Owsley County Fiscal Court accepts treasurer's report, awards material bids and approves $3,000 donation

Owsley County Fiscal Court on Monday accepted the treasurer's report, approved several procurement awards for pipe, aggregates and asphalt work, and approved a $3,000 donation to the local rescue squad.

The court accepted the clerk's financial report, with the clerk stating, "The ending balance for the general fund is $262,390.11," and reporting a road fund balance of $1,084,598.22 and an opioid fund balance of $133,161.35. The clerk said the total ending balance was $1,960,918.79. The court moved and approved acceptance of the report by voice vote.

The fiscal court reviewed sealed bids for plastic double-wall pipe and aggregate materials. Members approved awarding pipe work to the low bidder for the listed unit price (the court discussed a low-bid figure of $407) and directed staff to seek the alternate supplier only if the primary low bidder could not meet demand. The court also reviewed sand, ballast and DGA bids and approved awards to the lower-cost supplier identified in the bid packet.

On paving, members reviewed plant and in-place asphalt prices and moved to award a paving contract to the bidder discussed in the packet. The court included a contract provision that calls for a $500 per business day penalty if the contractor fails to complete the work by Oct. 30, and authorized proceeding with contract signature and award.

The court approved fuel pricing tied to market rack rates for off‑road and highway fuel; members noted the county's current supplier and accepted the proposed pricing arrangement.

In a separate motion, the court approved a $3,000 donation to the local rescue squad in recognition of assistance provided to a resident. Members moved, seconded and voted to fund the donation.

The conservation district provided its annual update. The agency official said, "Since the master tobacco settlement agreement began, the conservation of district has administered a total of $3,533,490," and noted the district had received just over $60,000 in millage receipts for the most recent fiscal year, $142,000 so far this year in CAFE (tobacco settlement) funds and a requested additional $112,000. The official described equipment lease programs, a conservation scholarship, FFA outreach and county cleanup events supported by the grants and cost-share programs.

Court members also discussed a $20,000 forestry payment and the statutory school share; members indicated they would return approximately the 25 percent school portion to local schools rather than retain the full amount for county roads. Staff reported a short delay on some road work due to a tractor needing repair and noted a prior garbage-truck spill; solid-waste staff said occasional pickup delays can occur when multiple trucks service the landfill on the same day and when household bags are too heavy for drivers to lift.

The court approved routine transfers and bills presented in the packet, reviewed parks maintenance and a splash‑pad grant that covers about half of the project cost, and adjourned after the business on the agenda was completed.

Votes at a glance - Treasurer's report: motion to accept — approved by voice vote. - Pipe procurement: award to low bidder with fallback to alternate supplier — approved. - Aggregates/sand: awards to lower-cost supplier identified in packet — approved. - Asphalt paving contract: award approved with $500/day late completion penalty — approved. - Fuel pricing arrangement: approved. - Rescue squad donation: $3,000 — approved. - Transfers and bills: approved.

Next steps The court authorized contract signings where required and directed staff to proceed with procurement steps; engineers and vendors will finalize site details and schedules for the splash pad and paving projects.