The Sherburne County Board Tuesday approved the 2024 SCORE line-item budget in the amount of $719,525.
The Select Committee on Recycling and the Environment (SCORE) was adopted by the state in 1989 to provide state funding for recycling programs, waste reduction, management of household hazardous wastes and problem materials.
In the 2024 budget, the largest amount, $130,000, will go towards Household Hazardous Waste mobile collection events of which eight are scheduled for 2024. Another $97,696 is allocated for city and township clean-up events. The cities of Big Lake, Becker and Elk River will each get $40,000 to cover costs at their yard waste sites. Zimmerman get $35,000 for their yard waste program.
The Environmental Educator quarterly newsletter will receive $30,000, with the semi-annual Business Recycling Educator getting $5,000. Another $5,109 goes to the Recollect Search Tool, which can be accessed via the Sherburne County Solid Waste Webpage or by the App which can be downloaded on any Android or Apple Device.
The Stearns County Household Hazardous Waste Facility, which accepts items from Sherburne County residents, will receive $20,000.
A special county collection event to be held at the Vonco II site will receive $17,000. The proposed date is Sept. 7.
The Becker Boy Scouts paper and cardboard recycling program gets $14,000 and the business recycling program gets $10,000.
The battery recycling program receives $7,000. The pharmaceutical collection and disposal program gets $4,7000 and leaf drop events will receive $3,000.
Unallocated funds of $160,332 can be used for future proposed programs and grant applications that align with the SCORE fund policy.
Community Corrections
The board approved an amendment to the current Juvenile Rule 20 contracts to increase the hourly rate from $100 to $150 and increase the evaluation cap from $2,000 to $2,500.
Community Corrections has had contracts in place with professional Rule 20 Evaluators since Nov. 1, 2016 and the pay rate has not changed since then. Evaluators charge a standard rate of $175-$200 per hour in their private practice/work. Corey Mabis-Rowe, Director of Community Corrections, said if the county doesn’t increase compensatory rates it may have difficulty keeping and finding Evaluators in the future.
The increases being proposed are estimated to not exceed $10,000 per fiscal year. The 2024 costs associated with the suggested contract amendments will be paid for by department carry-over funds from 2023. Future impacts will be addressed when developing the 2025 budget.
In Other Actions, The Board:
• Approved the final contract payment of $109,540.07 to Design Electric for the 2022 HSIP Rural Intersection Street Lighting project;
• Approved a gambling permit for the North East Sherburne Fire and Rescue Relief Association for an event to take place on Sept. 14 at Baldwin Fire on 128th St. NW in Princeton;
• Ratified the Dec. 31 transfer of $9,563.89 from the General Fund to the County Ditch Fund to cover the 2023 year-end deficit balance;
• Approved a new five-year agreement with the Minnesota Counties Information Systems (MCIS) for hosting the county’s taxation system at an anticipated cost of $22,548 for 2024;
• Approved a Property Maintenance request to reclassify a custodian (grade 4) to an administrative specialist (grade 6). Due to a recent retirement and the transfer of several custodial duties to an outside vendor, the Property Maintenance division is looking to reorganize several job duties within the department. The reorganization of duties would reduce the division’s budget by approximately $14,700;
• Passed a resolution to acquire property for the Co. Rd. 83 road improvement project between Co. Rd. 43 and Co. Rd. 15 in Big Lake Twp.;
• Passed a resolution to acquire property for the Co. Rd. 65. road improvement project between Co. Rd. 8 and Hwy 10 in Haven Twp.
