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Safety issues are discussed
BENTON -- Scott County may reap several benefits by paying attention to safety issues.
A safety meeting with all county officials with offices at the courthouse or their representatives was held during the regular County Commission meeting Tuesday.
Presiding Commissioner Jamie Burger said holding regular safety meetings with officials who in turn pass along the information to county employees. The meetings raise awareness of safety issues in the courthouse, can benefit the county by providing a safer workplace and lower the county's workers' compensation premiums.
Topics discussed during the safety meeting ranged from space heater safety to icy steps.
Burger said the meetings should be held on at least a semiannual basis.
Documentation of safety meetings and other safety measures taken by the county will be sent to the county's workers' compensation insurance provider, according to Burger.
Burger said safety meetings were also held for the county's road and bridge and sheriff's departments.
In other business Tuesday:
* Kenneth Kapper, administrator for the Southern Illinois Laborers' & Employers Health & Welfare Fund, presented commissioners with information about health insurance plans offered by the Laborers' International Union of North America.
"I think we can do you a better job," Kapper said.
Kapper said they have been offering insurance for 31 years and are self-
funded.
"We actually have seven different plans," he said, with the presentation being on "our two plans that pertain to you ... comparable to what you have right now."
"I wish you had been here in December," Commissioner Dennis Ziegenhorn said, and advised the county makes insurance decisions at that time. "I think we're tied in for a year."
Ernie Brown, business manager for Laborers' International Union of North America's Eastern Missouri Laborers' District Council, said he is confident they can offer a better deal on health insurance.
"We're always looking at ways we can make it better for our employees next year," Burger said, but later clarified that he was not in favor of changing health insurance plans until the end of the year.
Ziegenhorn noted the Commission did not request the presentation. "I'm very happy with the plan we got," he said. * Staff from the County Assessor's Office will be at the county satellite office in Sikeston from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m. Feb. 26 and Feb. 28 to accept personal property assessment lists.
County Assessor Teresa Houchin said the deadline for reporting property is March 1.
Property owners who do not return a completed list to the assessor by the deadline may be subject to a penalty ranging from $10 to $100 depending on the value of the property. Property owners who have not received a list form are not excused from filing and should contact the assessor for a blank form by calling 545-3535 or in writing at P.O. Box 245, Benton, MO 63736. * Commissioners reappointed Bob Depro of Sikeston to represent the Scott County Commission on the Delta Area Economic Opportunity board for another three-year term. * The county is sending five county road and bridge employees to a work zone safety and flagging training seminar March 12 at the New Madrid Community Building in New Madrid, according to Commissioner Ron McCormick. * Commissioners approved accepting and complying with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development requirements so the county will be eligible for a grant to help fund the purchase of patrol vehicles for the sheriff's department.