With words of praise and appreciation, the Adams County Commissioners unanimously voted January 18, 2021 as “Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday” in Adams County. Commissioner Jim Martin read the proclamation of Martin Luther King Jr. Day by the MLK committee.
The commissioners also unanimously proclaimed the week of Feb. 6-13, 2021 as “Court Reporting and Captioning Week 2021.” Phiel thanked the current reporters, Corrie Ondrizek and Jennifer Nice, saying “this year has been extra difficult and we are extra appreciative.”
Ondrizek said she appreciated the recognition and noted that having only two current court reporters for four judges caused them to “make a lot of adjustments” during the 2020 pandemic season. “We faced some unexpected and difficult challenges during this time. We’re trying to schedule and do the best we can.” Ondrizek said It was particularly difficult to hear people through masks and video conferencing. “We’re hanging in there. It’s added a whole other level of difficulty to a tedious job.”
Saying their efforts were “greatly appreciated by the court” and noting there had only been two or three reporters all year, Court of Common Pleas Judge Michael George said the task had been extremely difficult. “I want to emphasize the tremendous effort these ladies put in over the past year,” said George. George thanked the reporters for their “extraordinary efforts in keeping the records, which is absolutely a necessity.”
Electronic Filing System Approved
The Prothonotary department asked the commissioners to execute a contract to build and maintain an electronic filing system for e-filings and managing civil dockets with vendor Teleosoft Inc. of York. Teleosoft Inc. is used in 42 PA counties. The commissioners unanimously approved the one-time licensing fee of $165,896, with a maintenance of the licensed software for $18,736 each year after.
Funds are financed from the bond issued for Capital Projects. In an Addendum to the Master Agreement, the department requested vendor Kyocera enable IT to improve quality of the installation in the amount of $9,900 and d CDW-G to aid in data migration in the amount of $4,535.62, both funded from the Prothonotary’s[JWAS2] Records Improvement Funds.
Election Funds
Solicitor Molly R. Mudd presented a recommendation from Angie Crouse, Director of the Elections and Voter Registration Board, to approve the Department of State’s County Application for previously-approved Help America Vote Act (HAVA) grant funds in the amount of $55,122.67 for reimbursement of costs of labor, printers, and miscellaneous office supplies incurred by the County during the 2020 General Election. As the commissioners unanimously approved he proposal, they agreed they were happy for the reimbursement.
Children and Youth Services
The Department of Children and Youth Services requested approval of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Penn’s Youth Initiative to provide certain Independent Living Adams County Youth with social and emotional learning programs. The MOU is funded by the US Department of Human Services with no cost to the county. The life skills classes will be virtual. The recommendation was unanimously approved.
The commissioners also approved the Adams County Housing Authority’s request for approval of Sheila Supenski to fill the unexpired term of Jay Zimmerman on the Board of Directors. The commissioners recognized Rev. Jay Zimmerman’s contributions to the board and stated their appreciation of Ms. Supenski for filling in the term through August 16, 2022.
Other approved recommendations:
- Treasurer- $200.00 annual cost for software “TaxColl2k” as well as $105 an hour for additional support.
- Register & Recorder- $11,325.00 for 333,000 clicks (estimated to last 3 years) for Auto Redaction of social security numbers on recorded documents.
- Building & Maintenance- Total $9,400.00 for the bi-annual roof inspections for the Courthouse, Prison, and Department of Emergency Services.
- Tax Services- Approved three individuals for Personal Tax Exemptions as well as two individuals for Disabled Veterans Real Property Tax exemptions per County Guidelines.
- Tax Services- IT support for the following: TaxBilling $1,300 for the first 16 hours. TaxClaim2k $4,000 for the first 48 hours. TaxColl2k $4,200.00 for the first 50 hours. After the cap, the cost is 105.00 per hour. Funded from the Department of Tax Service’s Contracted Service budget.
- Tax Collector- Roxey Sauble filling the unexpired Tax Collector position of Huntington Township.
- Planning- Request 12-month extension of Carroll Valley Borough for their Parks, Recreation and Green Space Grant.
- Adams County General Authority-Appoint Lori Stewart to a 5 year term for the Board of Directors.
Jenine Weaver is a staff writer for the Connection. She grew up and currently resides in Adams County PA. She is the founder of Weaver Accounting Solutions LLC and a mom of 4 children. She enjoys being involved with the community, the school, town meetings, local fundraisers, and she is an advocate of social justice with Voices Unite in GAC.
