Patten

Marshall County E-911 Communications Manager Teresa Lang told the Marshall County 911 Service Board Executive Committee the Marshall County Auditor/Recorder’s Office is doing a good job as Marshall County E-911 fiscal agent.

“I met with them and I think it is going to work out well,” Lang said. “I am taking bills over to them and applying a code. They will provide the financial report for the August meeting.”

Lang spoke to the board at its Thursday night meeting in the lower level of the Marshalltown Police Department.

Marshall County took over as fiscal agent on July 1, assuming responsibility from the City of Marshalltown.

The Board of Supervisors then designated the Auditor/Recorder’s Office to be responsible for fiscal agent tasks after talking to Auditor/Recorder Nan Benson and staff.

Marshalltown had performed those services since 2010 as part of a 28E agreement. A 28E agreement allows local governments to enter into contracts with each other and conduct business.

In a letter to the Marshall County 911 Service Board in June, Marshalltown City Administrator Jessica Kinser said the city would “turn over all 911 surcharge funds to Marshall County with financial reports and transactions of the board to go through the county after that time” on June 30.

Kinser cited “the absence of all legal requirement (for the city) to continue as fiscal agent, the city of Marshalltown has no obligation to continue to perform the accounting function and reporter for the 911 Joint Services Board.”

Kinser also cited a staffing issue as another reason for discontinuing serving as fiscal agent.

As a result of Kinser’s letter, the 911 executive committee met June 19, and drafted a letter asking the city for more time to find a fiscal agent.

In her letter of June 26, Kinser said the city would extend the deadline to July 31.

Regardless, the Marshall County Board of Supervisors voted to serve as fiscal agent.

In other business, Lang commended Alicia Hunter of the MPD for her work assisting the Marshall County E-911 Board.

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Contact Mike Donahey at 641-753-6611 or mdonahey@timesrepublican.com