By L. Parsons During last week’s Navajo County Board of Supervisors meeting, Public Health Director Jeff Lee gave an update on the COVID pandemic in Navajo County. In his report, Lee stated that the county is, “meeting benchmarks for schools and high-risk businesses to begin their phase one reopening.” According to the Arizona Department of Health Services (AZDHS), high risk businesses include gyms, movie theaters, and bars and restaurants. The first phase of reopening is 50 percent capacity and maintaining physical distancing. Indoor and outdoor activities will still be limited to 50 or fewer individuals. Benchmarks that need to be met for a full reopen as set forth by AZDHS are fewer than 10 cases per 100,000 people, less than five percent positivity rate and less than five percent of presentation of COVID-like illnesses. Lee explained that Navajo County is not yet to those goals but is trending in the right direction. “Currently we have 5,751 cases in Navajo County. We have experienced an increase of 222 positive cases in the last 30 days which is a big improvement from June and July when we were seeing five and six hundred new cases.” The threat of the virus is not over, as Lee reiterated. “We have slowed the spread, but we still cannot let up. We can still improve on staying home if we don’t feel well and wearing face coverings.” The Navajo Nation announced last week that they would be returning to weekend lockdowns as they have seen surges in positive cases following the Labor Day holiday. District 1 Supervisor Lee Jack said, “We need to stop having these gatherings out on the reservation. We need to remember that its about to get cold up here and we need to protect our elders and stop gathering in these big groups.” The board also heard a presentation by Assistant County Manager Bryan Layton honoring the county finance team. Layton said, “Navajo County has a strong tradition of strong management in accounting and financing and this year was no different. We received the Governor’s Finance Association award for our accounting standards. This is a reflection of our former finance director Paige Peterson and the continued work of our new finance director Jason Vowels. This is a real testament to the diligence and professionalism of our finance department and it is just one other standard that we have achieved that demonstrates to the residents and the public and state of Arizona that we are following the highest standards of accounting. We appreciate our financial and accounting teams.” In other business, the board: * Approved an amendment to an intergovernmental agreement between the county and AZDHS for immunization services. The amendment includes a budget revision which allots $52,000 to Navajo County in a one-time supplemental payment for flu vaccines. * Approved a grant agreement between the county and the Governor’s Office in the amount of $159,468 from the AzVote Safe program to help mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on elections. * Authorized acceptance of a grant for $10,392 from the State of Arizona Constable, Ethics, Standards and Training Board to purchase computer equipment for the five Navajo County constables. * Authorized acceptance of a grant for $28,700 from the Attorney General’s Victim’s Rights program to pay the partial salary of two office support services in the victim notification department of the Navajo County Sheriff’s Office. * Approved an intergovernmental agreement with Coconino County for use of their juvenile detention facility. The cost to Navajo County will be $225 per child per day. * Approved a contract with Az Map Tech, LLC for consultation on the Woodruff/Snowflake bridge emergency repairs project. The contract amount shall not exceed $7,500. * Approved fiscal year 2019-2020 fund transfers for March-June. The AzCares Fund program allows local governments to be reimbursed for public health and public safety payroll expenditures. This transfer covers the reimbursement for the county. * Ratified the fiscal year 2020 equitable sharing agreement and certification annual report. It reflects the fiscal year’s expenditures and revenue for Justice funds and Treasury funds. Justice funds consist of joint investigations with the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), Federal Bureau of Investigation, Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms, US Postal Inspection and Food and Drug Administration. Proceeds from a 2016 joint seizure with DEA were disbursed this fiscal year. * Appointed Lloyd Pentecost of Lakeside, Kristine Laughter of Kayenta, Rosabel Sekayumptewa of Indian Wells, Alfred Lomahquahu of Oraibi, Dorma Lee Sahneyeh of Kykotsmovi, and Lance Donovan Frances of Oraibi as democratic committeemen for their respective precincts. * Cancelled elections for Heber/Overgaard, Joseph City, Clay Springs-Pinedale, McLaws Road, Woodruff Fire, Sun Valley, and Pinetop fire districts and appointing candidates due to lack of candidates filing. * Cancelled elections for the Northland Pioneer Community College District Governing Board positions for districts two and four. * Cancelled the elections for Clay Springs, Porter Creek, Ponderosa, Woodruff, Wonderland Acres, Heber, Overgaard, Misty Mountain, and Three-O-Three domestic water improvement districts. * Cancelled the election for the Navapache Hospital District. * Canceled the election for the Heber/Overgaard Sanitary District. * Cancelled elections for Joseph City, Holbrook, Snowflake, Heber/Overgaard, Cedar, Blueridge and Whiteriver school districts; and NAVIT (Northern Arizona Vocational Institute of Technology) districts in Joseph City, Holbrook, Snowflake, Heber/Overgaard, Show Low, Whiteriver, Native Districts, Pinon and Kayenta. * Appointed James Bruzzi as Gila County Business Representative on the local workforce development board. * Approved a certificate of removal of abatement, purging record of tax, penalty and interest on personal property taxes due to inability to locate property or its owner. * Approved a one-year contract extension with Trinity Services Group to provide inmate food services at the Navajo County Jail. * Approved the Northeastern Arizona Local Workforce development plan for 2020-2023 to be submitted to the Governor. * Approved an amendment to an intergovernmental agreement with AZDHS for Smoke Free Arizona education compliance and enforcement. * Approved an amendment to an intergovernmental agreement with AZDHS for funding of $25,000 for the purpose of off-setting the salary of an environmental health inspector during COVID. The agreement was approved during the Aug. 25 meeting, however the attachment was incorrect. * Approved an amendment to an intergovernmental agreement between Navajo County and AZDHS for $2.4 million in funding to create a disease investigation division. The agreement was approved during the Aug. 25 meeting, however the attachment was wrong. * Approved a lease agreement with Jeyody, LLC for storage space at a rate of $3,000 a month until June 3, 2021. * Proclaimed October Domestic Violence Awareness Month. * Approved the sale of back tax land parcels sold over the counter at $19,140. * Approved a new contract number for annual pavement marking with Sunline Contracting, LLC. The contract was approved during the Aug. 25 meeting, but the attachment referenced an incorrect contract number. * Approved the reissuance of stale dated checks issued by the treasurer for overpaid taxes or investor payments. * Approved a special use permit with Apache/Sitgreaves National Forest to allow the flood control district to continue maintenance of a drainage canal for the purpose of flood control adjacent to Ski Hi Retreat Subdivision in Pinetop. * Adopted a resolution extinguishing two public roadway easements in the Linden Area. * Approved the warrant and voucher reports over $1,000 for August. The next meeting of the Navajo County Board of Supervisors will be at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 13. Information on how to listen to the meeting through the video conferencing system Zoom can be found on the Navajo County website, www.navajocountyaz.gov.
