During a brief commissioner’s court meeting Monday, March 13, Erath County received good news on its 2021 audit, while tackling a slew of other agenda items.
A representative from Boucher, Morgan and Young presented the county’s 2021 audit, which ended with the date Sept. 30, 2021.
The county received an unqualified opinion, which is the best opinion on an audit that can be received.
“I appreciate the time you spent preparing this and you going over this with me before the meeting,” County Judge Brandon Huckabee said.
Commissioners also approved a replat for the Highnote family for a piece of property located at 160 Anchors Way in Bluffdale. Essentially, the replat combined two lots into one.
The Rio Verde Addition on County Road 380 outside Dublin got a couple of nods of approval. For Phase 1, a final plat was approved and for phase 2 and preliminary plat was approved.
The county approved an electioncontractbetweenitself and the city of Stephenville for the upcoming May city council election.
The court also unanimously approved a $7,750 annual fee to begin utilizing a new program for budget season called ClearGOV.
“It will help with transparency,” Huckabee said.
The new software will not only present numbers to citizensandthecommissioners during budget season but also provide charts and a more easy to view experience.
“A lot of counties are using this,” Auditor Kent Reeves said. “The software we use is great with everything but it will not do graphics.”
The commissioners agreed to try the new program for one year to see what benefit it would be to the county and its residents.
“I think if it improves transparency then it is worth it,” Commissioner Dee Stephens said.
The court also approved Dublin resident and historian Ben Pate to serve on the Erath County Historical Commission.
The board accepted three requests for proposals in regard to its auditing firm – Boucher, Morgan and Young, Pattillo, Brown and Hill and Eide Bailly. The county will set up interviews with all three firms and award a contract in the future, most likely for a three year term.