Mills County approves $7,000 payment to volunteer fire department; officials say interlocal agreement must be updated

Mills County commissioners on April 27 approved a $7,000 payment to a local volunteer fire department and directed staff to update an expired interlocal agreement that previously governed county support for VFDs.

County Judge (speaker 1) brought the matter before the court after staff flagged inconsistencies in the file. Commissioner Richard Williams said he and staff searched records and located a 2004 contract and a 1988 county-attorney letter that together showed the county historically provided funding for fuel, insurance and other support — but that the 2004 document "is not valid anymore." Williams told the court the volunteer department’s finances include a $13,500 loan-fund allocation that currently supports both insurance and fuel and that paying the full amount at once would deplete fuel funds for the rest of the year. "That's why they're only taking $7,000 of that because they gotta continue to have that fuel money," Williams said.

Williams said the county will present a new interlocal agreement to the court to formalize funding, insurance, property-insurance and mapping requirements for all volunteer fire departments. He cited work needed to ensure equipment and property maps are up to date and said staff would coordinate with the county attorney to finalize the agreement.

After discussion, the court voted by voice to approve the $7,000 payment. The motion to approve was made from the bench and carried by voice vote; the transcript does not record a roll-call tally.

Why it matters: Mills County's volunteer fire departments rely on a mix of limited county allocations for fuel and insurance. Commissioners said updating the interlocal agreement is intended to clarify what the county will provide going forward and to ensure coverage for equipment and property insurance.

What’s next: County staff will work with the county attorney to draft the updated interlocal agreement and return it to commissioners for consideration at a future meeting.

Quote: "The biggest thing is this contract is not valid anymore," Commissioner Richard Williams said after reviewing the county's records.

Provenance: The discussion of the VFD payment and the expired contract appears in the meeting record beginning when the judge introduced the item for Board consideration and continuing through the motion and voice vote (see transcript around SEG 050–SEG 274).