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Grimes County commissioners approve package of administrative actions, fund election machine upgrade
Summary
At its June 11 meeting the Grimes County Commissioners Court approved multiple routine and program-specific measures — including a fee increase for certain district clerk services, election machine software upgrades, ARPA compliance documents and a special road-use permit renewal — and authorized surveys and facility work.
Grimes County Commissioners Court on June 11 approved a series of routine and program-specific measures, including a software upgrade for the county’s election machines, an increase in a district clerk fee, the county’s ARPA financial-management documents and several facility and right-of-way actions.
The court voted on more than a dozen items during its regular session. Key outcomes included approval of: the consent agenda; a district clerk certified-fee increase from $12 to $15; funding and training for an election-machine software upgrade; a topographic/location survey of the Iola collection site; a $4-per-day reimbursement policy for employees using personal phones while conducting disaster damage assessments; appointment of the county’s emergency-management coordinator as the county ADA/504 coordinator; acceptance of a 60-foot easement dedication from Hawthorne Land LLC for County Road 229; renewal of a special road-use permit for WHC Energy Services; and ARPA-required documents (financial management plan, code of conduct, records-retention policy). The court also authorized temporary janitorial coverage for the Road & Bridge South Barn and appointed a representative to the Brazos Valley Council of Governments board.
Votes at a glance - Consent agenda (items 6a–6f): motion by Commissioner Chad Mallett, second by Commissioner Philip Cox; motion carries. - Change ex‑function certified fee from $12 to $15 (agenda item 11): motion by Commissioner Philip Cox, second by Commissioner David Tullis; approved (motion carries). - Approve software upgrade and training for election machines (item 12): motion by Commissioner Chad Mallett, second by Commissioner Michael Rasco; approved; auditor authorized to make transfers to cover cost. - Table constable item (item 13): item tabled at request of constable’s office. - Authorize survey (topographic/location) of Iola collection site (item 14): motion by Commissioner Chad Mallett, second by Commissioner Michael Rasco; approved; funding from Fund 424 professional services. - Approve policy to reimburse $4 per day for employees using personal phones for disaster damage assessment (item 15): motion by Commissioner Michael Rasco, second by Commissioner Chad Mallett; approved. - Appoint county ADA/504 coordinator (item 16): Dionne Bumpas appointed; motion by County Judge Joe Fowles, second by Commissioner Philip Cox; approved. - Approve ADA nondiscrimination statement, assurance, complaint form and complaint policy (item 17): approved contingent on county attorney’s recommended corrections; motion by Commissioner Philip Cox, second by Commissioner Michael Rasco; approved. - Accept right-of-way easement dedication from Hawthorne Land LLC (item 18): motion by Commissioner Chad Mallett, second by Commissioner David Tullis; approved. - Renew WHC Energy Services special road-use permit (item 19): motion by Commissioner Chad Mallett, second by Commissioner David Tullis; 90‑day renewal approved. - Approve ARPA financial management plan, ARPA code of conduct, and ARPA document management/records retention policy (items 20–22): motions to approve carried; materials will be submitted to GrantWorks as required. - Elections office hours recommendation (item 23): commissioners recommended the Elections Administration Office remain open Fridays (8 a.m.–5 p.m.) and voted on a court recommendation; the recorded vote on the recommendation was 2 ayes, 3 nays; court agreed to “try this” schedule and monitor complaints. - Authorize and fund janitorial services for Road & Bridge South Barn public access areas (item 24): motion by Commissioner David Tullis to locate service and authorize auditor adjustments; second by Commissioner Chad Mallett; approved. - Appoint Mayor Mark Benton to Brazos Valley COG board to fill remainder of term of Mayor Karen Hale (item 25): motion by County Judge Joe Fowles, second by Commissioner David Tullis; approved.
Why it matters: Several of the approved items affect routine public services and compliance requirements: the district clerk fee and ARPA documents affect revenues and federal grant compliance; the election-machine upgrade and the court’s direction on election-office hours affect election administration and voter access; the Iola site survey and easement acceptance affect county roads and solid-waste operations; and the cell‑phone reimbursement and ADA coordinator appointments affect disaster-response and accessibility compliance.
What the court did not act on: the court removed a proposed ARPA expenditure review (item 27) from the agenda and took no action on a burn ban (item 28). The court signaled plans for closed sessions on personnel matters later in the meeting.
