Emergency Management/911 Commission/Communications Commission Meeting Minutes
Wednesday October 18th, 2023, 6:00 PM
Washington County EOC –
Emergency Communications Building
2183 Lexington Blvd.,
Washington IA 52353
In attendance: Richard Young, Cara Sorrells, Stan Stoops, Ryan Miller, Mark Robe, Allen Schneider, Jack Seward, Jr., Shawn Ellingson, Marissa Reisen, Tara Polek, Glen Reynolds, Millie Youngquist, Jared Schneider, and Melvin Rich.
At 6:01 PM, Chairman Ryan Miller called the Emergency Management Commission meeting to order, a roll call was conducted, and a quorum was present. Present were representatives from Brighton, Kalona, Riverside, Washington, Wellman, the Sheriff’s Office, and the Board of Supervisors. Absent were representatives from Ainsworth, Crawfordsville, and West Chester. Approval of the agenda was requested. Mark Robe made a motion to approve the agenda as presented. Richard Young seconded the motion, and the agenda was approved with no one opposed. Chairman Miller then requested a motion to approve the minutes from the last meeting, dated August 16th, 2023. Mark Robe made a motion to approve the minutes from the last meeting. Millie Youngquist seconded the motion and with no one opposed, the motion passed unanimously.
The first item on the agenda under old business was the siren system evaluation/report. Marissa Reisen advised she expected the final report by the end of the week. There have been some unforeseeable delays. She did provide a synopsis of the findings. Richmond and SouthTown would receive a new siren that would be shared. Washington would only need four, instead of the five they currently have. They would be placed accordingly. Lake Darling, Marr Park, and Highland High School were all also identified as a new location needing a siren. The survey is based on sound pressure versus sound that we hear, and population density. The proposal will also include automated dispatch or activation of the sirens during designated severe weather conditions. There was a brief discussion on whether any of the existing sirens could be reused and applying for a WCRF grant in the future. The next steps after receiving the report would be to go to the cities for budget discussions. Millie Youngquist asked about any federal grant opportunities available. Reisen explained that there will be Haz-Mitigation funds next year but only 5% can be used for sirens and it is highly competitive. BRIC grants were also mentioned, but Marissa is not sure how the application process works for that program (individual cities vs countywide). Also discussed was the need for a conversation on ownership, maintenance, and consistent care of the sirens. Bulk pricing was also to be considered for a better price point.
The only item under new business was the coordinator report:
•Trainings, exercises, conference
•Trunk or Treat!
•Anything else I’ve forgotten
Reisen attended a training session in Knoxville concerning volunteer and donations management. It pertained to who can take donations and disperse them. She also attended an election security tabletop recently. She looks forward to meeting with people involved with that and going over the existing plan, which is owned by the Auditor’s Office.
She has some upcoming meetings this next week in the EOC including an Active Shooter tabletop with the Healthcare Coalition. There will also be a visit from the Washington Middle School Family Consumer classes for a tour and discussion on emergency preparedness. Trunk or Treat is also Saturday October 28th at the YMCA, and she will be participating with Communications in that event.
Reisen had nothing to present for approval for purchases, but did mention that there had been a full meeting with her EMA association, and they voted to move forward on the 29C legislation. It is almost the same language as last year. However, there will be no school board membership, all the Board of Supervisors have a seat, and the Sheriff retains a seat on the Commission. It gives them taxing authority with a cap on the funds.
There was nothing for the Commission under public input. The next meeting was scheduled for November 15th, 2023, at 6:00 PM. Richard Young made a motion to adjourn the meeting, and Young’s motion was seconded by Mark Robe. The Emergency Management meeting was adjourned at 6:28 PM.
At 6:29 PM, Chairman Richard Young called the 911 Commission meeting to order. Present were representatives from Brighton, Kalona, Riverside, Washington, Wellman, the Sheriff’s Office, the Board of Supervisors, and Emergency Management. Absent was representation from Ainsworth and Crawfordsville. A quorum was determined. Chairman Richard Young made a request for an approval of the agenda. Mark Robe made a motion to approve the agenda as presented. Jared Schneider seconded the motion, and the agenda was approved with no one opposed. A request was then made for a motion to approve the minutes for the last meeting dated September 13th, 2023. Mark Robe made a motion to approve the minutes from the last meeting and the motion was seconded by Millie Youngquist. No one was opposed and the motion passed.
The approval of claims was next, and Cara Sorrells detailed the claims. The claims included two invoices for DPT Service to troubleshoot alarms with the CRAC units in the IT room totaling $2,020, $1,012.50 to Gopher Sign Company for 911 street signs, $5,860 to White Posts for installation and repair of 911 rural residential signs and rural street signs, $2,927.12 to Cummins for preventative maintenance and new batteries for the generators at the radio tower sites, and $2,330.85 paid to CDW-G for new laptops for the dispatch consoles. Additionally, $2,437.50 was paid to RACOM for labor associated with the damage at the Wellman tower and $1,660.41 to the Washington County Engineer for removing the concrete pad and hauling at the Wellman tower site. These items were submitted to the county’s insurance and after discussion with Jack Seward and the Auditor’s Office the 911 budget seemed the best place to account for these items. The total of the claims was $22,336.62. The total of the revenue was $7,345.69 and it included $1,687.50 from Sedgwick Claims Management for the above-mentioned RACOM Wellman tower claim minus the $750 deductible. Jared Schneider made a motion to approve the claims as presented. Schneider’s motion was seconded by Ryan Miller. The motion to approve the claims was passed unanimously.
Under new business the only item was an update on the 2024 legislative agenda. The Boards & Commissions Review Committee did recommend the elimination of the State 911 Council. It will take a legislative action however this upcoming session due to it being in Chapter 34A. There is also a potential for legislative action concerning what some may view as an issue with growing 911 fund balances in some counties. Sorrells shared language from a recent political newsletter “With the E911 Service Boards ending balances having grown on a consistent basis over the past decade, some are questioning whether it is time to reassess the amount of the fee or how it can be used. That may be one of the subjects tackled by the General Assembly during its 2024 session.” Sorrells explained that some counties do have funds saved up marked reserved or designated for projects. A radio system upgrade, computer or CAD upgrade can cost a 911 Center or PSAP a great deal of money. The APCO and NENA groups are preparing talking points aimed at educating the public if this issue is raised and 911 surcharge funds are in jeopardy.
At 6:44 PM, Chairman Ryan Miller called the Communications Commission to order. Present were representatives Stan Stoops, Ryan Miller, Mark Robe, Millie Youngquist, Jack Seward, and alternates Melvin Rich, Allen Schneider, and Richard Young. A quorum was determined. Chairman Miller then made a request for an approval of the agenda as published. Mark Robe made a motion to approve the agenda as presented. Allen Schneider seconded the motion, and the agenda was approved with no one opposed. A request was then made for a motion to approve the minutes for the last meeting dated September 13th, 2023. Millie Youngquist made a motion to approve the minutes from the last meeting and the motion was seconded by Allen Schneider. No one was opposed and the motion passed.
The approval of the claims was next. Cara Sorrells detailed the claims, and the total of the claims was $1,196.77 with no revenue reported. A motion was made by Millie Youngquist to approve the claims as presented. Youngquist’s motion was seconded by Allen Schneider, and the claims were approved with no one opposed.
There was nothing for the Communications Commission under committee reports.
Under new business there was a personnel change request for Kathryn Crumly. She was hired full-time effective 10/20/23. She completed her mandatory work physical 10/11/23. Mark Robe made a motion to approve the personnel change for Kathryn Crumly and his motion was seconded by Millie Youngquist. The motion carried with Jack Seward and Stan Stoops of the Board of Supervisors abstaining.
The other item under consideration under new business was a proposal for a handbook language update concerning holiday pay for Communications. Communications operators are only being paid for 8 hours on a holiday worked when they are working an 8 ½ hour shift. See language below:
Communications personnel – For Employees Working a Rotating Shift – Draft 10/18/23
“Pay For Holidays Worked” – If an employee is required to work on a holiday, the employee will receive holiday pay plus time and one half (1 ½) the employee’s regular hourly rate of pay for all hours worked on the holiday.
If an off-duty employee is called in to work on a holiday, the employee will be paid their holiday pay hours plus a minimum of two (2) hours of pay at time and one half (1 ½) the employee’s regular hourly rate. The callback hours will count towards worked hours for the purposes of computing overtime, but not the holiday pay hours.
“Pay For Holidays Not Worked” – If a paid holiday falls on the employee’s day off, the employee will receive either eight (8) hours of time off in lieu of pay (holiday banked hours). An employee may only accrue up to twenty-four (24) hours of accrued holiday banked hours. Employees working a scheduled shift of eight and one-half (8 ½) hours will receive eight and one-half (8 ½) hours of regular pay or eight and one-half (8 ½) hours of time off in lieu of pay (holiday banked hours) as described above. Holiday pay (when the employee is regularly scheduled off for that holiday) does not count towards worked hours for the purposes of computing overtime.
A motion was made by Jack Seward to approve the handbook amendment as presented. Seward’s motion was seconded by Mark Robe, and the language change was approved with no one opposed. Sorrells, Sheriff Schneider, and Chief Deputy Ellingson all expressed that they would rather see this be added as standard language in the handbook instead of having amendments for all the different departments.
The next Communications meeting date was also set for November 15th, 2023, at 6:00 PM.
Under old business there was an update on the storm damage to the Wellman site. Glen Reynolds with RACOM gave an update on the equipment. When preparing the list of equipment needed, he discovered that some NEC transmit and receive equipment in the shelters was end of life and needed to be replaced. This would include 2 pieces of equipment at the Brighton site and 1 piece of equipment at the Kalona site that talks to the Wellman tower. There would be no need to change equipment at any of the other sites. It is not backwards compatible and anything within the next year is considered end of life. He also discovered that they cannot invoice the insurance company directly. He has also investigated the 9 x 16 shelter needed at the Wellman tower with Cellsite Solutions. It is the same size as the one that was damaged, and he took some pictures.
The update on the Wellman tower location is that Wellman is discussing replacing the tower at the existing location with the understanding that Washington County would purchase the tower or lease to own. There are several things to consider including the height of the tower that would replace the old one. It would not necessarily need to be 300 feet, but something a little taller than our radio equipment would allow for future placement of other equipment on the tower (240’ was discussed). In this scenario we would not have to redo all of the regulatory requirements that would be required at a new location. Replacement of the damaged equipment is imperative and time sensitive. The consensus was to endorse pursuing working with Wellman Telephone to own the equipment at that location.
The only other item under old business was a staffing update. We are still looking to hire another full-time person and would take any part-time applicants if they would be able to complete the training schedule and fill in on the schedule regularly.
Mark Robe made a motion to adjourn the Communications Commission meeting. Millie Youngquist seconded the motion. The meeting was adjourned at 7:21 PM.
A motion was made to adjourn the 911 Commission meeting by Ryan Miller and seconded by Marissa Reisen. The meeting was adjourned at 7:21 PM.
Respectfully submitted by,
Cara Sorrells
Signature:Emergency Management
Date:
Signature: 911 Commission
Date:
Signature: Communication Commission
Date:
Pubished in The News, Thursday, December 14, 2023 L-3479
