Daviess County commissioners approved several budget actions and board appointments, advanced funds to the county airport for a grant project and tabled a separate coroner appropriation request pending more information.

Airport: Erica, representing the airport, asked commissioners to approve using county general-fund cash to cover $89,645 in contractor invoices required to complete taxi-lane and hangar work. She said the airport expects federal or grant reimbursement in August 2026. Commissioners approved the appropriation; the money will be tracked and reimbursed to the county when the airport receives grant funds. The packet noted the airport’s county-match account held about $55,000; Erica said she expected some funds to roll over and planned to track the reimbursements.

Superior court and coroner: Commissioners approved a $10,000 additional appropriation to cover upcoming jury trials for superior court; Judge Murray was at a conference and not present. The commission considered a $30,000 appropriation request from the coroner’s office to cover increased autopsy costs and unexplained deaths but tabled that request until coroner staff could be present to answer questions. Separately, the commission approved a $900 Community Foundation grant receipt and appropriation for the coroner’s office to buy equipment; the specific equipment was not detailed in the meeting packet.

Opioid settlement funds: The commission approved $54,000 from the restricted opioid settlement fund for RISE Peer Recovery as recommended by the JRAC board in May.

Sheriff and vehicles: Sheriff Allison reported last year’s vehicle purchases cost $5,691.25 more than budgeted after using Kelly Blue Book estimates earlier in the budget process; he proposed using the county’s offender-fee fund to cover the shortfall rather than County General. The State Board of Accounts required commissioners to approve that use; commissioners voted to approve applying those restricted funds to cover the vehicle shortfall. The sheriff also said four vehicles were purchased last year.

Smaller items and appointments: Commissioners approved a $2,000 purchase request for a laptop for CASA (a county email quote listed $1,600; the packet request was $2,000) and approved appointments to the Davis Community Hospital board: Tyson Wagner and Tony Dungyen. The transcript recorded an abstention noted during the hospital appointment votes; commissioners approved the nominations. Commissioners also approved several other small appropriations and packet items and adjourned the meeting.

The meeting record shows some items were tabled because the requesting staff were not present and that several appropriations rely on future reimbursements or grant accounting procedures.