Campbell County Fiscal Court approves mutual-aid pact, quitclaim deed, crypto account and several purchases

Campbell County Fiscal Court on voice votes approved a package of routine and time-sensitive items, including joining the Statewide Emergency Management Mutual Aid and Assistance Agreement, authorizing a quitclaim deed for an orphan lot in Silver Grove, and allowing the county to open a Kraken exchange business account to receive and convert cryptocurrency seized under court order so restitution can be paid to scam victims.

County Administrator Matt Hlofel explained the mutual-aid resolution (R51-25), which names William Turner as emergency management director and Greg Butler as deputy director, as a formal adoption of a statewide pact the county already relies on informally. "We all already provide mutual aid to each other, but the state would like to enter into a statewide agreement," the administrator said, recommending adoption "just in case it's necessary down the road." The court approved R51-25 by voice vote.

The court also approved resolution R52-25 to execute a quitclaim deed returning an outlying lot in the Biotrocchi Subdivision (Silver Grove) to the Finks for $1 after a title search showed the parcel should have passed to the fiscal court decades earlier. The administrator described the parcel as not adjacent to the Mosier Sports Complex and said the Finks had maintained and paid taxes on the lot for roughly 20 years; the court adopted the quitclaim deed by voice vote.

Finance Director and Treasurer Laura Lewis outlined several fiscal and procurement items. The court authorized the judge executive to execute a DocuSign contract with the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet Office of Highway Safety for an FY26 highway safety grant of $20,500 (reimbursement basis, no local match) for the Campbell County Police Department. The court approved the purchase of an animal-control truck with transport upfitting from the state master agreement with Frankfurt Ford for $69,295 to support two new county-wide animal-services positions. The fiscal court also approved buying three marked police interceptors ($44,935 each) and three unmarked Explorers ($39,780 each), a package budgeted in FY26 with a total approximate cost of $254,000.

The court accepted low bids totaling $85,329 to build a new accessible park shelter and restroom at AJ Jolly Park (cement work: Bosch White Masonry $16,820; electrical: Gamine Burkhardt Electric $16,909; plumbing: Dan Hart Plumbing $51,600), with carpentry performed in-house. Officials noted the new structure will not be ready in time for the Festival on the Lake scheduled for Saturday, August 16.

A notable administrative action: the court authorized a Kraken exchange business account, presented by Lewis and discussed with police leadership, to handle cryptocurrency assets tied to court orders and investigations so funds can be converted and returned to scam victims. Chief Sorel urged public vigilance and described frequent crypto-related scams: "If it's gift cards... it's probably a scam," he said, and reported the department had recovered crypto and worked to return funds. The finance director and county attorney stressed the account will be used only to process assets in active investigations or by court order and "will not be used for investing."

The meeting also handled routine fiscal housekeeping: declaration of surplus county property transferred to the Bracken County Sheriff's Office, budget transfers and interfund transfers dated 07/31/2025, and approval of claims and claims-paid lists (07/23/2025, 07/30/2025, 08/06/2025; employee benefits claims dated 08/02/2025). One commissioner recused themself from votes on employee-benefits–related claims because of an employer relationship.

Votes at a glance: R51-25 (Statewide Emergency Management Mutual Aid and Assistance Agreement) — approved by voice vote; R52-25 (quitclaim deed for Biotrocchi subdivision lot) — approved by voice vote; R53-25 (surplus property transfer to Bracken County Sheriff's Office) — approved by voice vote; authorization to open Kraken exchange business account — approved by voice vote; FY26 Kentucky Transportation Cabinet Highway Safety grant acceptance ($20,500) — approved by voice vote; animal-control truck purchase ($69,295) — approved by voice vote; purchase of six police vehicles (~$254,000 total) — approved by voice vote; AJ Jolly Park shelter bids ($85,329 total) — accepted by voice vote; budget and interfund transfers dated 07/31/2025 — approved; claims and claims-paid lists — approved (one commissioner recused on employee-benefits claims).

The court adjourned after the votes. The next procedural step for several items is administrative execution (DocuSign contract, deeds) and vendor scheduling; no contested or divided votes were recorded.