Boone County commissioners authorize $500,000 road-fund transfer, approve payroll and routine measures

ALBION, Neb. — The Boone County Board of Commissioners on Jan. 28 authorized a $500,000 transfer from the county General Fund to the Road Fund, approved payroll and other routine claims, and took a series of administrative actions including tabling final adoption of the 2026 County Handbook.

The board voted unanimously to allow the County Treasurer to transfer $500,000 from Fund 0100 (General) to Fund 0200 (Road) through the vendor-claims process (Transfer #3). The motion was made by Commissioner Brian J. Yosten and seconded by Chairman Jon Lindgren. The transfer is intended to support road operations and projects in the current tax year.

Also on the consent-type portion of the agenda the board approved county payroll claims for the pay period Dec. 22, 2025–Jan. 21, 2026, covering items including General Fund payroll ($146,111.71), Road payroll ($100,027.00) and Ambulance payroll ($5,617.90). The payroll motion, moved by Yosten and seconded by Matt Niewohner, passed on a unanimous roll-call vote.

Steve Pritchard, Extension Educator, presented the Extension Office’s 2025 annual report, which the board accepted. Pritchard asked to hire a local high-school senior or college student as a summer intern for an anticipated term of May 18–July 20, 2026 and said finding adequate housing in the county has been difficult. The board authorized the Extension Office to advertise for an intern and agreed to pay up to $750 from the Extension budget with additional compensation to come from the 4-H Council.

Highway Superintendent Brian McDonald reviewed proposed projects for the county’s road improvement plan and announced that the One and Six Year Road Public Hearing will be held Feb. 25, 2026 at 10:00 a.m. McDonald also presented Resolution No. 2026-03, authorizing the chairman to sign an agreement with the Nebraska Department of Transportation under the County Bridge Match Program; the board approved the resolution (motion by Matt Niewohner, second by Brian J. Yosten).

The board reviewed a revised 2026 County Handbook and found an error in the draft. Commissioners voted to table final handbook approval and to review the corrected version at the Feb. 9 meeting; because the handbook approval was tabled, Resolution No. 2026-04 (adoption of the handbook) was also tabled.

County Clerk Kate Noble presented a quote from Applied Connective for cybersecurity equipment and Domotz network monitoring (approximately $15,743.92). Noble said the county will seek reimbursement through the FY 2023 State and Local Cybersecurity Grant Program, which awarded the county up to $15,052. The board approved the quote and authorized Noble to sign the documents and submit the reimbursement request.

The board approved one Visitors Promotion Fund request: funding assistance to advertise the Beaver Valley Senior Center’s Easter Bake Sale scheduled for April 2–3, 2026. Commissioners also voted to advertise for sealed bids on fairgrounds leased real estate, with bids due by 4:00 p.m. Feb. 18, 2026 and opening/review scheduled for Feb. 25, 2026 at 10:30 a.m.

During public comment, Rod Nelson (Courthouse Maintenance) discussed a carpet upgrade at the sheriff’s office. County Attorney Abbey DeBoyes and Clerk Kate Noble discussed office-hour matters and guidance from the State Auditor’s Office regarding proceeding publication requirements.

Chairman Jon Lindgren adjourned the meeting at 12:20 p.m. The board’s next regular meeting is Feb. 9, 2026.