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Woodbury County approves 28E agreement to help prosecute nuisance violations in Cushing
Summary
The board approved a 28E agreement authorizing the county attorney’s office to prosecute nuisance-ordinance violations for the City of Cushing on a limited, prosecutorial-only basis at no additional county cost; supervisors stressed the effort will be city-driven and limited to enforcement, not legal advisement.
County Attorney James Loomis asked the Woodbury County Board of Supervisors to approve a 28E agreement that would let his office prosecute nuisance-ordinance violations on behalf of the City of Cushing.
Loomis told the board he has met repeatedly with Cushing officials who say they lack resources to pursue code enforcement and that the proposed agreement would be a limited, prosecutorial role: his office would prepare and prosecute cases but would not replace city attorneys or provide advisory legal services. He said the agreement would not cost the county additional money and would be used “on an unlimited basis” only as incidents arise and the city requests assistance.
Treasurer Tina Bertrand and several supervisors supported the concept but urged clarity on process, cautioned about property-tax and collection issues, and emphasized the effort should be city driven. Loomis said the county office would rely on city staff to gather investigatory information and would decide whether to prosecute, appeal or drop cases; he described typical nuisance matters as roughly misdemeanor-level work requiring limited courtroom time.
Supervisor concerns focused on scope and workload: one member asked whether the county would be expected to help multiple communities and whether the board risked appearing to “pick winners and losers.” Loomis said his plan is to start with Cushing and expand only as other communities formally request assistance and as the county has capacity. He reiterated the role is enforcement, not ordinance drafting or city legal advice.
After discussion the board moved to approve the agreement and sign the remaining county signature; the motion passed unanimously, recorded as five-zero. The county will execute the 28E agreement with Cushing and Loomis’s office will begin coordinating with city officials to handle individual nuisance prosecutions.
Next steps: the chair will sign the agreement and the county attorney’s office will work with Cushing on case intake and coordination; no additional county budget appropriation was requested at the meeting.
