They also noted that the comp time policy will be incorporated into the county employee handbook once the document is updated.

• Logan also told commissioners he had recently received an email from a resident concerned about the cost of a proposed quick-care facility being explored by the county.

The taxpayer worried that the project could result in higher taxes, particularly if statewide efforts to eliminate the income tax lead to increased reliance on sales tax.

Logan said he responded that the county is still in the early stages of gathering information.

“We’re still in the preliminary stages of finding out costs and those kind of things,” Logan said, adding that most of the feedback he has received from residents has been positive.

“I’ve had a lot more positive feedback than I have negative,” he said, adding that most of the negative feedback seemed to be from people who did not understand that clinic funding would not come from revenue streams designated for other uses.

Presiding Commissioner Darryl Griffin noted that county finances are tightly restricted by law and funds cannot be shifted between departments. “We welcome anybody, anytime, to come up and ask questions and come to the meetings and see that we can’t, by law, ‘take money from Peter to pay Paul,’” he said. “(Prop) P is for the Sheriff. R is for Road & Bridge. There’s a tax for the buildings, to pay off the buildings. And if we get out of line, the auditors will nail us up to the wall.”

Logan said the complexity of government finance can make it difficult for residents to understand how tax dollars are allocated.

“Until you get into government and realize exactly how it works, people don’t realize the laws and the rules,” Logan said.

• Eastern District Commissioner Jeff Peters reported that the new hoop building at the county’s Hwy. 100 property was erected over the weekend.

“The contractor came in this weekend and knocked it out,” Peters said.

Commissioners discussed removing a large pile of rubble that remains on the southeast corner of the property so the entire lot can be used.

Peters estimated the work would take about a day and a half and cost roughly $2,500.

The commission approved hiring a contractor to level the debris pile and prepare the area for use.

• Logan provided an update on the Pentecostal Bridge project, where contractors have begun assembling large rebar structures for the bridge piers. “They were putting all the rebar together — those big rebar deals that go down in the hole,” Logan said. “It was wild watching them do that.”

Barring any unforeseen difficulties, the contractor hopes to have the bridge work completed by July. The project must be finished by the end of August to avoid a $2,500-per-day penalty.

“Right now it’s rocking right along,” Logan said.

• Peters also reported on ongoing culvert replacement projects on several county roads to be chip-and-sealed this summer. One location requires a 30-inch culvert pipe, which Peters said is difficult to obtain quickly.

“A 30-inch culvert is really rare,” Peters said. “It takes two weeks for this pipe to come in.”

Because of that delay, Peters said the county plans to keep additional pipe in stock so roads do not have to remain closed while waiting for materials.

“If a 30-inch pipe happens to fail on a county road on a Tuesday, you have to shut the county road down for two weeks until that other pipe comes in,” Peters said.

Commissioners also discussed efforts by residents to help fund chip-and-seal improvements on certain county roads.

Peters said property owners along CR 401 are considering paying to extend a chip-and-seal project beyond the county’s planned section.

“They’re wanting to take it another mile,” Peters said, estimating the extension would cost about $100,000.

Peters told the other commissioners there was an area of concern where a fence was only about 18 inches from the road, preventing the county from running a ditch along the newly chip-and-sealed road, but that he had suggested the citizens spearheading the effort for that stretch of road speak with the property owner.

“That’s going to be a make-or-break deal as to whether or not it can happen,” Peters said. “Even though they want to pay for it, they need to get a good product that will hold up for years to come.”

“I don’t think anyone has reached out to the landowner,” Peters continued. “I think he’s tried to speak with him, but hasn’t caught him yet to talk about it. I’m not saying that there’s even going to be a problem. It could be all taken care of already.”

Another group of residents along Bluff Road has expressed interest in contributing funds to extend chip-and-seal improvements there.

Logan said about 27 people had already committed to helping pay for the project.

Peters said chip-and-sealed roads require less maintenance, allowing county crews to focus on other areas.

“The thing that a lot of people aren’t seeing is, it’s making a great road, but on top of it we don’t have any more graders. It doesn’t need maintenance,” Peters said. “So we can take the graders and move them elsewhere around the county.”

• Prosecuting Attorney Amanda Grellner provided an update on legislative proposals related to juvenile justice and prosecutor compensation. Grellner said a proposed bill would allow prosecutors to initiate certification proceedings to charge juveniles as adults in serious cases.

“In order for a juvenile to be charged as an adult, they have to be certified as an adult,” Grellner said. “The way I read Senate Bill 888 is that if there is a juvenile that I believe should be certified, I can initiate those proceedings myself.”

She said the change could be particularly important in serious criminal cases involving violent offenses.

• Recorder of Deeds Cindy Hoffman reported that her office is working with a records preservation company to update several land transfer books. The project involves placing records into new binders and protective sleeves. Hoffman said she hopes to find funding to complete similar preservation work on the county’s marriage record books.

• Treasurer Valerie Prater also told commissioners her only update was that she has filed for reelection.

• Commissioners also heard updates from Osage County University of Missouri Extension Office Engagement Specialist Elizabeth Anderson about plans to develop a county action plan for the coming year.

“I’m open to any suggestions from the public, from our commissioners, from other countywide folks about where there may be a need that needs to be met,” Anderson said. “Some counties have done childcare, so they do more programming for childcare providers to keep up their clock hours and stay licensed. Some have had a focus on mental health and had more programming about that.”

• “I just hope the people of Osage County understand how hard everybody here works for them,” Griffin said after updates from the elected officials and department heads.

ROAD & BRIDGE

Peters directed Road & Bridge Foreman Brad Sneller to work on CR 315 between the end of Rt. K and CR 318, adding that one citizen reported people driving through his yard to avoid potholes. “The same two people called me — one last week and one this morning — and he just ripped me a new one that nothing’s been done,” Peters said.

Peters also asked Sneller to consider temporarily shifting graders from other districts to the area around Chamois, which he said has not seen much attention recently.

Sneller said he would work to move crews into the area and apply additional base rock where needed.

Sneller also said the new dump truck was briefly taken out of service due to a programming issue affecting the power take-off system. The truck’s system had been set to disengage at very low speeds. Sneller said technicians corrected the problem by adjusting the settings.

“It was just programmed from the factory wrong,” he said. “They got in the computer and updated that.”

Commissioners also discussed selling several older vehicles and pieces of equipment, including a road tractor and a Peterbilt truck.

The equipment may be sold through an online auction service.

HEALTH DEPARTMENT

Osage County Health Department Administrator Kim Sallin said she hopes to reach 500 participants in the survey about the proposed quick care before bringing results to the commissioners.

• Other figures were reported for February were as follows; Birth Certificates (16), Death Certificates (50), Vaccines (32), Animal Bites (1), Lice Checks (40), Medication Injections (15), Blood Draws (14), Blood Pressure Checks (4), PPD Testing (4), EPHS Inspections (13), WIC Caseload (125), WIC Appointments Completed (57), Prenatal Classes Held (1), Foot & Nail  Visits (49), STD Screenings (2), Daycare Providers (Clock Hours) (9), Daycare Health Promotions (0), Daycare Inspections (1), Nurse Visits (7), Drive Thru Customers (34), Diapers/Wipes provided (2), Water Test Kits (3), CD Investigations (7), Lead Cases (1), Influenza A Reported (46), Influenza B Reported (28), and Covid Reported (10).

FINANCIAL

• Sales tax distribution received from the state of Missouri showed $516,339.94 received in March, including $63,596.85 to General Revenue, $76,079.85 to Jail Renovation (JR60), $38,039.93 to Capitol Improvements (CI88, $34,235.94) and Building & Grounds (BG89 $3,803.99), $76,080.25 to Prop P, $75,457.02 to Prop R, $76,079.85 to 911/Law Enforcement, and $111,006.19 to Use Tax.

• The February Statement of Monthly Collections from the collector showed county tax distributions of $19,737.82 to General Revenue, $13,454.55 to the County Retirement Fund (CERF), $2,572.95 to the County Assessment Fund, $623.49 interest on the County Assessment Fund, and $30.40 to the County Collector’s Office.

Taxes collected for the school districts were: $16,180.16 to R-1 (Chamois), $56,131.20 to R-2 (Linn), $59,883.11 to R-3 (Fatima), $11,590.41 to Maries County R-2, and $39.14 to Gasconade County R-2.

A total of $7,125.88 went to special road districts, including Osage County ($5,583.21), Belle Special Road District ($155.46), Chamois Special Road District ($424.78), West Special Road District ($73.77), and Linn Special Road District ($888.66).

Ambulance districts received the following: Osage ($3,867.00), Ozark ($873.86), and Maries ($1,086.94), for a total of $5,827.80.

Fire Districts received a total of $5,616.04, including Belle ($618.91), Bland ($75.72), Chamois ($765.68), Cole ($20.92), Linn ($3,682.64), Meta ($0.00), and Osage ($76.68).

Cities received a total of $3,779.76, including Argyle ($95.82), Belle ($514.88), Chamois ($687.97), Linn ($2,213.23), and Meta ($267.86).

• Time sheets were approved by commissioners.