President’s Day visitors for the courthouse
President’s Day visitors for the courthouse On August 21, several presidents visited the Sheridan County Courthouse for a “President’s Day” tour around the building. They also attended part of the special budget meeting that was being held. During the meeting, a copy of a letter from the Sheridan County Commissioners to Governor Hoeven was given to the three, Rodney Ness, President of the North Dakota Association of Counties, Terry Traynor, Director of Policy and Programs, NDACo, and Richard Cayko, President of the ND County Commissioners Association. In the letter the commissioners expressed their concern for the 21 miles of county paved roads and the 115 miles of county gravel roads and 843 miles of township gravel roads and the cost of maintaining that infrastructure item in the county. The commissioners, in their letter, asked the 2009 legislative session legislators to increase the allocation to the highway distribution fund so that the county and townships can have more funds to help offset the higher cost of road maintenance. They also asked that 100 percent of the state motor excise tax revenue be permanently transferred to the highway distribution fund and not into the state highway fund. They felt that a portion of the state’s surplus, which is largely due to the higher oil prices, be transferred into the highway distribution fund and would give property tax relief, help create jobs and help the economy of the state. Ness also presented a discussion paper on state budget ballot measures. The issues were a constitutionally-protected trust fund for all oil and gas tax revenues that go into the State general Fund, over and above $100 million and reducing the personal income tax revenues for 50 percent and the corporate income tax rates by 15 percent.
