Public hearing set on county budget

BESSEMER - The Gogebic County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved a public hearing on the topic of the county's 2020-21 operational budget for its next regular meeting.

The board 7-0 approved a public hearing prior to the 5 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 23 county board meeting at the request of Juliane Giackino, county administrator. The action followed a budget workshop prior to the regular meeting on Wednesday.

The proposed budget was sent forward to the hearing without significant changes resulting from the workshop, said Gerry Pelissero, county clerk of court and register of deeds.

The board heard from Heidi DeRosso, county emergency manager and 911 coordinator, before approving her department's $13,032 Emergency Management Performance (EMPG) grant from the Michigan State Police Emergency Management and Homeland Security Division. 

The grant program requires a county cost-match so that the federal share of the EMPG budget does not exceed 50% or $9,073,402 of the total budget. The 2020 EMPG allocation funds 34.83% of the emergency program manager's salary and benefits, which is a reduction from 0.86% reimbursement, she said.

The county emergency management department requested $425,240 for its 2020-2021 budget. The department projected the remainder of the 2019-2020 budget is $361,203.

The board also heard from John Frello, veterans service officer, regarding an annual grant application to the County Veteran Service Fund grant through the Michigan Veterans Affairs Agency. The board 7-0 approved the application.

The purpose of the grant is to enhance county veteran service operations by connecting veterans to their federal benefits and to provide consistent access to services throughout the state, he said. The needs based grant must resolve temporary financial hardship.

Frello said the grant would pay his salary but that the same application was denied last year because he is not a county employee.

The state provides $4.15 million through the grant for all 83 counties. There is a $50,000 base amount plus a per capita reallocation of funds from non-participating counties. 

Gogebic County would be tentatively approved for $52,120, Frello said in his information to the board. This is the same amount as the previous year but the state declared the county ineligible because Frello was not a county employee.

Frello said that the administrators of the program are searching for waivers and exceptions that are possible in his situation with Gogebic County.

Frello was also presented with a certificate of commendation from County Board Chair Dan Siirila. The certificate was for extraordinary skill in the search, investigation and evaluation of the military service of Lt. Col. Raymond Carlson, which was in support of the retired U.S. Army colonel's claim for service-connected disabilities with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. County Board Chair Dan Siirila and Jack Lillar were also commended for their dedication in supporting veterans organizations, local veterans and their families. 

The board 7-0 approved the Gogebic-Iron County Airport Board's authorization to receive a $196,220 municipal airport per-and-poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) grant from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy and the Michigan Department of Transportation. 

The PFAS grant program helps airports monitor and test for the presence of PFAS, which are chemicals found in the foam that is sprayed on runways in the event of an emergency, according to County Board Commissioner Joe Bonovetz, who chair's the two-county board. The PFAS testing grant is due for return by Sept. 10 and was approved Wednesday morning by the airport board.

In other business, the board approved:

-A resolution to wish Siirila a happy birthday.

-Receiving the city of Bessemer's five-year master plan.