Lavaca County approves telecommunications rollout, AT&T fiber contract and hazard mitigation signatories; canvass acknowledged

The Lavaca County Commissioners Court on Nov. 25 approved a series of administrative and infrastructure measures, including final preparations for a new 800 megahertz public-safety radio system, a secure fiber contract with AT&T and a resolution authorizing signatories for the county's hazard mitigation plan.

The county judge opened the meeting and introduced a telecommunications update delivered by the county's EMS director. The director reported two of three new 800 MHz towers are live (Howlettsville and Shiner), engineers have been on site for weeks, and the system was performing well in tests from multiple directions. He said the county is in a testing phase for handheld radios and that a full switch-over is likely around Dec. 15, plus or minus a week, pending final console updates and a coordination meeting with department heads and volunteer fire departments. The court voted to accept the telecommunications update.

The court then considered and approved a contract with AT&T to provide a secured fiber connection tying Lavaca County into a Harris County core (noted in the packet as Conroe and Tomball). The county auditor flagged a recurring charge in the packet of about $1,400; the commissioners moved to approve the contract and to include the current claim for payment so it would be paid by Dec. 1 as required by the vendor invoice.

Emergency Management Coordinator Greg Raley briefed the court about the county's hazard mitigation plan, explaining the plan was written by H2O Partners using a General Land Office grant and has been submitted to the Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) for final approval. Commissioners approved a resolution authorizing signatories for contractual and financial documents necessary to finalize and maintain eligibility for state and federal mitigation funding.

Other approved items included a contract for secure short-term juvenile detention services with the San Patricio County Juvenile Justice Center, a routine transfer policy to send surplus IT equipment to the county IT department for evaluation and refurbishment, advertisement for sealed bids on road materials and services, and approval to add a stop sign on County Road 392 behind Yoakum Community Hospital after resident complaints.

The court also approved the county's participation release form for the Kroger Texas opioid settlement and adopted a temporary-employee transfer policy to allow short-term assignments across departments when authorized by Human Resources, the county judge and the temporary supervisor.

Votes at a glance

- Telecommunications update: motion to accept update passed (motion by Precinct 3; second Precinct 4). - AT&T secure fiber contract and payment of current claim: approved (motion by Precinct 4; second Precinct 2). - Transfer surplus IT equipment to IT department: approved (motion by Precinct 4; second Precinct 3). - Advertise for bids on road materials/services (Nov. 25'Dec. 6; bids due 10:30 a.m. Dec. 5): approved (motion by Precinct 1; second Precinct 2). - Acknowledge completion of Nov. 5 canvass: approved (motion by Precinct 3; second Precinct 4). - Table Cook family estate subdivision exemption (pending easement/agreement): motion to table approved (motion by Precinct 1; second Precinct 6). - Approve John Holland (Light Street Residential) certificate of exemption: approved (motion by Precinct 1; second Precinct 2). - Approve Kroger Texas settlement participation/release: approved. - Add stop sign on County Road 392 behind Yoakum Community Hospital: approved (motion by Precinct 3; second Precinct 4). - Approve juvenile secure short-term detention contract with San Patricio County: approved. - Approve resolution authorizing hazard mitigation signatories: approved (motion by Precinct 1; second Precinct 3). - Approve temporary employee transfer policy: approved (motion by Precinct 4; second Precinct 3).

What to watch next

Officials said the telecommunications system go-live depends on final console updates and a coordination meeting with public-safety partners; Emergency Management Coordinator Greg Raley said the hazard mitigation plan remains under TDEM review and may be returned for edits before final acceptance. The court scheduled future meetings for Dec. 9 and Dec. 23, 2024.

Sources and context

The actions and votes reported above are drawn from the Nov. 25, 2024 Lavaca County Commissioners Court meeting. The elections canvass figures presented by County Elections Administrator Tina Hudson were reported in the meeting packet and on the record; the court formally voted to acknowledge the canvass.