Commission approves $30,000 county allocation to Yankton County Conservation District instead of refilling staff post

The Yankton County Commission agreed March 11 to provide $30,000 to the Yankton County Conservation District to cover operations after the district’s manager resigned and county hiring constraints prevented refilling the position as a county employee.

Judy Merchant, chair of the Yankton County Conservation District, told commissioners the district manages large tree‑planting efforts, a spring tree sale and other conservation outreach; the district expects trees to arrive in mid‑April and has already placed orders. Judy estimated the district had ordered between 2,000 and 3,000 trees for distribution and described other recurring duties (bookkeeping, program coordination, site visits, planting logistics) the manager had handled.

Commission discussion noted the county’s hiring freeze and the relatively small cost of the proposed allocation compared with the full cost of a county payroll position (the prior county-funded manager package was roughly $50,000 with wages and benefits). Commissioner Don moved to authorize a $30,000 contribution to the Conservation District for hiring and operations rather than making the conservation manager a county employee; Commissioner Dan seconded. The motion carried.

Commissioners asked the conservation board to return annually during budget season to request future funding and to provide an accounting of how the $30,000 is spent. The commission clarified the county will not pay bills directly from county accounts for the district’s internal operational expenses; the $30,000 will be a transfer to the conservation entity.

Ending: The county approved a one‑year $30,000 allocation for the conservation district to hire and manage part‑time support and to run its upcoming tree sales and plantings; the conservation district will report spending at budget time next year.