News

Donley County Commissioners voted Monday to give notice to local municipalities of their intent to pursue the formation of county assistance districts that would be funded by sales taxes.

The commissioners’ court also approved a proposal to create a county assistance district in the unincorporated areas of the county.
County officials have discussed the districts as a mechanism to provide money to the Donley County Sheriff’s Office. The plan would be to create four county assistance districts – one each in the cities of Clarendon, Hedley, and Howardwick and one in the unincorporated areas of the county.

If the city councils vote to pursue creation of the districts, the matter would be put on the May ballot for citizens to approve or disapprove. With local sales taxes in Texas capped at 2.0 percent, Clarendon would have to give up part of its sales tax revenue to fund a district, and Hedley and Howardwick would see their tax rates increase from 1.0 percent to 2.0 percent with half going to the new districts. Unincorporated areas of the county would also take on a 2.0 percent sales tax.

As it has been discussed, the districts would be governed by the Donley County Commissioners Court.

County Judge John Howard and Sheriff Butch Blackburn were planning to go to the Howardwick City Council meeting Tuesday night to discuss the proposal as the Enterprise went to press. Blackburn and Howard will also visit the Hedley City Council on Thursday night and the Clarendon City Council next Thursday.

Cities have 45 days to respond to the county’s notice, Howard said.

In other county business Monday, Chriss Clifford of A Fine Feathered Nest presented ideas for improving county-owned buildings on the east side of the courthouse square as well as a concept of painting or staining the white brick of the Courthouse Annex. Judge Howard said the county will take bids on these ideas after the holidays and said the county wants to lead by example in terms of downtown revitalization by improving the looks of county-owned property.

The City of Clarendon set a new record when Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar distributed December sales tax allocations last week.

Clarendon’s revenue for the month increased 36.23 percent compared to December 2022 with an allocation of $45,831.54.

That’s the highest December sales tax ever for the city and beats last year’s record high of $33,640.67.

Clarendon finishes calendar year 2023 with sales tax revenues of $513,842.32, an increase of 2.63 percent over 2022.

The City of Howardwick also saw an increase with revenue of $1,550.71 for the month, up 3.41 percent compared to the same period last year. That city is up 0.39 percent for the year at $22,094.12.

Hedley fell 44.66 for the month at $440.20 and ends the year up 0.84 percent at $12,563.52.

Statewide, Hegar sent $1.1 billion in local sales tax allocations for December, 2.5 percent more than in December 2022.
These allocations are based on sales made in October by businesses that report tax monthly.

Former Hedley City Secretary Kim Gossman was arrested Tuesday afternoon, December 5, and charged with a third-degree felony for Theft by a Public Servant.

Gossman, age 56, from Clarendon was indicted by the Donley County Grand Jury on Monday following an investigation that began in January. Justice of the Peace Sarah Hatley arraigned Gossman Tuesday afternoon and set her bond at $25,000. She remained in the Donley County Jail at press time late Tuesday afternoon.

Donley County Sheriff Butch Blackburn said this charge of Theft by a Public Servant is for an amount over $2,500 but less than $30,000. Blackburn also said that investigations into Gossman are still ongoing and that other indictments could be expected.
Gossman resigned from her city position on January 19 amid an investigation into allegations of misappropriation of city funds. On January 9, Hedley’s auditor first alerted then Mayor Carrie Butler of “discrepancies” in Gossman’s salary discovered during the city’s fiscal year 2022 audit, covering July 2021 through June 2022.

Following her resignation from the city, the Enterprise reported the investigation had widened to include Gossman’s work at the Hedley Community Development Corporation, the local housing authority.

Butler later told the Enterprise she knew of at least $50,000 missing. A forensic auditor was brought in by the city in March, and the city borrowed $75,000 against a bond insurance policy for operation funds.

New sidewalks and streetlamps are on the horizon for another block of Kearney Street after the City of Clarendon was notified Monday that it’s Texas Department of Agriculture Downtown Revitalization grant application has been approved.

The same program that revitalized the 100 block of Kearney will now carry over into the 200 block, improving accessibility, pedestrian safety, and overall appearance in that section of downtown.

More details on the new grant will be reported soon. Construction on the 200 block project is still several months away, following the bidding process and other necessary steps under the grant.

Meanwhile, the Clarendon Economic Development Corporation funded parking striping in the 100 block, which was completed last week, and the CEDC and Clarendon Chamber of Commerce are working together to get holiday decorations for the new lights installed in that section. Garland was installed on the posts Wednesday, and banners are expected next week.

New handrailing for the 100 block project and some other finishing touches for the lamp posts are expected soon also.

The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service will host the AgriLife Crop Production and Protection Seminar Dec. 21 in Donley County and in locations all across the Panhandle and South Plains.

The speakers will be virtual, but AgriLife Extension county agents in almost every county of the agency’s District 1, headquartered in Amarillo, and District 2, headquartered in Lubbock, will host an in-person event for producers to attend, said Danny Nusser, AgriLife Extension program leader for the North Region.

Registration will begin at 8:00 a.m. at the Donley County Activity Center on State Highway 70 north of Clarendon. The cost to attend here is $40, and lunch will be provided. The program will begin at 8:30 a.m.

“We want to make sure everyone across the region has the same opportunity to hear these speakers and obtain the same CEUs,” Nusser said.

He said they will utilize the Microsoft Teams platform to bring all the speakers together from across the state, without having to make anyone travel any further than their home county.

Five Texas Department of Agriculture continuing education units – one general, two integrated pest management, one drift and one laws and regulations – will be offered at each location.

The following topics and speakers are on the agenda:

• Know your Pesticide Laws and Regulations – Comprehensive look at the pesticide laws and regulations, EPA updates, and licensing/certification guidelines, Dr. Don Renchie presenting.
• Weed control mishaps and how to manage success? Potential issues related to herbicide or management failures in controlling weed pests. (resistance, management decisions, timing, herbicide selection, application, equipment, and mother nature), Dr. Peter Dotray presenting.
• Reducing risk of off target drift, off label decisions, and updates on new regulations affecting pesticide availability, Dr. Scott Nolte presenting
• Available tools for management of brush and weed problems in pastures, Dr. Morgan Treadwell presenting.
• Unlocking the genetic potential of corn/sorghum hybrids? How to protect your investment and select technologies that not only optimize yield but mitigate risk from issues such as weed, disease, drought, and insects, Dr. Jourdan Bell and Dr. Kevin Heflin presenting.

The program will also feature updates from commodity partners.