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By Jeff Moore

Contributing writer

Crisp County has preparation to complete ahead of an inspection by the Insurance Service Office that sets fire ratings for communities.

During the Tuesday, Nov. 12 Crisp County Board of Commission meeting, County Administrator Clark Harrell said ISO is set to conduction an inspection here Jan. 22, 2025.

The inspection is important because its findings will be used to set the county’s rating that directly effects the homeowners insurance for everyone in Crisp County, he said. The county currently has a Class 5 ISO rating.

Harrell said under ISO, homeowners within five miles of a fire house get a “break in their insurance rates.”

The county is facing a dilemma because two older fire trucks are out of service at this time, he said.

The two trucks are both older units, Harrell explained, one is a 2000 GMC truck, while the other is a 2002 GMC.

A new fire truck has been ordered, however it not be delivered in time to help with the ISO inspection.

The 2000 model has electrical issues that cause the vehicle to shut off, making it so that it cannot pump. The 2002 truck has an issue with its brakes, Harrell said, noting that each time they are repaired they break again.

Harrell said he is working with the county fire chief looking for solutions to repair the two trucks.

Commissioner Larry Felton said he believes the county needs to find someone who can make the braking system repair, even it it means going outside the county.

Harrell noted that local sources have been used to replace the brakes in the past.

Another member of the commission said the company that made the truck should be contacted because they likely have the expertise to fix the ABS braking system.

Felton said he believes that might be the solution the county needs.

Commission Chairman James Dowdy said he believes they need to see if there is anyway to get the trucks back into service.

“We don’t want to jeopardize our rating,” Dowdy said.

Harrell said ISO performs detailed inspections of all fire equipment, which includes performing pumping tests on each unit.

The county administrator said he will continue to work with the fire chief in their efforts to get both trucks operational.

PTSD insurance

Commissioners voted to adopt a resolution allowing Crisp County to join with other municipalities in Georgia to provide coverage for post traumatic stress disorders for first responders.

Harrell said the additional

coverage is required by action taken in the state legislature.

The ACCG supplemental insurance fund will cover PTSD through its accident and disability fund, he explained. Such intergovernmental programs are allowed under the state constitution to allow localities to jointly provide coverage that counties in Georgia have found increasingly difficult to obtain through commercial insurance protection.

“Counties in Georgia need a stable method for managing their risk to avoid the unpredictable and cynical nature of commercial insurance,” Harrell stated reading from the resolution.

Additionally, the resolution states that counties do not have sufficient resources to provide this coverage through a self-insured basis.

“We’re going through the Association of Georgia Counties to create an intergovernmental risk management agency,” Harrell said, reading from the resolution.

Commissioners unanimously approved the resolution to join in the ACCG insurance program for PTSD.

Contracts for jail use

Commissioners unanimously approved contracts with the Cordele and Arabi allowing them to house prisoners in the county jail.

Harrell said the new contracts increase the daily rate for each prisoner to $42 per day, up from the $35 rate, noting it is with Sheriff Billy Hancock’s blessing.

“It has been $35 for a number of years and with inflation and the cost of everything going up, we’re requesting $42 a day,” he said.

Harrell said the Cordele City Commission has already approved the new agreement.

He said this specifically covers housing prisoners who are arrested on violations involving city or town ordinances, and not those who have been charged under state laws.

“Those people typically don’t stay in jail,” Harrell said. “They come into the jail, they bond out.”

CCPC franchise

The commissioners adopted a new franchise agreement with the Crisp County Power Commission that will run for 60 months, Jan. 1, 2025 through Dec. 31, 2020.

Harrell explained this is simply an extension of the agreement that sets the franchise fee at 5.3% of CCPC revenues, with some variables for those use use higher amounts of electricity.

He said the franchise agreement also continues the power commission’s payment of $250,000 annually to the county over the term of the agreement.

The franchise extension agreement won unanimously approval from the commissioners.

County website update

The county administrator told the commission that Haley Wade, who used to work for the Crisp County Sheriff’s Office, has handled work on the website in the past.

He asked the board of commissioners to approve an agreement with Wade to continue working to update the Crisp County website.

Wade is no longer with the sheriff’s office and is now working for the Georgia Department of Natural Resources.

“She’s doing the same job there that she was doing here, just on the statewide capacity,” Harrell noted.

When she was with the sheriff’s office, he said she was paid a supplemental $5,200 per year for the work on the website. Under the new agreement, Harrell said she will continue to be paid this same amount, divided into quarterly payments.

If the county were to look for other companies to handle this work, he said the cost would be much higher.

The contract with Wade won unanimous approval by commissioners.