WEBVTT 00:00:00.194 --> 00:00:08.541 - Good morning. I'm going to call to order this meeting of the Monroe County Board of Commissioners. It 00:00:08.541 --> 00:00:16.805 - is Thursday, November 12th, and I will note for the record that all three commissioners are here and 00:00:16.805 --> 00:00:25.561 - present in the NatU Hill Room. And with that, let me start first by saying we do have to amend our agenda. 00:00:25.561 --> 00:00:27.934 - And I would move that we add 00:00:29.698 --> 00:00:40.540 - I don't have a copy of it here, sorry. The agreement for legal services to the agenda as item C. Second. 00:00:40.540 --> 00:00:51.279 - We have a motion and we have a second. Any discussion on the item? Okay. All those in favor of amending 00:00:51.279 --> 00:00:59.230 - the agenda signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries three zero. All right. 00:00:59.362 --> 00:01:04.955 - We will move on with our public statement read by Commissioner Madeira, please. Yes. We, the Monroe 00:01:04.955 --> 00:01:10.604 - County Board of Commissioners, renew our commitment to welcome and protect the rights of all people, 00:01:10.604 --> 00:01:16.421 - regardless of age, race, color, creed, disability, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, marital 00:01:16.421 --> 00:01:22.238 - status, economic status and national origin. And we affirm the right of every person to live peacefully 00:01:22.238 --> 00:01:28.223 - and without fear. And we will fight and resist at every step discrimination and harmful policies, whatever 00:01:28.223 --> 00:01:28.894 - the source. 00:01:29.346 --> 00:01:37.352 - We believe in diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. We also stand in support of our county public 00:01:37.352 --> 00:01:45.662 - school systems, both RBB and MCCSC. Great. Thank you so much. We will now move on to our department updates. 00:01:55.810 --> 00:02:02.873 - Good morning. Good morning, commissioners. Lene Amy from the health department. I am here today to give 00:02:02.873 --> 00:02:05.182 - you the status update on measles. 00:02:05.314 --> 00:02:11.863 - First of all, there are no suspected or confirmed measles cases in Monroe County at this time, just 00:02:11.863 --> 00:02:18.871 - to reassure you. However, statewide, as of November 10th, so Tuesday, the number of measles cases reported 00:02:18.871 --> 00:02:25.486 - by the Indiana Department of Health has risen to 153 known cases. That's up from 117 cases this time 00:02:25.486 --> 00:02:26.206 - last week. 00:02:27.010 --> 00:02:33.775 - As of November 3rd, the breakdown of cases by vaccination status was roughly 97% unvaccinated or unknown 00:02:33.775 --> 00:02:40.217 - and roughly 3% vaccinated. A lot of those cases are in northeastern Indiana though in the past week 00:02:40.217 --> 00:02:46.788 - nearby Putnam and Davies counties each reported a case. Park County has reported two additional cases 00:02:46.788 --> 00:02:50.718 - and Jennings County has reported nine new cases. You do have 00:02:51.426 --> 00:02:59.313 - this map that I provided for you. And this is also available on our website and will be posted to social 00:02:59.313 --> 00:03:06.974 - media periodically to keep people updated. Just for some historical context, IDOH reported 10 measles 00:03:06.974 --> 00:03:14.485 - cases in the entirety of 2025 and only four measles cases statewide between 2021 and 2024. The last 00:03:14.485 --> 00:03:17.790 - reported case in Monroe County was in 2018. 00:03:19.266 --> 00:03:25.563 - Measles is a highly contagious disease that can lead to serious complications, especially in young children, 00:03:25.563 --> 00:03:31.745 - pregnant people, and those with weakened immune systems. And the most effective protection against measles 00:03:31.745 --> 00:03:37.580 - is the MMR, or measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine. An MMR vaccination rate of 95% is believed to be 00:03:37.580 --> 00:03:39.486 - the threshold for herd immunity. 00:03:39.714 --> 00:03:46.572 - In 2019, the MMR vaccination rate amongst kindergartners in Indiana was 94.4 percent, so very close. 00:03:46.572 --> 00:03:53.702 - Now that sits at 90.1 percent, so well below. IDOH and the regional epidemiology teams are on heightened 00:03:53.702 --> 00:04:00.560 - alert, and our department recently participated in a measles preparedness exercise with IU to ensure 00:04:00.560 --> 00:04:04.702 - that our response plans are up to date and fully functional. 00:04:05.346 --> 00:04:11.643 - As always, we are strongly encouraging folks to stay up to date on vaccinations, whether that's through 00:04:11.643 --> 00:04:17.758 - a primary care provider or local pharmacy, scheduling a vaccination appointment with our partners at 00:04:17.758 --> 00:04:23.510 - the Morgan County Health Department in Martinsville. They can do that by calling 765-342-6621. 00:04:23.510 --> 00:04:28.414 - Thank you. Thank you so much. I'm really glad that you had that meeting with IU. 00:04:28.514 --> 00:04:35.616 - That is wonderful. That is really a really good first step. Do you have any comments or questions, 00:04:35.616 --> 00:04:42.789 - Commissioner Jones? Yeah, just thank you for this map. That's quite interesting. Yeah. Commissioner 00:04:42.789 --> 00:04:50.035 - Madeira? Yes, it looks like we're being invaded from east to west on measles cases surrounded. And I 00:04:50.035 --> 00:04:57.854 - don't doubt that they're going to be here long before long. So in Wayne County, 19 cases, that's terrifying. 00:04:58.306 --> 00:05:05.206 - So yeah, yeah. And Jennings went from one to 10 in a week in a week's time. So and you know, people 00:05:05.206 --> 00:05:12.521 - move around the state. We are, you know, we're not insular in Monroe County. So just be aware, especially 00:05:12.521 --> 00:05:19.697 - if you're traveling to other counties to be extra vigilant. That's really good, really good work. Thank 00:05:19.697 --> 00:05:26.874 - you for that. Thanks for keeping the community updated. Absolutely. Thank you. Appreciate it. Any other 00:05:26.874 --> 00:05:28.254 - department updates? 00:05:32.226 --> 00:05:39.913 - TSD, we have just on our screen, join your team's meeting link and we don't have the actual feed from 00:05:39.913 --> 00:05:47.525 - the courthouse. So I want to make sure that we are. Oh, we are. There we are. Okay. I was wanting to 00:05:47.525 --> 00:05:55.589 - make sure that we are feeding cats. All right. Feed the cats. All right. Great. Seeing no other department 00:05:55.589 --> 00:06:01.694 - updates. Thank you, TSD. I appreciate it. We will now move on to public comment. 00:06:02.466 --> 00:06:09.014 - Public comment is reserved for items not on our agenda, and each speaker is limited to three minutes, 00:06:09.014 --> 00:06:15.562 - and please give your name and county of residence when you begin speaking. You can raise your hand on 00:06:15.562 --> 00:06:22.367 - teams, and we have Mr. M.G. from the chamber here in the NatU Hill Room. Good morning. Hey, good morning, 00:06:22.367 --> 00:06:28.787 - commissioners. This is Christopher M.G. from the Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce. Wonderful 00:06:28.787 --> 00:06:32.382 - to see all three of you in the historic NatU Hill Room. 00:06:32.898 --> 00:06:40.057 - I first want to thank the Sheriff's Office and the surveyors for attending last and participating last 00:06:40.057 --> 00:06:47.425 - Thursday's Success School Career Cruise at the Convention Center. It was about 1,007th and eighth graders 00:06:47.425 --> 00:06:54.445 - from RBB and MCC joining us as they explored careers, including those in county government. It was a 00:06:54.445 --> 00:06:57.086 - lot of work and a lot of fun as well. 00:06:57.218 --> 00:07:03.369 - We also want to thank the fine people at the county council for the Sophia Travis grant that made that 00:07:03.369 --> 00:07:09.340 - possible. Now, speaking of the convention center, I want to follow up on a recent food and beverage 00:07:09.340 --> 00:07:15.311 - tax advisory commission meeting from the end of last month regarding the expansion went through the 00:07:15.311 --> 00:07:21.283 - so going through that and the convention expansion that had years of debate and economic impact and 00:07:21.283 --> 00:07:22.238 - visitor demand. 00:07:22.690 --> 00:07:28.828 - That was the right standard for major public investment. It took a long time to get that going. We appreciate 00:07:28.828 --> 00:07:34.408 - the commissioner's work in making that happen. But the other food and beverage tax projects deserve 00:07:34.408 --> 00:07:39.988 - the sort of same scrutiny. I think the Quarry Uplands, for example, that project dates back to 2019 00:07:39.988 --> 00:07:45.735 - and the county spent more than 1 million on property acquisition. A master planning moves forward. The 00:07:45.735 --> 00:07:50.590 - public should know the feasibility work has been done. The visitor demand is expected. 00:07:50.690 --> 00:07:55.948 - what construction operations is going to look like, and long-term maintenance costs. Have partnerships 00:07:55.948 --> 00:08:01.104 - or other approaches been evaluated? We study housing before setting housing policy, as that has been 00:08:01.104 --> 00:08:06.261 - talked about with the Planning Commission. Tourism investment warrants the same rigor. It's the same 00:08:06.261 --> 00:08:11.468 - with the Huntington Nature Preserve, which raises a similar question. It grew out of a land donation. 00:08:11.468 --> 00:08:16.675 - Preserving natural areas is a real community asset. But accepting land means accepting responsibility 00:08:16.675 --> 00:08:20.606 - for it. Despite having amazing parks department, the same questions persist. 00:08:20.834 --> 00:08:26.586 - What is it going to cost to preserve and operate for the next 15 years? How will that be funded and 00:08:26.586 --> 00:08:32.683 - what obligations will remain after that tax expires? We ask the county to share its feasibility, starting 00:08:32.683 --> 00:08:38.665 - work estimates and long-term financial projections on these projects advance. The FAB tax will not last 00:08:38.665 --> 00:08:44.590 - forever. And we only get to spend these dollars once. When it sunsets, we will be left to what we have 00:08:44.590 --> 00:08:47.006 - built and the obligations to maintain it. 00:08:47.554 --> 00:08:53.625 - On a financial priorities, I appreciate the County Council's deliberation and rejection the proposed 00:08:53.625 --> 00:08:59.877 - 18% commissioner salary increase while county employees received 2% raises. Voters earlier in the month 00:08:59.877 --> 00:09:04.926 - made affordability a clear concern this election and we should reflect that and how 00:09:05.218 --> 00:09:10.177 - county government approaches its own spending moving that expense to the summer fund doesn't change 00:09:10.177 --> 00:09:15.532 - the question of priorities. I welcome broader salary study. One thing I've pushed a long time, particularly 00:09:15.532 --> 00:09:20.491 - is examine staffing workloads and ways to operate more efficiently. The Greater Blooming Chamber of 00:09:20.491 --> 00:09:25.648 - Commerce supports responsible tourism development, preservation and celebrating our limestone heritage. 00:09:25.648 --> 00:09:30.657 - We ask these projects and the county spending generally receive the same scrutiny and accountability 00:09:30.657 --> 00:09:35.070 - that major public investments require. I thank you for your time tonight. Appreciate it. 00:09:35.490 --> 00:09:44.899 - Thank you. Any other public comment for items not on our agenda? You can raise your hand on Teams or 00:09:44.899 --> 00:09:54.587 - come to the podium. Okay. Seeing none, we'll move on to our next agenda item, please. Yes, I would like 00:09:54.587 --> 00:10:02.878 - to approve the minutes for November, move to approve the minutes for November 5th, 2026. 00:10:03.266 --> 00:10:09.825 - We have a motion and we have a second. Any comments, corrections, or edits? No, thank you. Thank you. 00:10:09.825 --> 00:10:16.448 - All those in favor of approving the minutes for November 5th, 2026, signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion 00:10:16.448 --> 00:10:22.943 - carries 3-0. And we'll move on to the next item, please. Yes, I'd like to move to approve the claims 00:10:22.943 --> 00:10:29.502 - docket for accounts payable for November 12th, 2026, and for payroll for November 13th, 2026. Second. 00:10:30.114 --> 00:10:39.181 - We have a motion and we have a second. Ms. Gallardo, please tell us all about it. Hi, good morning. 00:10:39.181 --> 00:10:48.702 - The accounts payable claims docket for November 12, 2026 totals $441,223.39. This includes all emergency 00:10:48.702 --> 00:10:50.878 - claims and adjustments. 00:10:51.074 --> 00:11:05.115 - The payroll docket for November 13, 2026 includes $1,697,201.25 indirect costs and the remaining $697,571.64 00:11:05.115 --> 00:11:18.770 - were for indirect costs for a grand total of $2,394,772.89. Thank you so much. Any comments or questions? 00:11:18.770 --> 00:11:20.702 - No, thank you. 00:11:22.338 --> 00:11:29.932 - excellent thank you so much let's see if there's any public comment on this item you can raise your 00:11:29.932 --> 00:11:37.526 - hand on teams or come to the podium seeing none all those in favor of approving the claim stock and 00:11:37.526 --> 00:11:45.575 - accounts payable november 12 20 26 and payroll november 13 20 26 signify by saying aye aye motion carries 00:11:45.575 --> 00:11:52.030 - three zero all right we'll move on to thank you we'll move on to new business please 00:11:52.322 --> 00:11:59.934 - Yes, I would like to move approval for the emergency management's public assistance administration policy. 00:11:59.934 --> 00:12:07.475 - Fund name FEMA IDHS, state disaster relief fund, fund number 8176 and 9179, in the amount of $442,473.01. 00:12:07.475 --> 00:12:15.230 - Second. We have a motion and we have a second. Good morning. Good morning. Courtney Moser, internal auditor. 00:12:15.330 --> 00:12:23.792 - This is a policy that was written to standardized disaster funding provided for emergency management. 00:12:23.792 --> 00:12:32.668 - This was already approved by the Emergency Management Advisory Council on September 14th. And I do believe 00:12:32.668 --> 00:12:40.964 - Jamie Nibel should be online if you guys have any specific questions about the policy. Thank you so 00:12:40.964 --> 00:12:43.038 - much. We'll just turn to 00:12:43.266 --> 00:12:50.860 - Jamie Ms. Neville from emergency management or director of emergency management. See if she has anything 00:12:50.860 --> 00:12:58.092 - she wants to add at this point. Good morning. I don't really have anything to add necessarily. This 00:12:58.092 --> 00:13:05.758 - is just kind of cleaning up the process and putting it down on paper. These are things that we already do 00:13:06.018 --> 00:13:12.994 - but just outlining and putting it down on paper so that everybody knows the process and it's not just 00:13:12.994 --> 00:13:19.970 - our office leading the charge necessarily and telling everybody exactly how it's supposed to proceed. 00:13:19.970 --> 00:13:26.946 - It doesn't change anything that we do so much, it just outlines it better and makes it cleaner. Thank 00:13:26.946 --> 00:13:33.854 - you so much. Can either of you, Ms. Moser or Ms. Nebel, explain why there's a dollar amount on this? 00:13:35.874 --> 00:13:42.192 - Because it seems like if these are forms, there wouldn't be a dollar amount. So the dollar amount comes 00:13:42.192 --> 00:13:48.267 - from the funding that we've obtained in the past. So the 2023 tornado, that's the FEMA funding that 00:13:48.267 --> 00:13:54.646 - we had received that hasn't been dispersed back to its original expenditure. There's some state disaster 00:13:54.646 --> 00:14:00.722 - relief funding that we received in 2024 that hasn't been expended to where it originally came from. 00:14:00.722 --> 00:14:05.278 - So that money is just being held. And once we get this policy passed, then 00:14:05.378 --> 00:14:12.333 - it will be put where it came from. Please, Mr. Cockrell. Some of our funding has been based upon we've 00:14:12.333 --> 00:14:19.490 - made requests for things and the requests were off a few dollars. We've worked with the state and they're 00:14:19.490 --> 00:14:26.445 - like, these are such de minimis amounts that we have given it to you. We have already okayed that this 00:14:26.445 --> 00:14:33.670 - was a reasonable expense. And so some of the documentation have a little bit off that we've worked through 00:14:33.670 --> 00:14:34.750 - the state with. 00:14:34.882 --> 00:14:40.968 - But we haven't been able to release this because we don't have an overarching policy that allows for 00:14:40.968 --> 00:14:47.115 - that. So what this overarching policy does in part, it does a lot of things, is it basically puts our 00:14:47.115 --> 00:14:53.141 - emergency management people in charge of collecting all the requests and then forward and being the 00:14:53.141 --> 00:14:59.407 - conduit to the state, which I think caused some of the problems to begin with, is that we had more than 00:14:59.407 --> 00:15:02.782 - one person talking to the state about different things. 00:15:02.882 --> 00:15:09.541 - that's kind of what this does. It makes her the point person and it also recognizes that sometimes the 00:15:09.541 --> 00:15:16.329 - state gives us money and that after they've gone through their approval process, that doesn't 100% match 00:15:16.329 --> 00:15:23.247 - our documentation. And so instead of having to let it sit in a fund until we can figure out how to resolve 00:15:23.247 --> 00:15:29.970 - that, this is just recognizing that that's gonna happen. And when the state says it's okay to disperse, 00:15:29.970 --> 00:15:31.134 - you can disperse. 00:15:32.354 --> 00:15:40.039 - okay that that really thank you everyone for the explanations i appreciate uh commissioner madura do 00:15:40.039 --> 00:15:47.953 - you have any comments or questions i know i do not thank you so much commissioner jones no i don't okay 00:15:47.953 --> 00:15:55.638 - um i actually have one other question is this something that other counties already have in place or 00:15:55.638 --> 00:16:02.334 - have we just been so fortunate with so many emergencies tongue in cheek that uh we have 00:16:02.690 --> 00:16:11.185 - we have this need? Because typically after an event, we'll sit down in an admin meeting or even here 00:16:11.185 --> 00:16:18.923 - in a work session and we'll talk through, oh, we think this expense counts toward the fund, 00:16:18.923 --> 00:16:27.166 - this one doesn't, et cetera. So where did this originate from and then do other counties do this? 00:16:31.042 --> 00:16:38.172 - I do not have the answer to that. I might ask Ms. Nebel if she knows. So I did reach out to our district 00:16:38.172 --> 00:16:45.099 - liaisons, the two district liaisons that covered nine, eight, nine and 10 to see if there was another 00:16:45.099 --> 00:16:51.889 - county that we could, you know, parody off of because I mean, if somebody's doing it already, then, 00:16:51.889 --> 00:16:58.816 - you know, we can beg, borrow and borrow from other counties. And, you know, if they're doing it well, 00:16:58.816 --> 00:16:59.902 - then, you know, 00:17:01.026 --> 00:17:07.813 - can share a best practice, but they do not. There is not another policy out there that we could parody 00:17:07.813 --> 00:17:14.600 - off of, so we are kind of trailblazing in this. I was going to use that exact term. We're trailblazers 00:17:14.600 --> 00:17:21.189 - in Monroe County. I think this will help a lot. I think it will help us a lot internally. We always 00:17:21.189 --> 00:17:25.406 - have those questions of what's allowed, what's not allowed, and 00:17:25.634 --> 00:17:32.750 - you know is it only over time in highway or is it everything you know all of that so um so i think this 00:17:32.750 --> 00:17:39.797 - is going to be really really helpful and i hope that um you present this to those district leaders and 00:17:39.797 --> 00:17:46.640 - encourage them to encourage other counties to do likewise and if the state's getting the same forms 00:17:46.640 --> 00:17:53.482 - from everybody that's going to make their job easier too so um miss prudy i just want to um comment 00:17:53.482 --> 00:17:54.782 - too i believe that 00:17:55.042 --> 00:18:01.526 - part of our concerns at some point in time was also the fact that we have entities outside of Monroe 00:18:01.526 --> 00:18:08.010 - County government, per se, who have submitted under an emergency event. I think the fire district is 00:18:08.010 --> 00:18:14.559 - one. And so we need to be able to have a policy in place and how we're going to disperse those funds. 00:18:14.559 --> 00:18:21.492 - So I just wanted to make sure that we recognize that it's not just our expenses. Sometimes we're submitting 00:18:21.492 --> 00:18:24.638 - other entities. I'm really glad you raised that. 00:18:24.962 --> 00:18:31.781 - So any entity, I would assume any government entity within Monroe County that has claims to file would 00:18:31.781 --> 00:18:38.667 - use this form and use our system. Is that correct? My understanding is they all work with the Emergency 00:18:38.667 --> 00:18:45.288 - Management Director. Right. Right. OK. Yeah. All right. Good. OK. I would say that's the reason the 00:18:45.288 --> 00:18:52.107 - Emergency Management Board approved this as well. Right. OK. Good, good. Thank you. Thanks for putting 00:18:52.107 --> 00:18:53.630 - up with the questions. 00:18:54.050 --> 00:19:03.243 - I'm a curious person. All right. And let's go ahead and see if there's any public comment on this item. 00:19:03.243 --> 00:19:12.260 - You can raise your hand on Teams or come to the podium. All right. Seeing none, all those in favor of 00:19:12.260 --> 00:19:21.188 - approving the policy for the Emergency Management Public Assistance Administration signify by saying 00:19:21.188 --> 00:19:23.486 - aye. Aye. Motion carries. 00:19:23.746 --> 00:19:30.465 - 3-0. Thank you. Thank you all. Thank you, Ms. Neagle. All right. Next item, please. Yes, I would like 00:19:30.465 --> 00:19:37.251 - to move to approve the CLR change order for bridge number 75. Fund name cumulative bridge, fund number 00:19:37.251 --> 00:19:43.904 - 1135 in the amount of $21,220.73. Second. We have a motion. We have a second. We have Ms. Ridge here 00:19:43.904 --> 00:19:46.078 - to tell us all about it, please. 00:19:46.658 --> 00:19:52.312 - good morning and I apologize for not putting a road name on there you know I know bridge numbers not 00:19:52.312 --> 00:19:58.245 - necessarily word but road name but it is war road that opened in September we're finalizing the documents 00:19:58.245 --> 00:20:03.899 - we did have that change order for twenty one thousand two hundred twenty eight dollars seventy three 00:20:03.899 --> 00:20:09.497 - cents it was basically we extended out some additional paving to for the bridge approach to make it 00:20:09.497 --> 00:20:15.095 - a smoother transition from where the project stopped again the road is open project is complete and 00:20:15.095 --> 00:20:16.606 - this was just to finish it 00:20:17.090 --> 00:20:22.799 - the last of the invoices. Great. Thank you so much. Comments or questions? Commissioner Jones? No, 00:20:22.799 --> 00:20:28.855 - I don't. Commissioner Madera? It will be great to have this done. Thank you so much. Well, indeed. Let's 00:20:28.855 --> 00:20:34.622 - see if there's any public comment on this item. You raise your hand on Teams or come to the podium. 00:20:41.474 --> 00:20:49.471 - Seeing none, all those in favor of approving the CLR change order for bridge 75, number 75 on railroad 00:20:49.471 --> 00:20:57.390 - signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries three zero. It was a head scratcher for me. I was like 75, 00:20:57.390 --> 00:21:05.620 - where is that? All right, so we have item C, please. Yes, I would like to move approval for the agreement 00:21:05.620 --> 00:21:10.046 - for legal services, fund name 1000, county general fund, 00:21:10.690 --> 00:21:18.987 - I'm sorry, fund name, county general fund number 1,000 in an amount not to exceed $2,500. Second. We 00:21:18.987 --> 00:21:27.367 - have a motion and we have a second. We'll start with Mr. Cockrell. Yes. As a reaction to a resolution 00:21:27.367 --> 00:21:35.911 - that the community commissioners approved regarding Steinsville and the town marshal's ability to enter 00:21:35.911 --> 00:21:38.622 - into contracts for town marshal, 00:21:38.786 --> 00:21:46.612 - for the town of Steinsville without going through the board. The Indiana Attorney General issued an 00:21:46.612 --> 00:21:54.829 - opinion that said that the town marshal didn't have to and that if and it had threats against the county 00:21:54.829 --> 00:22:02.812 - for fines and things related to ICE and ICE immigration which is I guess the underlying cause of what 00:22:02.812 --> 00:22:07.038 - brought this to our attention where the issue is does 00:22:07.746 --> 00:22:14.328 - The who has the authority to enter into contracts for a political subdivision. And so the commissioner 00:22:14.328 --> 00:22:21.102 - said sit down board. The attorney general said not in this case and then made threats about fines because 00:22:21.102 --> 00:22:27.557 - of some statutory language about dealing with ice. And so this is an agreement with Larry Allen, who 00:22:27.557 --> 00:22:31.966 - is an attorney in town. He used to work for the city of Bloomington. 00:22:32.162 --> 00:22:39.697 - the vast majority of the work is going to be pro bono under this agreement. It's just in the event that 00:22:39.697 --> 00:22:47.305 - there is a hearing or something that he has to attend, then he is going to charge $250 an hour for those 00:22:47.305 --> 00:22:54.550 - limited times with the hearing. And so he is going to take on the brunt of the work on this. Great. 00:22:54.550 --> 00:23:00.926 - Thank you so much. Comments or questions? No, we don't. Thank you. Commissioner Madera. 00:23:01.122 --> 00:23:07.486 - You shepherded this through, so thank you. Thank goodness for attorneys willing to do good work. Yeah, 00:23:07.486 --> 00:23:13.664 - that is a really good thing. So we should probably talk about that suit itself, and I don't know if 00:23:13.664 --> 00:23:19.781 - you want to fill folks in on it. I think the press release. You think the press release is enough? 00:23:19.781 --> 00:23:26.206 - All right, so we do have information we want to share with the community about this. We filed a lawsuit 00:23:26.498 --> 00:23:32.910 - in Monroe County Circuit Court seeking to clarify who has legal authority to enter into agreements between 00:23:32.910 --> 00:23:39.083 - local law enforcement agencies and federal immigration authorities and whether such agreements require 00:23:39.083 --> 00:23:43.038 - formal approval by local governing bodies. The lawsuit challenges 00:23:43.298 --> 00:23:50.284 - In October 6, 2026, advisory opinion from Indiana Attorney General Todd Burkita asserting police chiefs 00:23:50.284 --> 00:23:57.269 - and town marshals may enter into Section 287G agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, 00:23:57.269 --> 00:24:04.456 - ICE, without approval from their city or town's council. The opinion also warned that actions discouraging 00:24:04.456 --> 00:24:11.308 - participation in such agreements could violate state law and expose Monroe County to civil penalties. 00:24:11.308 --> 00:24:13.054 - The dispute arose after a 00:24:13.314 --> 00:24:19.746 - Steinsville police officer signed a section 287g agreement with ICE earlier this year without formal 00:24:19.746 --> 00:24:26.560 - approval of Steinsville town council. After learning of the agreement, we passed a resolution on September 00:24:26.560 --> 00:24:33.119 - 17th asking the Steinsville town council to publicly review the agreement and formally vote on whether 00:24:33.119 --> 00:24:39.614 - to authorize the town's continued participation. The commissioners characterized the matter as one of 00:24:39.810 --> 00:24:46.062 - countywide public concern and expressly acknowledge the town's autonomy and authority. While the Steinsville 00:24:46.062 --> 00:24:52.314 - Town Council voted on November 10th, 2026 to ratify the agreement, several legal questions remain, including 00:24:52.314 --> 00:24:57.763 - those raised by the Attorney General's advisory opinion. The Board of Commissioners appreciate 00:24:57.763 --> 00:25:03.843 - the Steinsville Town Council's considering the agreement with ICE during a public meeting, and we respect 00:25:03.843 --> 00:25:09.694 - its decision. The Attorney General, however, has taken the position that such a vote was not required 00:25:09.826 --> 00:25:15.186 - and suggested that Monroe County could face civil penalties by encouraging such public deliberation. 00:25:15.186 --> 00:25:20.652 - This raises broader questions about the authority of elected officials, especially on the local level, 00:25:20.652 --> 00:25:26.065 - and public accountability when government resources are committed. We believe those questions deserve 00:25:26.065 --> 00:25:31.797 - clarification from the courts. Of note, the lawsuit was filed before the town council's vote. Specifically, 00:25:31.797 --> 00:25:37.210 - the suit asked the court to determine whether Indiana law requires a city or town council approval of 00:25:37.210 --> 00:25:38.590 - Section 287-G agreements. 00:25:38.786 --> 00:25:44.818 - the legal status of the agreement entered into by Steinsville before the November 10th ratification 00:25:44.818 --> 00:25:51.032 - and whether the ratification settles the applicable filing and recording requirements. The county also 00:25:51.032 --> 00:25:57.124 - seeks a ruling on where its resolution encouraging public deliberation and the filing of the lawsuit 00:25:57.124 --> 00:26:03.579 - violates state law or could subject the Monroe County Board of Commissioners or county to civil penalties. 00:26:03.579 --> 00:26:07.198 - Lawsuit also seeks court orders temporarily and permanently 00:26:07.330 --> 00:26:15.655 - prohibiting Steinsville from carrying out the agreement until it is lawfully authorized and applicable 00:26:15.655 --> 00:26:24.060 - statutory requirements are satisfied and preventing the Attorney General from taking enforcement action 00:26:24.060 --> 00:26:32.062 - against the Monroe County Board of Commissioners or the county based on the resolution or lawsuit. 00:26:32.898 --> 00:26:41.170 - The Monroe County Board of Commissioners is not asking the court to overturn the town's decision, and 00:26:41.170 --> 00:26:49.280 - the lawsuit does not seek relief against ICE or any other federal authorities. Our hearing date has 00:26:49.280 --> 00:26:56.254 - not yet been set. Thank you. Did you want to add anything else, Commissioner Madeira? 00:26:56.482 --> 00:27:01.808 - Not so much with respect to this lawsuit. I have a few remarks about Senator Jim Banks' letter, which 00:27:01.808 --> 00:27:07.082 - we also received last week, but I think that can wait. You're welcome to share that if you'd like. I 00:27:07.082 --> 00:27:12.461 - guess since it's relevant now. So I'd like to respond briefly in my own capacity to the letter Senator 00:27:12.461 --> 00:27:17.787 - Banks sent to this board and to the Steinsville town board last week. First, I appreciate the senator 00:27:17.787 --> 00:27:23.114 - taking an interest in Monroe County, but his letter asked this board to do two things that this board 00:27:23.114 --> 00:27:24.158 - has no power to do. 00:27:24.354 --> 00:27:29.641 - He asked us to vote to ratify the Steinsville Police Department's agreement with ICE. We can't do that. 00:27:29.641 --> 00:27:34.724 - The agreement belongs to the town of Steinsville, and only Steinsville's elected town council could 00:27:34.724 --> 00:27:39.808 - approve it, change it, or end it. He also asked us to, quote, release all funds allocated under the 00:27:39.808 --> 00:27:44.942 - agreement, end quote. We don't hold these funds. The federal money goes to the town. The Steinsville 00:27:44.942 --> 00:27:50.686 - town council voted in October to set up its own fund to receive it. Monroe County hasn't touched a dollar of it. 00:27:51.266 --> 00:27:56.731 - Second, I want to be clear about what resolution 2026-36 said because it's been described inaccurately. 00:27:56.731 --> 00:28:02.038 - It doesn't ask Steinsville to refuse to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement and it didn't 00:28:02.038 --> 00:28:07.398 - threaten anyone's funding. The board has not reduced or conditioned any county funding to Steinsville 00:28:07.398 --> 00:28:12.757 - over this agreement and it will not. What we asked for was very simple. Put the agreement on a public 00:28:12.757 --> 00:28:18.590 - agenda, publish it, hear from residents and take a recorded vote. Approve it, change it, rescind it, whatever. 00:28:18.978 --> 00:28:23.827 - The reason we asked is that the agreement was signed in February and we found no public record of any 00:28:23.827 --> 00:28:28.629 - town vote. Before it was signed or since, Steinsville residents told their own town board they found 00:28:28.629 --> 00:28:33.526 - out about it on Reddit. Steinsville's own town attorney told the town board in September that it needs 00:28:33.526 --> 00:28:38.328 - to hold a formal vote either to approve the agreement or to rescind it. That's all we asked for. And 00:28:38.328 --> 00:28:40.990 - then we come to the attorney general's advisory letter. 00:28:41.474 --> 00:28:46.355 - By statute, advisory opinions are reserved for the governor on any question, any other state officer 00:28:46.355 --> 00:28:50.850 - concerning the duties of the officer, and the general assembly or a legislative agency as to 00:28:50.850 --> 00:28:55.683 - the constitutionality of her proposed law. The attorney general in this advisory letter to the town 00:28:55.683 --> 00:29:00.564 - of Steinsville sees a legal question differently. And though I respect that the law gives the police 00:29:00.564 --> 00:29:05.736 - department reason to act and room to act, his letter is wrong in several key points. But whether something 00:29:05.736 --> 00:29:09.022 - is allowed and whether it's good government are separate questions. 00:29:09.506 --> 00:29:15.171 - When a local police department takes on federal enforcement powers, the people who live there deserve 00:29:15.171 --> 00:29:20.725 - to know about it and the officials they elected should go on the record. Our message to Steinsville 00:29:20.725 --> 00:29:26.723 - has always been consistent with September's. This was your decision, not ours and not an attorney general's 00:29:26.723 --> 00:29:32.554 - and not a US senator's. Make it in public and according to Indian law so that an audit trail is created. 00:29:32.554 --> 00:29:37.886 - And that's what this is all about. Thank you. Any other comments? No, I don't, but I appreciate 00:29:38.530 --> 00:29:51.229 - Commissioner Medeiros. Let's see if we have public comments. The item is the attorney agreement, 00:29:51.229 --> 00:30:04.190 - representation agreement. I just want to bring us back to center here. Anyone at U-Hill or online? 00:30:07.970 --> 00:30:15.920 - Seeing none, all those in favor of approving the agreement for legal services signify by saying aye. 00:30:15.920 --> 00:30:23.870 - Motion carries 3-0. We don't have any appointments, but it's a good time to remind folks that we are 00:30:23.870 --> 00:30:31.898 - accepting applications for boards and commissions across county government. And you can find out more 00:30:31.898 --> 00:30:36.542 - by going to our website, in.gov slash county slash Monroe. 00:30:36.898 --> 00:30:43.820 - and you can find the application there, but also information about each of the boards and commissions. 00:30:43.820 --> 00:30:50.541 - We encourage residents to share their experience, time and talent with county government to make it 00:30:50.541 --> 00:30:57.463 - operate much better for all of the residents in Monroe County. So we appreciate those who do apply and 00:30:57.463 --> 00:31:04.385 - we look forward to seeing additional applications, especially as with the new year, there will be some 00:31:04.385 --> 00:31:06.334 - openings we need to address. 00:31:06.434 --> 00:31:15.468 - I do want to point out as well that we have virtual office hours via Teams six hours each month and 00:31:15.468 --> 00:31:24.683 - you can go to our calendar on the county homepage for dates and times. Join us when you when you wish 00:31:24.683 --> 00:31:34.078 - and you know ideas are welcome, commentary, criticism, whatever it might be we'd love to hear from you. 00:31:34.178 --> 00:31:44.842 - and we've had some really good conversations and we do appreciate every one of them. We are continuing 00:31:44.842 --> 00:31:55.196 - to support the blood drive and the next one will be at Ivy Tech Rooms C130A and B and it is Friday, 00:31:55.196 --> 00:32:03.582 - November 20th, 9am to 2pm. You can go to redcross.org to make an appointment and 00:32:03.682 --> 00:32:12.481 - We do encourage folks to sign up for the county alert system where you can be informed about any emergencies, 00:32:12.481 --> 00:32:20.640 - but also health and traffic and weather emergencies will also be placed there. And you can choose how 00:32:20.640 --> 00:32:29.118 - to receive that information. Just go to our homepage, click on the link and sign up. It is a free service 00:32:29.118 --> 00:32:32.478 - we offer to every single county resident. 00:32:32.610 --> 00:32:40.423 - obviously it's not free we paid for it with county tax dollars but whether you live in the city town 00:32:40.423 --> 00:32:48.159 - or neither that information is going to be useful for everyone so we do encourage people to sign up 00:32:48.159 --> 00:32:55.972 - and I know that there was some when we had the boil order from the city of Bloomington that that did 00:32:55.972 --> 00:33:01.310 - go out and we do want to encourage people to to utilize this service 00:33:02.594 --> 00:33:16.432 - The other thing I want to talk about is briefly, I want to talk through the council meeting on Tuesday 00:33:16.432 --> 00:33:30.271 - night. And I just have a couple things to say and I'm speaking for myself because my colleagues aren't 00:33:30.271 --> 00:33:32.286 - aware that I'm 00:33:32.546 --> 00:33:44.207 - about this until they're hearing it. So I really, you know, sometimes I'm an optimist to my own detriment, 00:33:44.207 --> 00:33:55.104 - but I really felt like after the election results across the country that we're going to see an end 00:33:55.104 --> 00:34:01.534 - to toxicity in politics. It's got to end. It's ridiculous. 00:34:03.778 --> 00:34:12.631 - The answer, we asked a very specific question, why are we outliers? And we didn't get that answered. 00:34:12.631 --> 00:34:21.396 - None of the answers were viable. We heard about inflation and the cost of living and how hard it is 00:34:21.396 --> 00:34:31.038 - to fill a tank of gas and buy groceries. We all know that. And I think for me, I think to be called tone deaf 00:34:31.778 --> 00:34:40.176 - when others were given raises and nobody questioned that. Nobody said, hey, what about the folks who 00:34:40.176 --> 00:34:48.907 - work as comets, et cetera? And I think the thing that bothers me as well is that the council had already 00:34:48.907 --> 00:34:57.389 - approved a large sum of money, larger than what we were asking for, for their legal fees for the ACLU 00:34:57.389 --> 00:35:00.798 - lawsuit. And yet we're called tone deaf. 00:35:00.930 --> 00:35:09.921 - So I think we hadn't heard reasons. I'm disappointed. But the unnecessary corollary discussions and 00:35:09.921 --> 00:35:19.181 - accusations and whatnot were absolutely unnecessary. And I hope we can stop doing this. Minerva County 00:35:19.181 --> 00:35:28.172 - deserves a lot better than this ugly rhetoric. We came in with a simple request for pay equity. And 00:35:28.172 --> 00:35:29.790 - we asked why not? 00:35:30.178 --> 00:35:38.695 - and we have not yet um heard that answered so um that's all i wanted to say i want to see if my colleagues 00:35:38.695 --> 00:35:46.893 - have anything they want to add to the announcements today i had my announcement during the lawsuit you 00:35:46.893 --> 00:35:56.126 - did anything no i don't all right so our next meeting is um november 19th that would have been my father's birthday 00:35:56.322 --> 00:36:05.344 - 10 a.m. right here in the NatU Hill Room, and we don't have a work session today, but I think we might 00:36:05.344 --> 00:36:14.367 - have one on the 19th. Just pre-warning everyone. All right, and with that, thank you everyone for your 00:36:14.367 --> 00:36:18.046 - time and attention, and we are adjourned.