City commissioners had questions for county officials regarding the possible creation of the Flint Hills Extension District, combining extension services for Chase and Lyon counties at the quarterly city-county joint luncheon Wednesday afternoon.
County Commissioner Rollie Martin clarified that the proposed action is a combining of districts, not a consolidation.
“Basically, it’s a combining of resources of both counties to probably get more efficiency, more use for your dollars and more specific use of your personnel,” Martin said. “It does establish its own taxing levy, similar to the school board or a watershed district.”
Martin said the county commission would no longer include the extension agency in its budget if the district is created.
The district will be composed of eight elected officials — four from Lyon County and four from Chase County — and will operate as a corporate body with the ability to set a mill levy.
City manager Matt Zimmerman asked whether anyone in the county could run for the positions. County Commissioner Scott Briggs said any resident of either county could run for that respective county’s positions.
Mayor Jeff Longbine asked whether there was a mill levy cap on extension districts. Martin said there is no cap.
Zimmerman mentioned concerns he has been hearing about the possibility of high mill levies.
Martin said that historically, new extension districts start with a minimal mill levy that goes down after time as new efficiencies start to show.
“Is that data out there?” Zimmerman asked. “I think it would be helpful, at least in Emporia, if you could get that information out there in some way.”
County commissioners said the information is available at the extension offices.
reddog (K. B. Thomas Jr.) says...
Lyon and Chase or should it be Chase and Lyon, either way it doesn't sound good especially if you streatch your imagination.
September 11, 2009 at 1:28 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )