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Garfield County commissioner approves $1.49 million in payroll and claims during meeting with no quorum
Summary
On May 28, 2026 in Jordan, Garfield County Commissioner Jerry Collins signed off on $1,123,827.87 in claims and $366,119.59 in payroll despite the absence of the chairman and vice‑chair. The register lists a $484,997.04 payment to Holden Excavating and major fund balances including a $511,196.79 FEMA account.
On May 28, 2026, in Jordan, Garfield County Commissioner Jerry Collins approved county payroll and claims totaling $1,489,947.46 during business logged in the county minutes despite the board lacking a quorum.
The minutes state that Chairman Kelly Witt and Vice‑Chair Carla McWilliams were absent and that Member Jerry Collins handled timeclock approvals, payroll and claims. The record lists electronic payroll checks of $164,838.96 and non‑electronic payroll checks of $201,280.63 (total payroll $366,119.59). It also lists 135 claim checks totalling $1,123,827.87; the minutes note these amounts “were approved and paid.”
The claims register includes several large single‑vendor payments. The largest listed is a $484,997.04 claim to Holden Excavating. Other sizable payments in the register include a $206,422.79 payment to Montana DPHHS and multiple medical‑staffing and professional services entries. The register names providers such as Badlands Medical Staffing, MSU Extension Service, Seraphine Clinic LLC and Robert Peccia & Associates among many others.
A fund summary attached to the register shows major fund balances: a FEMA fund balance of $511,196.79, a Nursing Home fund balance listed in the register and endowment entries (Nursing Home cash $237,496.24 appears in the fund listing), and assorted cash balances across general, road and special funds. The documents list a total register amount of $1,123,827.87 across funds for the accounting period.
The payroll register names dozens of county employees and aligns with the payroll totals recorded in the minutes. The clerk and recorder attestation appears on the proceedings record; the minutes include an acceptance and approval statement for the commissioner proceeding minutes and list the next regular meeting on June 3, 2026 at 9:00 a.m.
The minutes packet also contains an agenda and public‑comment guidance that directs members of the public to contact Commissioner Secretary Kerri Gipson to appear on future agendas and notes that commissioners will recess at noon unless stated otherwise. The record does not include verbatim public comments or debate over specific claims or payroll items.
No formal vote tally or individual roll‑call votes are recorded in the minutes for these approvals beyond the statement that the payroll and claims were approved and paid, and the transcript shows the signatures/attestations in the minutes block (the signature lines in the transcript text contain typographical errors that are evident in the source document; names appear elsewhere in the minutes and are reported here as Kelly Witt, Carla McWilliams, Jerry Collins and Charlie Saylor). The county scheduled its next regular meeting for June 3, 2026, at 9:00 a.m.
