SESSION OVERVIEW

The morning's proceedings commenced with the Board of Equalization (BoE) convening at 08:50, followed by the regular Board of Commissioners (BoC) meeting at 09:00. Both public sessions formally acknowledged compliance with state open meeting laws. The BoE meeting established the upcoming property tax protest schedule, while the subsequent BoC session addressed county operational matters, including budget variances across several departments, zoning updates regarding renewable energy configurations, regional communication signal coverage, and a staffing funding request within local law enforcement.

TIMELINE OF EVENTS

• 09:00 a.m. - Board of Equalization adjourns. Board of Commissioners meeting opens. June 9th minutes, agenda, and claims ledger approved.
• 09:01 a.m. - Board enters administrative recess; commissioners informally note displaced traffic infrastructure on a bridge near the state line.
• 09:10 a.m. - Meeting reconvenes briefly. No public comment offered. Second recess called.
• 09:15 a.m. - Department budget variance reports open for Planning & Zoning, Clerk, and Extension offices.
• 09:30 a.m. - Zoning updates and Resolution #2026-14 are presented for vote.
• 09:45 a.m. - Emergency Management Director Megan Buckley delivers updates on regional communication infrastructure.
• 10:00 a.m. - Congressional updates from Congressman Smith's office presented by the District Coordinator and Carson Guest.
• 10:10 a.m. - Trey Marteney from Zero Trace Document Shredding presents a mobile operations proposal; exits at 10:17 AM.
• 10:20 a.m. - Sheriff Braden and Nancy present updates regarding the Segra phone lines and discuss the additional deputy staffing proposal.
• 11:12 a.m. - Highway Superintendent Chris presents the closing Road Department infrastructure overview.
• 11:26 a.m. - Meeting adjourns.

ANALYSIS & EVIDENCE

Routine Approvals & Claims Ledger
The BoE adjourned at 09:00 AM with no public comments recorded. Following this, the Board of Commissioners unanimously approved its June 9th minutes, current agenda, and claims ledger.

Between 09:01 AM and 09:10 AM, the board took a brief recess, during which commissioners noted a weekend incident where weather or an erratic driver knocked down construction cones on a bridge near the state line. No public comments were present at 09:10 AM, prompting a second short recess until 09:15 AM, during which attendees commented on the building's fluctuating room temperatures. The Pawnee County Fair Foundation Liquor License Application for July 15th–18th was unanimously approved pending the completion of remaining online paperwork. The terms match the previous year's entry, with the exception of an approved operational extension to 2:00 AM rather than 1:00 AM. Den's Country Meats Liquor License Application was also approved unanimously for an event on August 1 from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM at 62573 Hwy 4 Table Rock, NE.

Department Budgets & Zoning Resolutions
At 09:15 AM, the Board evaluated budget variances across multiple county offices. The Planning and Zoning budget reported a variance of $519.56 due to planned salary adjustments and a missing line item for publication costs. The Clerk's Office reported a variance of $4,633.47 linked to part-time clerical staff utilized to correct data entry errors from previous periods, for which Commissioner Steitz expressed appreciation regarding the correction efforts. The Extension Office presented a variance of $1,312.54, driven by postage rate adjustments, a depletion of the mileage fund causing the educator to hold back recent program claims, and fair-related overtime accumulated by personnel. The board noted that these variances remain acceptable as long as the county's general fund remains solvent, and directed that dedicated publishing line items be explicitly built into next year's budget worksheets across all departments to prevent future systemic overages. At 09:30 AM, Zoning Director Josh Black requested a resolution to ensure explicit alignment with the zoning handbook regarding wind towers, commercial solar energy, and Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS), following inquiries regarding commercial data centers. Black consulted with legal counsel Emily, who advised utilizing a separate resolution to explicitly segregate energy sectors from data center regulations. While the initial text proposed a 12-month timeline, the board amended the resolution to match the 36-month duration of the existing solar moratorium signed on February 18, 2026. In response, the board voted unanimously to adopt Resolution #2026-14, establishing a remaining 32-month moratorium duration scheduled to expire alongside Resolution 2026-12 on February 18, 2029. Black also noted that Northern Natural Gas is performing pipeline maintenance in the region; no local permits are required for the replacement of existing infrastructure, though public utility activity will increase. The board then took a recess until 09:45 AM.

Emergency Management Agency Interoperability & Vendor Presentations
EMA Director Megan Buckley appeared at 09:45 AM to announce an upcoming 5-county Threat Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment (THIRA) regional workshop in Auburn at the ESU on July 16 from 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM, focused on multi-county severe weather coordination, requesting commissioner, fire department, and emergency personnel attendance. Buckley noted a communications budget deficit after Johnson County requested the removal of a planned $10,000 to $15,000 allocation designated for communication infrastructure, reducing her final operational budget to a few hundred dollars below the previous fiscal year's baseline. She identified communication coverage gaps across the region: certain areas, particularly toward Summerfield, experience dead zones for radios and cell phones, and differing frequencies prevent direct communication between departments like Elk Creek and Table Rock. While a statewide frequency exists for major catastrophes, Buckley advised against using it for localized incidents, warning that a major regional disaster would introduce severe operational hurdles if these infrastructure gaps remain unaddressed. Buckley is exploring local funding alternatives to avoid long-term federal program costs, and is moving her primary office full-time into space at the Johnson County Sheriff's Department. Pawnee County's current emergency communications budget includes a single $2,500 annual line item to lease one tower with two repeaters, and Buckley is analyzing more optimized repeater locations. Commissioner Heidaman inquired whether the savings from her vacated office rent could offset new expenses; Buckley noted she is pursuing a new Active 911 service, the cost of which roughly equates to the previous rent expenditure, and will present formal data at the next session. Following this, representatives from Congressman Smith's office briefed the board on the USMCA trade agreement renewal, protections for biotech corn and dairy, and a federal legislative tool passed last autumn to support family education financing. Commissioner Heidaman inquired about a potential October government shutdown; staff member Carson Guest noted they intend to avoid the budget reconciliation process but declined to elaborate further for the press. Trey Marteney of Zero Trace then presented compliant mobile document shredding and hard drive destruction services at a rate of $40 per bin, with invoicing handled as an individual line item per department; the board advised him to consult with individual departments to gauge specific needs before exiting at 10:17 AM.

Sheriff's Office: Communications Routing & Personnel Allocation Discussion
Nancy and Sheriff Braden addressed phone connectivity issues following their service transition to Segra. At 4:00 PM on weekdays and over weekends, county phone lines automatically transfer to Johnson County, where calls have occasionally gone unanswered or failed to connect. Operational tracking indicated these events were unrelated to power grid outages, and Johnson County is experiencing identical difficulties. A citizen note on the department's social media page also indicated the line was unresponsive at the time, and Verizon technicians have been contacted. Commissioner Steitz advised delaying local modifications until Johnson County determines if its recent system updates resolve the issue, and noted ongoing discussions with Segra regarding a comprehensive new phone and paging system. Regarding logistics, while the department was initially presenting an arrival timeline update for the ordered 2026 model, Commissioner Steitz revealed that he had been in contact with the dealer concerning production issues with the 2026 models. Steitz then informed the department that the county would instead receive a 2027 Ford Explorer at the locked-in 2026 contract pricing structure—a development the Sheriff's Office was completely unaware of prior to the meeting. Deputy Jones academy training and meals are on track to be fully covered by the GI Bill, reducing projected county expenses by $8,000 to $10,000. The Sheriff credited Reagan Connelly for volunteering to conduct regular study sessions at the Auburn library to assist Jones with material review and test anxiety. Nancy requested information regarding whether the county has officially adopted a "7k" emergency services exemption under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) to establish an 86-hour biweekly threshold before law enforcement overtime applies; Commissioner Steitz indicated a formal resolution may not be immediately necessary since the county historically compensates standard overtime, but Nancy noted that administrative reviews recommend formal adoption.

A discussion occurred regarding a request to fund an additional deputy position. The department provided a financial breakdown: the county currently incurs an estimated $80,000 to $90,000 in annual overtime costs, whereas a new full-time deputy salary is calculated at $67,922.40 per year ($32.17/hr), which came in $128.36 less than initial projections, yielding a projected net baseline savings of approximately $17,077.60. Sheriff Braden reported that the department is operating under severe staffing constraints with no operational buffer, forcing administrative personnel and the Sheriff into basic field patrol during turnover or training absences, leaving administrative tasks unaddressed. Braden noted that over the last 15 years, neighboring jurisdictions have expanded their staffing footprints—citing Richardson County expanding from 4 to 12 personnel—while Pawnee County's staffing levels have remained fixed.The Sheriff's Office stated that they could accommodate the position within the 3% budget growth cap set by the county, factoring in a conservative $10,000 baseline for holiday and vacation overtime. Nancy clarified that the proposed sign-on bonus is an independent item that does not impact the standard operational budget, as it is only payable if the department recruits an active, pre-certified Nebraska law enforcement officer. Commissioner Lang expressed conceptual support provided the figures align with statutory caps. Commissioner Steitz noted general budget uncertainties, warning that low property valuation growth of approximately 0.8% combined with prior-year clerical corrections might require the board to drop departmental budget growth caps from 3% down to 2% across the board to recover losses. Commissioner Heidaman expressed a preference to review the finalized budget worksheets and see if the department could meet a 2% growth cap before approving the position, noting the initial onboarding period. The board directed Nancy to submit two separate budget worksheets for formal evaluation: one modeling a standard 3% growth cap containing the new salary with reduced overtime, and an alternative worksheet modeling a 2% budget cap footprint.

Road Department Operations & Infrastructure Projects
Highway Superintendent Chris delivered the infrastructure update. The county's rock stockpile is currently at 29,000 tons on the ground, down from 50,000 tons logged two weeks prior, representing material sufficient for approximately 10 miles or 100 loads of application. If the local stockpile is exhausted, the department's explicit contingency plan involves hauling material directly from Martin Marietta in Weeping Water. Chris presented a historical cost analysis showing that rock procurement costs have risen from $13.90 per ton in fiscal year 2021 to $24.05 per ton currently. An unseasonably open winter allowed continuous hauling across a three-month period where snow typically halts operations, driving that specific line item over its projected baseline budget. Maintenance crews are currently clearing multiple box culverts and bridges that accumulated debris following recent rainfall to ensure clear right-of-ways. Chris updated the board on the 720 Ave Project within the Turkey Creek Precinct, which involves upgrading a 1/3-mile stretch of road to standard specifications to accommodate a new residential property; this infrastructure work is being funded entirely by the private landowner. Finally, Chris requested that the board consider the future acquisition of a used belly dump trailer and a mini-excavator for culvert clearance to optimize the deployment of their heavy equipment; motor graders remain the department's primary equipment priority, and Commissioner Heidaman questioned the overall utility of the mini-excavator. Chris also noted that the Local Technical Assistance Program (LTAP) has transitioned out of the university system and has been fully absorbed by the Nebraska Department of Transportation (NDOT); he expressed expectations that technical field assistance will continue to benefit local operations, though its underlying funding mechanism during the transition remains unconfirmed. The meeting adjourned at 11:26 AM.