Wright County wish list given to state lawmakers

By Larry Windom

With the holidays approaching, the Wright County Board of Commissioners are giving a wish list to area members of the Minnesota State Legislator. And at the top of the list is a desire to see the reopening of the drivers’ license exam station in Buffalo.

This list has four key 2021 legislative priorities, along with a few more stocking stuffers. Handed out to commissioners in written form during their regular meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 17, for their perusal and acceptance, the list was then passed on to area state lawmakers who they were virtually meeting with the following day, Nov. 18.

At Tuesday morning’s meeting, commissioners were reminded of the upcoming meeting, which has become an annual event, and were told, remotely, by County Administrator Lee Kelly that “the strategy in the past has been to focus on 3 to 5 items” for lawmakers to ponder during the next legislative session.

Tuesday’s meeting also involved discussion and action regarding various other topics, including the acceptance of a Wright County Solid Waste Management Plan.

Other areas of  key legislative topics, according to the written report, include election funding and processes, health and human services waivers and strategies, and aquatic and invasive species.

The document notes that the closure of drivers’ exam stations has made it increasingly difficult for citizens to access knowledge and behind the wheel driver tests. In the spring of 2020, the Buffalo testing location was closed at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Wright County has been planning to incorporate drivers’ testing into its new Government Center facility when it opens in 2021, which would allow citizens to complete tests and get licenses all in one location. To date, the county has been unsuccessful in securing a commitment from the state to return a testing station to the city of Buffalo. Commissioners are asking the state to agree to open a testing location at the new Government Center, and that the location be open more than six hours per day, two days a week.

Commissioners are offering a potential solution to the situation, which would be to delegate the ability to conduct tests to the counties. Counties would offset the expenses of providing this service by retaining testing fees.

The second item on the “wish list” involves election funding and processes. The Nov. 3 election represented a paradigm shift in voting, with record numbers turning out to vote and a large percentage of those choosing to vote early or by absentee ballot. With this likely to be the new norm, the county board wants to offer some recommendations to consider for future elections.

A third topic asks that the state continue to allow waivers to health and human services programs that were instituted at the onset of the coronavirus outbreak. Waivers included the ability to provide services via video to clients receiving targeted case management or individuals receiving mental health services. Under the waivers, individuals can maintain health care coverage, apply for certain programs remotely, or be treated for COVID-19 at less risk. Wright County seeks to improve services by continuing these waivers.

Fourth, the county is seeking in increase in state funding to fight against invasive aquatic plants and animals. Noting that aquatic invasive species have been increasing in Wright County lakes, commissioners are asking in an increase in funding to counties. Present funding has been static for several years.

A number of additional legislative items are also listed in the report, several of them related to COVID-19 response and funding, and several related to transportation funding and related issues.

Last year’s priority topics included bonding for a proposed dental clinic in the Government Center, maintaining a Department of Vehicle Services (DVS) testing center and revisions to the public water and drainage statutes.  Sometimes, these extra efforts pay off, evidenced by the inclusion of a non-profit dental clinic in the county as part of the recently approved state bonding bill.

The virtual meeting between commissioners and legislators who represent the county was held on Wednesday, starting at 1 p.m.

In related discussion, commissioners also agreed to continue using the services of the firm of Flaherty & Hood to aid them in lobbying efforts in the future. The discussion of Flaherty & Hood was part of a recap of items addressed in a Nov. 10 workshop meeting held by commissioners. At that meeting, commissioners agreed to continue to use the firm in lobbying efforts during the upcoming year, and to represent the county’s interests in the advancement of the community dental clinic.

According to notes from the workshop meeting, commissioners agreed that Flaherty & Hood has assisted the county on multiple fronts in lobbying the Minnesota Legislature, and that the county needs someone advocating for its interests in St. Paul to help the county access potential funding, ranging from current projects to a proposed Mississippi River bridge crossing in the future.

A 2021 contract with the firm, at a price not to exceed $55,000, was approved as part of the consent agenda.

In other action, commissioners adopted a 119-page Wright County Solid Waste Management Plan. Appearing before the board was Bill Stephens, solid waste administrator.  He presented an updated solid waste management plan with goals, policies and strategies designed to guide the management of solid waste generated within the county for the next 10 years.

The lengthy plan was developed and completed by Foth Infrastructure & Environment, LLC, with data provided by the county.

Divided into several chapters, the plan starts out by noting the rapid population growth within Wright County over the past decade. Wright County was the third fastest growing county in the state from 2010 to 2018. By rank, the county is the 10th largest in population in the state, with much of its growth occurring in the eastern portion of the county, bordering the Twin Cities metropolitan area.

A second chapter discusses present recovery and disposal systems utilized in the county. The majority of mixed municipal solid waste (MSW) generated in the county is directed to two out-of-county landfills, either by direct haul or through transfer stations. It is estimated that 94,247 tons of MSW generated in the county was disposed of in landfills and 27,961 tons of recyclable materials were handled, according to data from 2018, the most recent year available via the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency.

As population continues to increase, the overall goal is to reduce waste ending up in landfills and to increase recycling, an increasingly difficult challenge with the collapse in prices for recyclables. Stephens told the commissioners that his staff has done an excellent job in finding markets for plastics and other recyclables. In addition, he noted, they have the ability to store materials for longer periods as they wait for markets to improve.