St. Francois County sets county property levy at 0.0401; approves truck purchase, stop signs, grant application and pay-grade increase

St. Francois County Commissioners voted to set the countyproperty tax levy at 0.0401 and approved several administrative and operational items, including a contingent purchase of a used dump truck, new stop signs and a reduced speed limit at Vandergriff and Hampton Road, permission for the sheriffto apply for a $25,000 nonmatching violent-crime‑prevention grant, and a planned pay‑grade increase to be included in the 2026 budget.

The action on the tax levy followed a staff presentation showing how the countyshare of property tax compares with other taxing authorities. A staff speaker presented example figures for a $100,000 home that, in one set of calculations shown to the board, increased a county payment from about $4.14 per year to $7.87 under an earlier cited rate; commissioners then corrected the stated levy to 0.0401 (4 cents). Commissioner Buckley, Commissioner Gallagher and Commissioner Keeter were present for the vote. A motion to adopt the levy at 0.0401 passed on an affirmative vote of the commissioners present.

The board also reviewed several procurement items. After opening bids for a used dump truck, commissioners voted to authorize purchase of a 2012 Ford F-750 (about 70,000 miles) from the apparent bidder contingent on the road superintendentand superintendentinspection. The purchase was reported at $40,000; the board recorded the motion to approve the buy contingent on the inspection and voted to proceed.

On road-safety items, county staff proposed converting a two-way stop to a four-way stop at the Vandergriff and Hampton Road intersection, adding stop-ahead warning signage on the approach and reducing the posted speed to 35 mph. The board approved a motion to install the two new stop signs and the 35 mph limit and to add advance warning signage; commissioners discussed limited sight distance, growing housing development in the area and the presence of school bus stops before the vote.

The sheriffreported a grant opportunity and the board approved a motion giving the sheriffpermission to apply for a Local Violent Crime Prevention grant in the amount of $25,000 (nonmatching). County staff said the sheriffintended to use grant funds as additional funding toward a larger body-worn camera program that had been bid at roughly $200,000–$250,000 for 40 cameras over five years.

On personnel matters, commissioners approved a proposal from the assessorto move an employee from DC-2 to DC-3 with an $0.85 hourly increase effective in the 2026 budget year, contingent on the employee meeting specified office milestones and provided the increase fits within next yearbudget estimates.

Votes at a glance - Adopted county property tax levy: 0.0401. Outcome: approved (Commissioner Buckley, Commissioner Gallagher, Commissioner Keeter voted yes). Motion: "I make a motion to approve the tax levy" (mover not specified); subsequent correction to 0.0401 recorded during discussion. - Purchase of used dump truck (2012 Ford F-750, ~70,000 miles) from apparent bidder for $40,000, contingent on superintendent inspection. Outcome: approved (motion and second recorded; vote ayes). Note: board authorized inspection and contingent purchase. - Traffic control at Vandergriff and Hampton Road: install two stop signs, add advance warning and reduce speed limit to 35 mph. Outcome: approved (ayes recorded). - Sheriff: permission to apply for Local Violent Crime Prevention grant, $25,000 (nonmatching), intended for body-worn camera funding. Outcome: approved (ayes recorded). - Assessor pay-grade change: move employee from DC-2 to DC-3 with $0.85 increase in 2026 budget. Outcome: approved (ayes recorded).

All motions were made and seconded during the meeting; where a mover or seconder was not recorded by name in the transcript, the minutes record that motions were seconded and the board voted by voice (ayes recorded).