Top headlines from the Board of County Commissioners Meeting

by | Jun 15, 2021

The following are highlights from today’s Washoe County Board of County Commissioners meeting:   

  1. Commissioners certified and levied groundwater assessment collection: As requested by the state engineer of the Nevada Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and required by state law, the Board of County Commissioners voted unanimously to certify and levy special groundwater assessments. The assessments are required for the payment of necessary expenses of the water basins and distribution systems including special studies, water level measurements, crop and pumpage inventories, field investigations, aquifer tests, well driller inspections, data collection and management. The amount to be collected totals $360,515 for the 2021-2022 fiscal year, which runs July 1, 2021, through June 30, 2022. The basin systems are: 
    • Black Rock Desert Groundwater Basin ($68.91) 
    • Honey Lake Valley Groundwater Basin ($8,895.57) 
    • Hualapai Flat Water District ($3,242.48) 
    • San Emidio Desert District ($4,217.82) 
    • Warm Springs Valley Groundwater Basin ($5,783.08) 
    • Washoe Valley Groundwater Basin ($3,307.42) 
    • Warm Springs/Winnemucca Creek Basin ($4,000) 
    • Cold Springs Valley Groundwater Basin ($8,000) 
    • Lake Tahoe Groundwater Basin ($16,000) 
    • Lemmon Valley Water District ($27,000) 
    • Pleasant Valley Groundwater Basin ($6,000) 
    • Spanish Springs Valley Groundwater Basin ($45,000) 
    • Tracy Segment Groundwater Basin ($2,000) 
    • Truckee Canyon Segment Groundwater Basin ($12,000)  
    • Truckee Meadows/Sun Valley Groundwater Basin ($215,000) 
  1. Commissioners approved refinancing of a bond to secure a low fixed interest rate: The Washoe County 2006 General Obligation Sales Tax Revenue Flood Control Bond is slated for a rate reset in 2022 and termination in 2035. Today the Board of County Commissioners approved a refinancing of the bond, which currently has a variable rate of .814 percent, in order to lock in a fixed rate of approximately 1.4 percent. The refinance is expected to save the county around $18,000, but more importantly reduces the risk of a higher variable rate over the remaining 14 years of the bond’s life.  
  2. Board of County Commissioners proclaimed July 2021 as Plastic Free July: The Board declared this July as a Plastic Free July in an effort to bring awareness to the waste of single-use plastics. Commissioner Alexis Hill read the proclamation, which notes that more than 400 million tons of plastic is produced globally every year, and less than 9 percent of it is recycled. Approximately half is single-use packaging. Plastic Free July is a time to reduce plastic consumption in our daily lives.  
  3. Washoe County received donations for various departments: Commissioners accepted donations from private citizens and organizations to support the work of county departments, including:
    • Donation of $10,449 and in-kind donations estimated at just over $19,000 for the maintenance, improvements, and programming at Washoe County Regional Parks and Open Space 
    • Donation of items totaling $600 and various cash donations totaling just under $2,300 for the Human Services Agency to support HSA and Kids Kottage.  
    • Donation of $300 from the Black Rock LLC for the Gerlach Volunteer Fire Department for their efforts during the Fly Ranch Burn in September 2020. The required burn permit fee was waived in lieu of a donation to the volunteer fire department to offset staffing costs for the burn.  
    • In-kind food and gift donations totaling just over $17,600 for the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office in appreciation of its service to the community.