Traffic concerns and county modernization highlight June 2 commission meeting

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The Eureka County Commission convened for its regular meeting on Tuesday, June 2, addressing a wide range of county business, including department updates, public safety concerns, natural resource management and county expenditures.

The meeting was led by Chairman Rich McKay, with Commissioner Marty Plaskett in attendance.

Public safety and traffic concerns

Eureka County Sheriff Miles Umina presented a department update highlighting serious traffic concerns on local highways. Umina reported two fatal motor vehicle accidents in the county within the past 30 days, including one on Interstate 80 and another the night prior to the meeting.

Umina identified State Route 306 and State Route 278 as primary areas of concern due to high traffic volumes and excessive speeding. He noted that residents in Pine Valley have requested speed reductions because of the frequent presence of agricultural tractors on the roadway. The Sheriff’s Office has reached out to the Nevada Highway Patrol (NHP) to coordinate focused enforcement efforts, though Umina emphasized the need for a broader conversation between NHP and the Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT).

In other department news, the Sheriff’s Office reported three individuals currently in custody — one in White Pine and two at Ely State Prison — awaiting sentencing on July 17. Additionally, Umina secured a contact at a recent grant conference to bring free hazardous materials (Hazmat) training to the county, which he plans to coordinate with Jeb Rowley before Aug. 31. Umina also requested board direction regarding the official title for the county’s upcoming public nuisance and code enforcement officer position.

Departmental operations and IT upgrades

Chief Information Officer Misty Rowley reported that the IT department is managing several county-wide modernization and security projects, including:

  • Implementing two-factor authentication (2FA) and Simple Sign On (SSO) platforms.
  • “Hardening” the county’s cloud tenant and performing gateway maintenance.
  • Configuring PCs and system updates at the Sheriff’s Office, town hall and senior center in Crescent Valley.
  • Advancing the Vesta 911 call-handling software project in coordination with AT&T and the Sheriff’s Office.

In human resources, director Cristina Lopez announced that recruitment for the college internship summer program is open until June 25. The program is being supported by PR firm MarketShare. Lopez noted there were no new hires this month, and one employee remains on maternity leave.

Infrastructure and natural resources

Natural Resources Manager Jake Tibbitts and Commissioner Plaskett recently attended the Legislative Committee on Public Lands meeting in Winnemucca. Tibbitts highlighted legislative discussions led by Senator Ira Hansen regarding the federal Unlawful Closures Act of the late 1800s, noting potential future friction between private landowners and public land access advocacy.

Tibbitts also provided updates from the Sagebrush Ecosystem Council meeting in Elko, noting difficulties early mining projects are facing in meeting reclamation standards to restore waste dumps into sage grouse habitats. Additionally, Tibbitts reported that longtime Extension natural resource specialist Brad Schultz has retired, and a search committee has been formed to find his replacement.

Regarding wild horses, Tibbitts confirmed to Chairman McKay that while the Pancake Complex recently held a gather, operations are currently paused due to the seasonal horse-foaling window.

In local road developments, road supervisor Scooter Mentaberry reported that Eureka and Crescent Valley crews have been active with road grading, establishing town fire breaks, repairing cattle guards on Willow Creek Road, spraying at the fairgrounds and replacing damaged road signs.

Commission Approvals and Financial Actions

The Board of Commissioners voted to approve a series of fiscal, administrative and environmental measures:

  • Administrative approvals: Ratified the Indigent Defense Annual Financial Status Report and approved a Microsoft Enterprise Enrollment State and Local Agreement for Azure Subscription services through SHI International Corp. Approved EMS directors’ discretionary use of volunteer stipends to account for hours worked beyond on-call duty.
  • Financial expenditures: Approved total county expenditures of $1,024,428.41.
  • Healthcare plan update: Approved switching the county’s medical insurance provider and plans from Prominence to Anthem for the remainder of 2026 and the full 2027 calendar year.
  • Funding and allocations: Authorized $15,000 monthly from the commissioners’ Miscellaneous Account for June, July and August to fund the Eureka County College Internship Pilot Summer Program.
  • Emergency infrastructure repairs: Approved an $8,718.00 emergency repair by Snyder Mechanical for the walk-in freezer at the Crescent Valley Senior Center, utilizing the capital outlay Building Reserve Fund.
  • Credit limit increase: Approved a temporary $4,000 credit limit increase (totaling $5,500) for the month of May on a county purchasing card issued to Steve Zimmerman to purchase Grad Night supplies and prizes.
  • Personnel actions: Approved retroactive pay for Lindsay Stith for Fiscal Year 2024 due to a prior classification error for the Justice Court Deputy Clerk position. Authorized the immediate recruitment of a part-time IT Professional Trainee I position for FY 2026–2027 and approved a double-fill request within the Juvenile Probation Office.
  • Public hearing scheduled: Set a public hearing for July 7, 2026, to review and potentially adopt an updated Eureka County Road Map defining main, general and minor county roads.
  • Federal land and mining responses: Approved participating as a cooperating agency on the Boulder Valley Tailing Storage Facility Project with Elko BLM. Approved official responses to the Elko BLM September 2026 Oil and Gas Lease Sale, the Battle Mountain BLM December 2026 lease sale and the BLM regarding Barrick Gold U.S., Inc.’s Plan of Operations for the Bullion Hill Underground Exploration Project.