Fiscal Court approves five NRCS buyout payments totaling about $512,037.93

Knott County Fiscal Court approved five NRCS buyout payments at its June 20 meeting, authorizing closing and payment for properties included in the NRCS buyout program.

Staff identified the five payment amounts on the record: $56,000; about $149,000; $80,000; $152,037.93; and $75,000. Staff said copies of the offers and property addresses were included in the meeting packet and described a processing plan: local staff will handle tax-year adjustments and duplication-of-benefits paperwork, forward materials to the processing office in Washington, and aim to complete the next group of buyouts within about 14 days.

Court discussion emphasized process integrity (tax handling, duplication-of-benefits reviews) and the pace of closings; staff said the county has roughly 106 addresses in the NRCS program and another 50–60 in a related FEMA buyout program, some of which are duplicates. A motion to approve the first five NRCS payments was made, seconded and the court voted to approve.

Next steps: staff will process closing paperwork, work tax adjustments and forward files to federal processors so payments can be issued to property owners.