Highland County commissioners (l-r) David Daniels, Brad Roades and Terry Britton are pictured during their weekly Wednesday meeting.
Jacob Clary | The Times-Gazette
News on energy price changes was delivered at the weekly Wednesday morning meeting of the Highland County Board of Commissioners.
Graham Leu, a regional sales manager for IGS Energy, said that “a lot” has changed since he met with the board of commissioners on June 26, 2024. He said the county’s current contract was for 6.44 cents per kilowatt hour through May of 2026 brokered through Muirfield Energy.
Leu said the “most important thing” that has changed in that time is that one of the largest cost components to the county’s energy bill “significantly” increased, that being capacity. He said capacity is established by the county’s capacity tag and the capacity rates set by the grid operator. He said the rates for May 2025 through June 2026 increased by 600 percent.
Leu said one of the biggest factors to that is all of the data centers and “load growth” happening in Ohio at the moment. He said that growth is putting “huge stress” on the grid. He said that’s because capacity is “really” a reliability-based charge to make sure the energy can be sent on the peak days.
He said, in terms of actual cost, the capacity costs for the county saw an around $16,000 annual increase. However, he also said that the good news is that, because energy could be seeing a 16 to 17 percent decrease from the last time the county signed its contract, its spending looks to be “flattening.”
Leu said that looking into the future, there are no energy generation assets between now and the next auction in December that might be coming online. He said there needs to be more resources put into bringing energy generation online, saying “we’re not even close to meeting that on the generation side.”
In other news, Carl Rayburn, FRS mobility manager, said that the organization had three new vans delivered and that two of them have been lettered and logoed.
The board of commissioners also approved a $100 weekly cleaning charge for the OSU Extension Building and $1,291 charge for the purchase and installation of a hot water heater at the Hi-Tec Center.
The board of commissioners also approved three authorizations to execute, those being Change Order IA-5 for the OSU Extension Building from Tag Williams, Inc. for an $8,645 deduction, a Certificate of Substantial Completion at the OSU Extension Building and a $60,000 Subsidy Grant to the Juvenile Probate Court with Grant Amendment No. 2.
There were 14 resolutions approved by the board of commissioners, which are as follows:
*Res. No. 24-126 is an authorization to establish new line items within the OneOhio Fund. Also requested was a budget modification in the amount of $30,000.
*Res. No. 24-127 is an approval for the following departments as authorized users to the Highland County Credit Card Policy (Res No. 24-56) adopted on March 27, 2024: Highland County Juvenile and Probate Court in the amount of $2,500.
*Res. No. 24-128 is a request from Victim Witness for an additional appropriation from unanticipated revenue in the amount of $3,000. Also requested was a budget modification within the 2540 Victim Witness Fund in the amount of $3,000.
*Res. No. 24-129 is an authorization for a transfer of funds from Public Assistance Fund, 2050 to Child Support Enforcement Fund, 2015 in the amount of $44,313.52 for 2024 Child Support Enforcement coverage of ceiling excess.
*Res. No. 24-130 is an agreement to rescind Res No. 24-120 authorizing a proposed tax levy renewal. Also requested was a proposed tax levy renewal.
*Res. No. 24-131 is an authorization for a budget modification within the 1000 General Fund in the amount of $22,152.55.
*Res. No. 24-132 is a request from Board of DD for an additional appropriation from unappropriated funds in the amount of $250,000. Also requested was a transfer from Transfers Out to 2125 in the amount of $250,000. Also requested was an additional appropriation to 2125 in the amount of $250,000.
*Res. No. 24-133 is a request from Board of DD for an additional appropriation from unappropriated funds in the amount of $9,000.
*Res. No. 24-134 is a request from Board of DD for an additional appropriation from unappropriated funds in the amount of $30,000.
*Res. No. 24-135 is a request from Board of DD to create a new line item within 2400 MR/DD MIECHV Fund. Also requested was an additional appropriation within the 2400 fund in the amount of $32,774.25.
*Res. No. 24-136 is a request from Board of DD for a transfer from Transfers Out to 2490 in the amount of $32,774.25. Also requested was an additional appropriation to 2490 in the amount of $32,774.25.
*Res. No. 24-137 is a request from JFS for a budget modification within the 2050 Public Assistance Fund in the amount of $60,000.
*Res. No. 24-138 is a request from JFS for a transfer from Public Assistance 2050 to 2115 in the amount of $226,973.36.
*Res. No. 24-139 is an amendment for the Sewer Use Rules Section 17 to add Paragraph C and Section 18 to add Paragraph B Section (5).
There were also four contracts approved by the board of commissioners, which are as follows:
*Contract 39 is between the board of commissioners, the Highland County Sheriff and David Johnson for a lease agreement for a 2012 Chevrolet Tahoe and K-9 insert.
*Contract 40 is between the board of commissioners, the Highland County Sheriff and Primary Health Partners for an agreement for physician services.
*Contract 41 is between the board of commissioners, the Highland County Sheriff, the Adams County Sheriff and the Adams County Commissioners for a housing agreement.
*Contract 42 is between the board of commissioners, the Highland County Engineer and Miller Mason Paving Co. for HIG CR 5 New Market Rd. Reconstruction and Resurfacing.
Reach Jacob Clary at 937-402-2570.
