Committee approves sending intergovernmental transportation agreement to boards for approval amid provider uncertainty

The Iroquois County Finance Committee approved forwarding the draft intergovernmental agreement on transportation services to participating boards for approval at their upcoming meetings, while members said some provider commitments across neighboring counties remain uncertain.

Committee members said the draft contains two substantive revisions on notification and provider letters and that application deadlines and hiring timelines were discussed in earlier negotiations. Members asked staff to provide a hard copy of the agreement to committee members and noted that one potential provider, referred to in the discussion as "Chris," may not be willing to serve in the proposal area, which could affect service geography.

Committee members discussed alternatives if a provider declines, including the possibility of having two providers split an area or a provider relinquishing part of a service area so the agreement can have continuous coverage. Staff said provider letters will be requested annually and that applications for precomposition (pre‑contract?) are due by January with a hoped‑for hire by March; staff also said some meetings were scheduled monthly with Zoom provisions for negotiation.

A motion to accept the version reviewed and send it to member boards for approval was made, seconded and approved by voice vote. Committee members asked staff to circulate a hard copy of the agreement so each board member can review it before their board meetings.