Commissioners don't sign proposed water plan organizational structure agreement

After two years of organization, the 14-member Missouri River Watershed Partnership is almost ready to accept funding to address soil and water conservation in Rock County.
However, Rock County Commissioners won’t sign a joint powers agreement unless the proposed agreement is changed.
“The consensus is that this board finds — the way it is (now) — totally unacceptable … and we won’t sign it,” Chairman Greg Burger said at the commissioners’ meeting April 16 meeting.
“I get a little paranoid with our past experiences with joint powers agreements,” he said.
Rock County Land Management Office assistant director Doug Bos presented the One Watershed One Plan (1W1P) to the commissioners along with the proposed agreement that would place Rock County in a better position to receive project funds.
“There is a potential for this funding coming next year,” Bos said. “We can potentially be out (of the funding) for two years.”
While commissioners (minus Sherri Thompson, who was not at the meeting) were not opposed to a joint powers agreement, they did balk at the lack of specifics in the agreement.
In addition to Rock County, commissioners from Pipestone, Nobles, Jackson, Lincoln and Murray counties were also asked to sign the proposed joint powers agreement.
Rock County Attorney Jeff Haubrich reviewed the proposed agreement.
While a joint powers agreement is a good format for the 1W1P, he explained one portion of the establishing and collection of fees was vague and was only one sentence: “The Board may establish and collect fees from members to fulfill the purposes of this agreement as may be necessary and prudent.”
“That’s pretty wide open,” Haubrich said. “That’s kind of basically a blank check the way it is written.”
Concern was also expressed at the lengthy notice of at least 18 months before a member can withdraw from the group.
Commissioner Stan Williamson serves as the county’s representative on the 1W1P policy board.
“I don’t know how many counties are going to come back and okay this thing, but I think Rock County has to go with a stance of what this board is thinking and what Jeff (Haubrich) is thinking,” he said.
Bos, who co-chaired the 1W1P work group, said on average the counties in southwest Minnesota receive about $500,000 in funding toward targeted conservation projects. Signing the 1W1P agreement by Aug. 31 could mean possible funding of $800,000 to $850,000 for the area.
“Association of Minnesota Counties, Minnesota Association of Soil and water Conservation Districts and the Minnesota Association of Watershed Districts said we are doing a shotgun effect on conservation. We put a waterway here. We put a basin there, and they are all great things. But they are not fixing the water problem,” Bos said. “So they said they are going to change how we fund these.”
The 166-page Missouri River 1W1P outlines 27 priority issues, along with long-term and short-term regional goals over the next 10 years.
Commissioners directed Haubrich to work with the 1W1P authorities to “ensure there are provisions in there that protect us (Rock County) and protect everybody,” Williamson said.
Bos said the actual watershed plans would be presented for commissioner approval May 21.