Chickasaw County adopts countywide policies and tightens vendor insurance practices
June 30, 2026 | Chickasaw County, Iowa
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The Chickasaw County Board of Supervisors on June 29 approved a package of countywide policy updates and moved to make insurance-coverage requirements clearer in bid and lease documents.
The board voted to adopt an open-government (open records) policy, a countywide CDL drug-and-alcohol testing policy with employee acknowledgements, a written hazardous-chemical right-to-know policy, a revised credit-card policy requiring signature acknowledgements, a lockout/tagout (control of hazardous energy) policy, updated data-processing rules and a countywide personal protective equipment policy. Most motions passed by voice vote after brief discussion.
Why it matters: supervisors said the updates replace out-of-date policies (some dating to 1995) and aim to standardize training, safety and recordkeeping across departments as the county closes its fiscal year. The PPE policy will require individual acknowledgements and the county scheduled mandatory training on July 15 with multiple sessions to accommodate staff schedules.
Safety coordinator Renee Kerry, who led the insurance and safety discussion, said the board originally considered requiring $4 million liability limits for some contracts but reduced that to $2 million "which really is standard" for many contractors. Kerry told the board she is working to compile certificates of insurance in a spreadsheet so the auditor's office can verify coverage before payment. "My goal is now to get them all in alphabetical order and into a spreadsheet so the office has them so they can check that spreadsheet before we pay somebody," Kerry said.
Board members expressed concern about how strict coverage requirements might affect volunteer groups and low-dollar community projects. Supervisors asked staff to check how other counties handle volunteers and leases for tenants that pay nominal rent. The board discussed whether tenants and lessees (for example, organizations housed at the Heritage Center) should be required to name the county as an additional insured.
On the CDL policy, supervisors approved a requirement that employees who hold commercial driver's licenses sign an acknowledgement and participate in the county consortium. The open-records policy instructs elected officials to route requests promptly to the auditor's office for response and sets what the county considers a reasonable response timeframe.
The board directed staff to roll out the revised policies to department heads, obtain individual signature pages where required, and follow up with additional guidance on how the new rules will be enforced.
The meeting also included discussion of implementation details for the insurance verification process; staff said some tenants in the Heritage Center have not yet supplied certificates of insurance and the county will follow up.
The board approved the package of policies without recorded roll-call tallies and moved on to other agenda items.
The board voted to adopt an open-government (open records) policy, a countywide CDL drug-and-alcohol testing policy with employee acknowledgements, a written hazardous-chemical right-to-know policy, a revised credit-card policy requiring signature acknowledgements, a lockout/tagout (control of hazardous energy) policy, updated data-processing rules and a countywide personal protective equipment policy. Most motions passed by voice vote after brief discussion.
Why it matters: supervisors said the updates replace out-of-date policies (some dating to 1995) and aim to standardize training, safety and recordkeeping across departments as the county closes its fiscal year. The PPE policy will require individual acknowledgements and the county scheduled mandatory training on July 15 with multiple sessions to accommodate staff schedules.
Safety coordinator Renee Kerry, who led the insurance and safety discussion, said the board originally considered requiring $4 million liability limits for some contracts but reduced that to $2 million "which really is standard" for many contractors. Kerry told the board she is working to compile certificates of insurance in a spreadsheet so the auditor's office can verify coverage before payment. "My goal is now to get them all in alphabetical order and into a spreadsheet so the office has them so they can check that spreadsheet before we pay somebody," Kerry said.
Board members expressed concern about how strict coverage requirements might affect volunteer groups and low-dollar community projects. Supervisors asked staff to check how other counties handle volunteers and leases for tenants that pay nominal rent. The board discussed whether tenants and lessees (for example, organizations housed at the Heritage Center) should be required to name the county as an additional insured.
On the CDL policy, supervisors approved a requirement that employees who hold commercial driver's licenses sign an acknowledgement and participate in the county consortium. The open-records policy instructs elected officials to route requests promptly to the auditor's office for response and sets what the county considers a reasonable response timeframe.
The board directed staff to roll out the revised policies to department heads, obtain individual signature pages where required, and follow up with additional guidance on how the new rules will be enforced.
The meeting also included discussion of implementation details for the insurance verification process; staff said some tenants in the Heritage Center have not yet supplied certificates of insurance and the county will follow up.
The board approved the package of policies without recorded roll-call tallies and moved on to other agenda items.
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