County approves juvenile detention contract, pay-policy change and contingency/cash transfers

Lincoln County commissioners Dec. 23 approved multiple routine but substantive administrative items to close the county’s 2025 accounts and set 2026 services.

The board authorized the chair to execute the 2026 juvenile detention services agreement involving Minnehaha County and Lutheran Social Services for detention services covering Jan. 1–Dec. 31, 2026; county staff said a program representative will appear at a future meeting with usage details.

Human resources presented a policy update to align night and weekend differential pay for the communications (9-1-1) staff with the sheriff’s office (3.5% differential for sheriff’s personnel; communications staff previously received $0.75). Carrie Yelling of human resources said the sheriff budgeted for the change and the annual cost across all employees is projected to be well under $1,000.

The board also approved 2025 contingency transfers totaling $61,500 from an available contingency of $200,000. Auditor Sherry Lund said transfers were needed for auditor-office health insurance overruns (about $9,000), increased coroner transport fees (Dakota Transport), higher costs for mental-illness holds (about $30,000, offset in part by $7,000 of recoveries from other counties), and debt-service adjustments related to TIF #8 collections.

Separately, the board approved budgeted cash transfers associated with the highway/road and bridge budget. The packet showed the county originally budgeted $5,644,000 in cash transfers to the highway department; to date about $370,001.82 had been used, leaving an untransferred balance of about $4,000,513 to make the department whole. Commissioners asked clarifying questions about equipment sales and project savings that reduced the needed transfers.

Each item passed on roll call during the meeting; county staff recorded motions and roll calls in the meeting minutes.