Commissioners delay decision on buying motorgrader as road fund money is depleted; county board “borrows” $500,000 from inheritance fund to cover department’s spending

​YORK --- York County infuses the road department with money every so many months and the latest infusion wasn’t made that long ago; yet, the amount of money in the road fund has been spent and the commissioners have had to transfer a half million dollars from the inheritance fund to make sure there is enough through the end of the year.

​Because the county’s tax collections come in at different times of the year, the commissioners transfer money into the road fund three times a year. The intent is for the money, as it comes into the county coffers, to last through that period of time – until the next transfer. But it appears the money has run out earlier than anticipated and the inheritance fund “loan” had to be made this week as collections will not take place again for a while.
“We need to do a transfer as some things were way ahead of schedule within the line items,” Commissioner Chairman Randy Obermier told his fellow county board members this week as they met in regular session. “We are going to have to do a transfer.”
The intent was to make sure there is enough money in the fund, through the end of the calendar year, to make payroll and cover other expenses. Eventually, there will be another round of tax collections – but until then, funds will have to be available.
Obermier proposed the transfer be made as a loan from the inheritance fund, meaning it will be paid back in the 2026-27 fiscal year.
During this week’s meeting, the commissioners were also scheduled to purchase a new motorgrader – with the money already budgeted to come from the inheritance fund – but they decided to hold off on that purchase.
Obermier and Commissioner Andy Bowman said they felt the board should hold up on purchasing the motorgrader until the “road fund is shored up.”
Commissioner LeRoy Ott agreed.
“I have a hard time double dipping into the inheritance fund,” Bowman said.
“I agree,” said Commissioner Daniel Grotz. “We have to do the transfer no matter what, and I get where you are going. We have to do the transfer and then we have to decide on whether we want to buy the motorgrader now.”
All the commissioners agreed to the $500,000 transfer.
Obermier noted the inheritance fund was sitting at around $5.4 million, but there are also future expenditures scheduled to come out of there for things like a broadband expansion program and the new sprinkler system in the jail.
Motorgrader quotes were received from Nebraska Machinery and Murphy Tractor, with similar costs and varying options. The costs were in the mid-$300,000 range.
This purchase has been budgeted.
However, with the spending issue at hand and money already being taken from the inheritance fund to cover the current shortfall, the commissioners collectively didn’t seem ready to make any decisions about purchasing the equipment.
There was some discussion about renting a machine this winter, if needed, for moving snow, if they don’t buy a motorgrader now. It was also noted the old motorgrader (which would be replaced by the new purchase) has severe transmission issues and cannot be used right now – repairs would likely cost around $45,000.
“I think we should make some contacts to see how quickly we could get a rental if we had a bad storm and needed to get one,” Obermier said. “I’m not against buying equipment but the shape of that fund right now – actions created that situation and actions now have to be taken and this is my answer for that.”
“I understand that,” Grotz said. “Another thing to consider is that we budgeted out of the inheritance fund for this, as well as a truck/trailer. We could buy the motorgrader and not the truck/trailer this year. I would like us to not act on this today. We could look at this again at our next meeting, after we digest all the information. I have no problem not making a decision today.”
“With the current situation with the road fund, something has to give,” Bowman said. “I personally want to think through our options. I’d like to take this up later. I don’t see the rental scenario working for us and at the same time we cannot afford less equipment when it comes to snow. We need to do something – but when it comes to needs and wants, the truck/trailer is a want and the motorgrader is a need.”
“If we can keep the quotes for 15-30 days, we can figure this out,” Ott added.
The board agreed to postpone action on the motorgrader purchase and roads department officials will ask the bidding companies if they will extend their quotes for 30 days.