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Martin County court appoints two to water board and pursues multimillion-dollar water and sewer grants
Summary
At its Sept. 19 meeting the Martin County Physical Court appointed Tim Toma and Vernon Robinson to fill two water board seats and reported applying for roughly $26 million in water/sewer funding under the legislature’s "waters program," part of about $43 million in outstanding grant requests.
The Martin County Physical Court on Sept. 19 approved two water board appointments and reiterated a push to secure large state and federal grants for water and sewer projects.
The court appointed Tim Toma to fill the unexpired seat of Jimmy Don Kerr through December 2027 and approved Vernon Robinson to fill the other vacancy after motions, seconds and voice votes. The presiding official described Toma as an engineer and manager who has designed and operated water and sewage systems nationwide and said Robinson brings long-standing local ties and private-sector experience.
The court also reported active applications for water and sewer funding. The presiding official said the county had submitted roughly $26 million in proposals to the legislature’s "waters program" for distressed water and sewage districts and that the court currently had about $43 million in grant requests outstanding, including $10 million in AMLA funding and $5 million cited as from the federal budget. He urged members to lobby state contacts to improve the county’s chances of receiving awards.
The presiding official additionally noted recent emergency funds used to reopen Murray Bridge, stated in the meeting as $88,540, and thanked the Martin County Water District and the local Big Sandy AD for coordinating grant work.
The appointments and funding push are intended to position the county to manage and implement projects should the grant money be awarded; the court emphasized the need for capable oversight if large sums arrive. The court took the actions by voice votes recorded in the meeting transcript.
What happens next: If the state or federal funds are awarded, the water board and county staff will oversee project implementation and disbursement; no further formal votes were recorded at this meeting about specific contracts or project awards.
