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Clay County highlights senior tax-relief rollout while honoring county staff
Summary
Clay County commissioners marked Older Americans Month, presented employee awards tied to the county's senior tax-relief rollout and praised staff who managed more than 17,000 applications during a ceremony and recognition at the commission meeting.
Clay County commissioners on Thursday recognized May as Older Americans Month and used a ceremonial awards presentation to highlight the county's recently launched senior tax-relief program and the staff who implemented it.
The commission presented a proclamation declaring May 2025 as Older Americans Month and later honored employees across departments for their roles in standing up the senior tax-relief program. Administrator (unnamed in meeting transcript) said the cross-department effort produced "17,000 plus applications," thanking staff for their work on outreach, application processing and communications.
The awards program included a Civic Academy graduation and several employee honors. Deanna Jacobs, who manages the Civic Academy, described the program as "a 6 week program, 2 hours each week to go over a little bit about what the county does and how we function." She said the most recent class enrolled 16 people and had 13 graduates present.
Commissioners repeatedly praised the collaborative rollout of the senior tax-relief program. The administrator introduced a 14-member interdepartmental team credited with implementing the program and told the room the clerk's office managed the application process. "Without you all, this would we wouldn't be where we are today, with 17,000 plus applications," the administrator said when recognizing the implementation team.
Staff names publicly identified during the presentation included Auditor Victor Hurlburt, Assessor Tracy Baldwin, Recorder Sandy Brock, members of the clerk's office (Stacy Tingle, Wendy Herman, Tanya Bell, Hunter Bowman), and communications and IT staff who supported outreach and the application portal. Several commissioners specifically praised Tanya Bell in the clerk's office for direct assistance to applicants; a written nomination read into the record called her "knowledgeable, patient and kind." The Recorder of Deeds office and a public administrator's casework team also received awards for customer service and collaborative teamwork.
The ceremony was largely celebratory and informational; no new ordinance or budget action related to the senior tax-relief program was taken at this meeting. Commissioners and staff said more outreach and future classes of the Civic Academy are planned.
The meeting also included remarks from multiple commissioners about the program's impact. Commissioner Wagner noted the program produced many applications and called the county's efforts "money well spent," while others recounted constituent stories that motivated the county's move to provide relief.
The county did not present a detailed funding breakdown for the senior tax-relief program during the ceremonial portion beyond naming departments and staff responsible for implementation. Questions about long-term budgeting or additional appropriations were not taken as part of the awards presentation; commissioners said operational details and follow-up would remain in staff reports and future agendas.
The meeting then moved on to regular business and items that required formal votes.
