Stephenson County finance panel approves prioritized payments for nursing‑center claims, endorses $1.275 million levy advance

The Stephenson County Finance Committee on Dec. 15 voted to approve a prioritized schedule for outstanding vendor claims tied to the county‑owned nursing center and recommended using a $1,275,000 levy advance to start paying the highest‑priority bills on Jan. 1.

Committee members and staff discussed a color-coded prioritization spreadsheet and a plan that would pay top-tier claims first, then other vendors as funds allow. Committee members asked staff to seek waivers or reductions of interest and late fees where possible. Committee Chair said the effort is intended to get liabilities “off the books” and reduce finance charges going into the new year.

County Administrator staff reported that a Dec. 1 court hearing over the nursing center is scheduled to be continued until Dec. 29 and that Judge Olson indicated an intent to have a ruling then; staff warned that any decision could affect whether some payments ultimately need to be unwound. “Judge Olson said it's his intent to have a ruling at that time,” the County Administrator said, describing the court schedule.

Finance director Adam explained that the payments would be processed starting Jan. 1, contingent on the levy advance arriving as expected. Adam also described year‑end accounting tasks and cautioned that opening accounting period 13 is necessary to process invoices received in 2026 that belong to 2025.

Committee members debated whether to set money aside for a potential CMS penalty. One member noted the CMS penalty line in the spreadsheet is a placeholder and that its final amount is uncertain; staff recommended reserving funds for that obligation and using other available account balances to cushion liability payments.

Committee members also considered the operational limits of relying on a levy advance. “This is everything pre‑September 1. It’s not a business model,” one member said while arguing the levy advance is a short‑term measure to stabilize county finances. The committee ultimately approved the recommended prioritization and the use of the levy advance, with instructions for staff to contact vendors about reducing or waiving late fees where possible.

What this means next: staff will implement the payment prioritization beginning Jan. 1, reach out to vendors to negotiate fees or interest, and reserve CMS‑related funds pending further legal and federal guidance. The committee approved the plan by voice vote and the matter will be acted on administratively as described at the meeting.