Sheridan County clerk reviews liquor-license rules, online-record fees and road-vacation deposit

Sheridan County Clerk and Recorder Eda Shenton Thompson told the Board of County Commissioners on March 17 that the county's rules governing liquor sales and several fee schedules are under review as renewals approach.

Thompson said the county's current Rules and Regulations Governing Licensing of Liquor Sales were adopted July 6, 2021, as Amendment Number 4 and are on file with the clerk's office, and she reminded the board that those rules must be filed to be enforceable. "These current rules were adopted by the Board of County Commissioners on 07/06/2021 as Amendment Number 4 to the Rules and Regulations Governing Licensing of Liquor Sales," Thompson said.

Why it matters: the annual renewal cycle and the county's fee structure affect businesses and special-event permit holders and determine how much revenue the county receives for licensing administration.

Thompson reviewed counts and fee options. She said Sheridan County may issue up to 20 retail liquor licenses and that all 20 retail licenses are currently issued; the county may issue an unlimited number of restaurant liquor licenses, and one restaurant license is currently issued in Bighorn with another application pending for the Story area. She noted the retail license fee is at the statutory maximum while restaurant and 24-hour catering/malt-beverage permit fees are not. Thompson recommended considering raising the 24-hour catering and malt-beverage permit fees from $30 to $50 to match several other Wyoming jurisdictions and said the actual adoption of any fee change would require following the county rules process for amendments.

Thompson also reviewed the county's online-records subscription fees and systems. She said Sheridan County uses two providers: ArcaSearch for legacy handwritten records dating back to Wyoming territory, and iDoc (Tyler Technologies) for more recent scanned documents. Thompson told commissioners the online research fee schedule is set by resolution (listed in the packet as resolution 20 2 0 9 0 30 7 dated 09/20/2022) and cited Wyoming statute "sixteen-four-two-four" as authorizing a uniform online fee schedule. She proposed illustrative increases (for discussion) including a daily fee from $10 to $12, a monthly fee from $1.20 to $1.50, and an annual fee from $1,200 to $1,500, and said she would provide usage data on monthly subscribers if the board wanted it.

On road vacations, Thompson reviewed the county's $500 deposit for public petitions and the underlying statutes. She said the deposit requirement is authorized by resolution (listed in the packet as resolution 19 10 26 dated October 1, 2019) and cited Wyoming statutes 24-3-101(b) and 24-3-102 as the statutory framework allowing the board to require a deposit to defray petition-related expenses. Thompson described the items charged to the deposit: publication in the Sheridan Press, certified mail to affected landowners, recording fees (statutory recording fees for first page $12 and $3 thereafter were cited), filing fees for oath of viewer, and a $25 GIS landowner-list fee that staff had been charging.

Thompson said the $500 deposit has generally been sufficient and that, after review with the deputy county attorney, the county engineer and GIS staff, she recommended continuing to use $500 but stopping the separate $25 GIS charge because that fee was not authorized in statute or resolution. "It is just a deposit. It is not a fee," Thompson said, emphasizing the distinction. She noted staff time for county engineer and county clerk has not been charged to the deposit historically and that hiring outside appraisers or adding clerk staff would increase costs.

Next steps: Thompson asked commissioners to review the binder of materials and said the actual liquor-license hearings will begin at the first meeting in April; any fee or rule changes would follow the county rule amendment process. She also said she would gather usage data on the online subscriptions and follow up on whether county subscription costs have changed.

No formal changes or votes were taken during the March 17 meeting; the board asked staff to return with further detail and any recommended draft language if the board wishes to pursue fee or rule amendments.

Ending: The county clerk's office will provide follow-up figures on online-search subscriptions and continue to coordinate with the county attorney's office on any rule or resolution work required before the board considers changes.