CRC action postponed a second time
Published 7:15 am Friday, August 19, 2005
By By JOHN EBY / Dowagiac Daily News
CASSOPOLIS - For the second time in as many meetings, the Cass County Board of Commissioners postponed action Thursday on an agreement with Cost Recovery Corp.
CRC, of Dayton, Ohio, provides cost recovery services to fire departments, emergency medical services (EMS) departments, police departments, sheriff's departments and hospitals.
In Cass County CRC would be responsible for implementing the board's Aug. 4 action to bill insurance companies to recover costs for public safety services the Sheriff's Office provides at motor vehicle accidents.
Commissioner Johnie Rodebush, D-Howard Township, irked County Administrator Terry Proctor when he launched into a laundry list of questions and concerns about the proposal, citing them by number in the three-page document.
Commissioner David Taylor, D-Edwardsburg, moved to postpone, which passed on a divided voice vote.
Fees increased to $10
for accident reports
Commissioners approved a request by Sheriff Joseph M. Underwood Jr. to boost fees for accident and incident reports to $10.
In July, the sheriff said, Michigan State Police made purchasing traffic accident reports available online for a $10 fee at the Web site http://www.michigan.gov/msp.
This makes it easier to receive copies of traffic accident reports by purchasing them online versus the manual procedure utilized in Cassopolis.
Of the $10 fee state police charge, $3 is sent to the corresponding law enforcement agency for providing data to the Web site.
When Cass County's current equipment gets updated, the state will provide an additional $3 per report - $6 total.
The Sheriff's Office currently charges $4 a copy. Unless the fees are comparable, Underwood said, "There is no benefit for insurance companies to purchase copies of traffic accident reports utilizing the state police Web site."
The sheriff added that the $10 charge will be total. Currently, the $4 covers the cost of a copy of the first and last page of the report, plus 50 cents per additional page.
Underwood said the fees "have not been increased in some time."
Due to staffing decreases, if his office is inundated with report requests, "Some things are not going to be completed in a timely manner. If we charge the same fee as the state police Web site, this will encourage insurance companies to purchase online and receive their reports immediately versus waiting for processing through this office."
Follow-up to budget
presentation of Aug. 4
County Administrator Terry Proctor, who Aug. 4 unveiled a proposed 2005-06 budget balanced at $15.7 million by draining more than half a million dollars from a $2.2 million reserve and eliminating seven positions from six departments, reported that it has circulated to all of the elected officials and department heads.
Special budget
discussion Aug. 25
Chairman Bob Wagel, R-Wayne Township, called a special meeting for next Thursday, Aug. 25, from 4 to 6 p.m., dedicated to discussing the budget. The public is welcome to attend.
The board is also planning a retreat at Edward Lowe Foundation's Billieville in Penn Township for Oct. 29 similar to a workshop held in 2003.
Wagel asked board members to submit ideas for what they would like to address.
Wagel also acknowledged that he has been elected to represent Cass and 14 other counties on the Michigan Association of Counties board of directors.